UW taps Hilaire Thompson to be next dean of the School of Nursing
University of Washington Provost Tricia Serio announced the appointment of Hilaire Thompson as next executive dean of the School of Nursing, effective Aug. 1, pending approval by the Board of Regents.
Thompson fills the position previously held by Azita Emami, who left in 2023 to lead the Yale School of Nursing. Allison Webel served as interim executive dean.
Thompson already is intimately familiar with UW’s world-class healthcare training and delivery. She’s a professor of Biobehavioral Nursing and Health Informatics in the UW School of Nursing, core faculty at the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center and an adjunct professor in Biomedical Informatics and Medical Education in the UW School of Medicine.
Advisory Search Committee on the Executive Deanship of the School of Nursing
- Sharon Jones, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, UW Bothell, Co-Chair
- Andre Ritter, Dean, School of Dentistry, Co-Chair
- Jay Fathi, MD, CEO Molina Health Care, Member School of Nursing Dean’s Advisory Board
- Shelly Gray, Professor, School of Pharmacy
- Eric Klavins, Professor, Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering
- Pamela Kohler, Professor and Interim Chair, CFPHN, School of Nursing
- Sharon Laing, Associate Professor, Nursing and Healthcare Leadership, UW Tacoma
- Rona Levy, Professor, School of Social Work
- Sarah McKiddy, PhD candidate, GPSS Student Senator, School of Nursing
- Brian Saelens, Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine
- Jamie Shirly, Teaching Professor, SNHS, UW Bothell
- Jenny Vincent, Asst Dean for Advancement, School of Nursing
- Oleg Zaslavsky, Associate Professor, BNHI, Faculty Council Chair, School of Nursing
Charge letter
Dear Colleagues:
Thank you for agreeing to serve on the advisory search committee to identify and recommend candidates for the position of Executive Dean of the School of Nursing. This search may involve both internal and external candidates. Sharon Jones, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, UW Bothell and Andre Ritter, Dean, School of Dentistry will chair the committee. We are fortunate to have such a superb committee.
Our goal is to have a new dean identified by Summer 2024. We seek a distinguished academic and a visionary leader for the School of Nursing who will work well with the UW community, including other academic units, public and non-profit partners, alumni, and donors. We are greatly indebted to Azita Emami for her remarkable vision, leadership and energy as executive dean over the past 10 years. I am also grateful to Allison Webel for serving as interim executive dean as we carry out this search.
Enclosed is a copy of Executive Order 20 from the University of Washington Policy Directory, which sets forth the basic procedures for conducting a search for a dean. The University has a strong commitment to diversity, which I ask you to consider seriously as you build a pool of eligible candidates. Please establish protocols for seeking the opinions of members of the School of Nursing, broader UW faculty, student and staff communities, as well as other appropriate constituencies within and outside the University of Washington.
At the conclusion of the search, the President and I would like to receive from you the names of at least three highly qualified candidates.
I will attend a portion of your first committee meeting, to be scheduled soon, to discuss my priorities and expectations for the position and the search. At this meeting we will also seek your input on a draft position announcement. We are engaging a professional search firm to assist you in this search, which we will announce soon.
Thank you very much for accepting this important assignment.
Sincerely,
Tricia R. Serio
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Professor, Biochemistry