Mary Starke Harper Distinguished Lectureship

This Lectureship is named in honor of Mary Starke Harper, named a Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing. The lectureship highlights the career of a nurse leader who has made significant contributions to the field of gerontology.

The indelible wisdom and grace of these proven legends is an invaluable gift to our future leaders. Building on the strength of past leaders supports the promise within the next generation of nurses.

2007 Recipient was Shirley Chater, RN, PhD, FAAN.

Past Recipients
2006 - Loretta Ford, EdD, RN, PNP, FAAN, FAANP
2005 - Claire M. Fagin, PhD, RN, FAAN
2004 - Luther Christman, PhD, RN, FAAN
2003 - Florence Wald, RN, MN, MA, FAAN

History of Award

On November 20, 2002 Mary Starke Harper addressed over 130 scholars and invited guests at the Second Annual Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity Leadership Conference in Boston. Dr. Harper, a living legend, was born in 1920. Her life and her career trajectory held the audience spellbound as she spoke of her commitment to geriatric and psychiatric health care, her professional and personal accomplishments within a social fabric fret with bias and bigotry and her work yet to be completed.

The reception that followed to honor this distinguished guest gave the audience individual access to this gracious and commanding nurse leader. Not surprisingly, the evaluation of this program received the highest marks possible by every attendee. As a result of the overwhelming response to this event, the Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity Program proposed the idea of the Mary Starke Harper Distinguished Lectureship for future Leadership Conferences, and it was incorporated.