By Sarah Morgan Johnson
University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing University Professor David Vance, PhD, MGS, MS, has been named a 2024 Honorary Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, joining six UAB School of Nursing alumni named to this year’s AAN Fellows cohort. They join more than 130 FAANs affiliated with the School.
The Academy recognizes Honorary Fellows for their outstanding contributions to nursing and/or health care and the positive and ongoing impact of their work in influencing nursing and health care. Honorary Fellowship is granted only to persons outside of the nursing profession.
Vance, who holds a doctorate in developmental and child psychology, master’s degrees in psychology and gerontology and a bachelor’s degree in psychology, joined the School as Assistant Professor in 2006, progressing to the rank of Professor in 2015 and was named University Professor in 2024. He serves as the School’s Director of Grant Regulatory and Review Processes and holds a dual faculty appointment in the College of Arts and Sciences Department of Psychology. He also holds appointments in nine UAB university-wide centers, including the Center for AIDS Research, Alzheimer’s Disease Center, Integrative Center for Aging Research, Comprehensive Neuroscience Center and O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Vance has made significant contributions to the study of neurocognitive aging and HIV and AIDS care for the aging, bridging multiple disciplines, including health care, psychology, gerontology and infectious diseases. He has received more than $4 million in extramural grant funding as a PI and more than $35 million as Co-Investigator from organizations including the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Nursing Research, and the National Institute of Aging.
This year’s UAB School of Nursing alumni Academy Fellow inductees include Kristi A. Acker, PhD, DNP, FNP-BC, AOCNP, ACHPN, FAANP (DNP 2009), Thomas W. Barkley, PhD, ACNP-BC, ANP, FAANP (PhD 1994), Luz G. Huntington-Moskos, PhD, RN, CPN (PhD 2013), Cordelia C. Nnedu, PhD, MSN, BSN, RN, CNM, WHNP-BC, CNE, ANEF (MSN 1982), Natasha Schaefer Solle, PhD, MSN, RN (MSN 2019) and Courtney Sullivan, PhD, RN, CPNP-AC, CPHON (MSN 2013, PhD 2021).
Kristi A. Acker, PhD, DNP, FNP-BC, AOCNP, ACHPN, FAANP (DNP 2009)
Acker is a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Alabama Capstone College of Nursing. She is devoted to palliative care and hematology/oncology, practicing with Oncology Associates of Tuscaloosa at the Lewis and Faye Manderson Cancer Center. Acker serves as Chair of the Alabama State Advisory Council on Palliative Care and Quality of Life and Co-chair for the American Association of Nurse Practitioners Oncology Specialty Practice Group. She is a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and Palliative Care Nursing.
Thomas W. Barkley, PhD, ACNP-BC, ANP, FAANP (PhD 1994)
Barkley is the president of Barkley & Associates, a company dedicated to providing nurse practitioners with continuing education courses. He is also Professor Emeritus of the Patricia A. Chin School of Nursing at California State University, Los Angeles. Barkley has over 100 published articles and chapters on topics such as HIV/AIDS prevention, acute care nursing practice and nursing education. He serves as the primary editor of Practice Considerations for Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioners as well as three other specialty texts. In 2011, Barkley was named a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. In 2019, he was inducted into the Alabama Nursing Hall of Fame and in 2021 he was named one of 70 UAB School of Nursing Visionary Leaders.
Luz G. Huntington-Moskos, PhD, RN, CPN (PhD 2013)
Huntington-Moskos is an Associate Professor at the University of Louisville, where she also serves as the Director of the Community Engagement Core for the Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences. She has a passion for adolescent health, and as a 2021-2024 Betty Irene Moore Fellow she has focused her research on the relationship between environmental health, adolescent health and health disparities. Her published research can be found in journals such as Public Health Nursing, Preventing Chronic Disease and Journal of Adolescent Health.
Cordelia C. Nnedu, PhD, MSN, BSN, RN, CNM, WHNP-BC, CNE, ANEF (MSN 1982)
Nnedu is a Professor at the Tuskegee University School of Nursing and Allied Health where she has served as Project Director of the Nursing Workforce Diversity Grant since 2002. At Tuskegee University, she has also served the Department Head for the School of Nursing, the Chair of the Curriculum and Evaluation Committe and as a member of the Tenure and Promotion Committee. Nnedu graduated with her MSN from the UAB School of Nursing in 1982.
Natasha Schaefer Solle, PhD, MSN, RN (MSN 2019)
Solle is a Research Associate Professor at the University of Miami Leonard M. School of Medicine. She was named the Outstanding Community-Based Researcher of the Year by the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center. Solle graduated with her MSN from the UAB School of Nursing in 2019.
Courtney Sullivan, PhD, RN, CPNP-AC, CPHON (MSN 2013, PhD 2021)
Sullivan is a postdoctoral research fellow and double alum of the UAB School of Nursing. Her research is aimed at measuring, improving and generating evidence for pediatric cancer nursing outcomes globally. She is Chair of the International Society of Pediatric Oncology Nursing Network, Chair of the Nursing Network and former Chair of the Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Global Outreach Committee. She also serves as a member of the International Society of Pediatric Oncology Board of Directors and advisor to WHO’s Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer. In January 2023, she co-led the baseline nursing standards project for SIOP in Lima, Peru. The 2024 class of Academy Fellows represents 37 states and 14 countries. They join more than 3,000 Academy Fellows who are honored for their impact on health and health care. These nursing and health care leaders will be recognized at an induction ceremony on November 2 as part of the Academy's annual Health Policy Conference in Washington, DC.
