Golden Anniversary for Yale Nursing’s Distinguished Alumni Awards

November 1, 2023
  • 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Lucinda Canty ’94 MSN enjoys the moment surrounded by well-wishers, including faculty member Heather Reynolds ’80 MSN (right).
    2023 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Lucinda Canty ’94 MSN enjoys the moment surrounded by well-wishers, including faculty member Heather Reynolds ’80 MSN (right).
  • 2023 Decade Award winners Pritma Dhillon-Chattha ’18 DNP and Brighid Gannon ’18 DNP were recognized for their work with Lavender, an online psychiatry and therapy office launched during the Covid-19 pandemic.
    2023 Decade Award winners Pritma Dhillon-Chattha ’18 DNP and Brighid Gannon ’18 DNP were recognized for their work with Lavender, an online psychiatry and therapy office launched during the Covid-19 pandemic.
  • 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award winner and former dean Ann Kurth ’90 MSN celebrates with her son.
    2023 Distinguished Alumni Award winner and former dean Ann Kurth ’90 MSN celebrates with her son.
  • 2022 Decade Award Winner Nicole Seagriff ’11 MSN (from left) and Distinguished Alumni Award winners Mary Geary ’74 MSN, and Shannon Fitzgerald ’80 MSN.
    2022 Decade Award Winner Nicole Seagriff ’11 MSN (from left) and Distinguished Alumni Award winners Mary Geary ’74 MSN, and Shannon Fitzgerald ’80 MSN.
  • 2021 honorees include Inaugural Decade Award winner Stephanie Tillman ’12 MSN (from left) and Distinguished Alumni Winners Wailua Brandman ’94 MSN and Terri Clark ’76 BA, ’79 MSN.
    2021 honorees include Inaugural Decade Award winner Stephanie Tillman ’12 MSN (from left) and Distinguished Alumni Winners Wailua Brandman ’94 MSN and Terri Clark ’76 BA, ’79 MSN.
  • 2021 honoree Wailua Brandman ’94 MSN receives a ceremonial headdress at the conclusion of the event.
    2021 honoree Wailua Brandman ’94 MSN receives a ceremonial headdress at the conclusion of the event.
  • 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Brenda Penner ’76 MSN founded the Newborns in Need project for the Yale Day of Service.
    2020 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Brenda Penner ’76 MSN founded the Newborns in Need project for the Yale Day of Service.
  • Dean Emami embraces Thelma Joseph ’46 M.N., who is celebrating her personal centennial this year.
    Dean Emami embraces Thelma Joseph ’46 M.N., who is celebrating her personal centennial this year.
  • Guests celebrated the winners at the Greenberg Conferences and Events Center.
    Guests celebrated the winners at the Greenberg Conferences and Events Center.

The 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award and Decade Awards saluted four years of winners.

The 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award and Decade Awards saluted four years of winners.

Amid the excitement of centennial kickoff programming, Yale School of Nursing (YSN) also celebrated a golden anniversary: 50 years of the Distinguished Alumni Awards.

The first recipients were drawn from classes 1926 through 1948, and the decades of their YSN educations include devastating lows, such as epidemics of polio. But they also include historic triumphs, such as a woman in New Haven who is considered the first patient ever cured by penicillin.

More than 100 Yale nurses and midwives have been honored as Distinguished Alumni since 1973, and two years ago the Decade Award was introduced to salute the accomplishments of Yale nurses and midwives early in their post-YSN careers.

Discarding the gloom of the Covid-19 years that precluded in-person celebrations in 2020, 2021, and 2022, this year’s ceremony celebrated the latest winners and the honorees from those years.

“The Distinguished Alumni Awards and Decade Awards recognize YSN graduates who became leaders—leaders who had the vision, spirit, and perseverance to do what it took to innovate, create, and implement groundbreaking efforts,” said Dean Azita Emami, PhD, MSN, BSN, RNT, RN, FAAN. “Those efforts are making a meaningful difference in the lives of countless people, raising the visibility of our profession, and reshaping health care in America.”


More Information

Check out the full list of 50 years of winners here.

For more information on the people, stories, and events that compose the YSN Centennial (September 2023 – May 2024), please visit nursing.yale.edu/centennial.