Advancing the Future of Health Through Nursing Research

The new Center of Excellence for Nursing Research, Collaboration and Innovation’s mission is to support the strategic objectives and academic mission of the School of Nursing and TTUHSC in conducting research. That includes interprofessional collaboration among researchers, students, stakeholders and partners. It also promotes the professional development of researchers and provides the infrastructure needed for faculty to write manuscripts and grants.

Alyce Ashcraft, PhD, RN, the center’s director and School of Nursing associate dean for research and scholarship, said of the schools within TTUHSC, nursing is the last to receive a dedicated center. “What makes it unique is that it focuses on clinical research — seeking answers about the human response to health along the illness-wellness spectrum,” Ashcraft said. “When you’re at a university, it’s academics, practice and research. Those are the three legs to the stool, and we need to grow that, encouraging more people to want to do research.”

Currently, the team supporting the center includes Ashcraft, Seungman Kim, PhD, the school’s statistician and senior research associate, and Jason Glikas, research administrator. “Right now, we only have a few researchers,” Ashcraft said. “I really want to incentivize that and have the people who want to do research want to come here.”