For more than 80 years, Frontier Nursing University (FNU) has helped shape some of the most renowned nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners in the United States, and there is little doubt that much of that can be owed to the hard work and dedication of our faculty. While we use a distance-education learning model, there isn’t much that feels “distant” when it comes to our community. As students learn and provide care in their home communities, FNU faculty are committed to being present and providing consistent support throughout the educational journey.
Are you considering becoming a student at FNU? Here is what you can expect from our faculty.
As one of the first steps in your FNU path, you will attend Frontier Bound, a three day retreat where you will be introduced to your classmates and some of your faculty. During this retreat you can ask questions, get a glimpse of how coursework is delivered, and begin to create positive, supportive relationships with those you will be working with throughout your program. As our nation has faced the current pandemic, our Frontier Bound experience has transitioned to a distance experience. We have been so pleased to find that students continue to report feeling connected, inspired and ready to start their coursework!
Frontier Bound was intentionally created to help students feel comfortable with the people they will interact with in the upcoming months. Your faculty will be in touch consistently through emails, video chat, and phone calls – and they mean it when they say they are available for questions and support. Whether it’s curriculum questions or on-the-job scenarios, we want students to know they can always reach out for advice and clarification.
Another great thing about our faculty is they not only have book knowledge, they have real-world experience. 96 percent of our faculty are also certified nurse practitioners and/or nurse-midwives, with over half of them still active in their practice in their respective fields. Your instructors understand the situations you will face and want to do their very best to prepare you for your career.
If you are interested in getting some background on specific faculty members, please browse our faculty directory where you can find information on our whole team from nurse-midwives, to librarians, to psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners and family nurse practitioners. As you look through our faculty profiles you will begin to see a few notable patterns: many of our faculty members are FNU alumni, many have worked with underserved populations, and although there are many fields of study represented, each faculty member is knowledgeable and passionate about what they do.
Something else that you may notice is that we pride ourselves in working with people from a variety of backgrounds. As an organization with a mission to serve the underserved, we understand the need for diversity in our student population as well as faculty. Caring for people regardless of race, religion or culture also means working alongside and learning from people of every race, religion and culture. The more diversity we have among our faculty and students, the greater our pool of knowledge will be of people and communities, as well as the social and medical issues facing our country.
If learning under the tutelage of intelligent and dedicated individuals with a passion to provide care to underserved communities aligns with your educational goals, visit our admissions page to apply today! We are always happy to discuss our programs with potential students.
We hope you consider joining the FNU community and experience for yourself the difference compassionate, knowledgeable, and present faculty can have on your education and future.
Justin C. Daily, BSN, RN, has ten years of experience in nursing. At the start of his nursing career, Justin worked as a floor nurse on the oncology floor at St. Francis. He then spent two years as the Director of Nursing in a small rural Kansas hospital before returning to St. Francis and the oncology unit. He has been in his current position as the Chemo Nurse Educator for the past four years. He earned an Associate in Nurse from Hutchinson Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Bethel College.
Brandy Jackson serves as the Director of Undergraduate Nursing Programs and Assistant Educator at Wichita State University and Co-Director of Access in Nursing. Brandy is a seasoned educator with over 15 years of experience. Before entering academia, Brandy served in Hospital-based leadership and Critical Care Staff nurse roles. Brandy is passionate about equity in nursing education with a focus on individuals with disabilities. Her current research interests include accommodations of nursing students with disabilities in clinical learning environments and breaking down barriers for historically unrepresented individuals to enter the nursing profession. Brandy is also actively engaged in Interprofessional Education development, creating IPE opportunities for faculty and students at Wichita State. Brandy is an active member of Wichita Women for Good and Soroptimist, with the goal to empower women and girls. Brandy is a TeamSTEPPS master trainer. She received the DASIY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty in 2019 at Wichita State University. 
Dr. Sabrina Ali Jamal-Eddine is an Arab-disabled queer woman of color with a PhD in Nursing and an interdisciplinary certificate in Disability Ethics from the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Dr. Jamal-Eddine’s doctoral research explored spoken word poetry as a form of critical narrative pedagogy to educate nursing students about disability, ableism, and disability justice. Dr. Jamal-Eddine now serves as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in UIC’s Department of Disability and Human Development and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Organization of Nurses with Disabilities (NOND). During her doctoral program, Sabrina served as a Summer Fellow at a residential National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) Summer Institute at Arizona State University (2023), a summer fellow at Andrew W. Mellon’s National Humanities Without Walls program at University of Michigan (2022), a Summer Research Fellow at UC Berkeley’s Othering & Belonging Institute (2021), and an Illinois Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities (LEND) trainee (2019-2020).
Vanessa Cameron works for Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nursing Education & Professional Development. She is also attending George Washington University and progressing towards a PhD in Nursing with an emphasis on ableism in nursing. After becoming disabled in April 2021, Vanessa’s worldview and perspective changed, and a recognition of the ableism present within healthcare and within the culture of nursing was apparent. She has been working since that time to provide educational foundations for nurses about disability and ableism, provide support for fellow disabled nursing colleagues, and advocate for the disabled community within healthcare settings to reduce disparities.
Dr. Lucinda Canty is a certified nurse-midwife, Associate Professor of Nursing, and Director of the Seedworks Health Equity in Nursing Program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Columbia University, a master’s degree from Yale University, specializing in nurse-midwifery, and a PhD from the University of Connecticut. Dr. Canty has provided reproductive health care for over 29 years. Her research interests include the prevention of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity, reducing racial and ethnic health disparities in reproductive health, promoting diversity in nursing, and eliminating racism in nursing and midwifery.
Dr. Lisa Meeks is a distinguished scholar and leader whose unwavering commitment to inclusivity and excellence has significantly influenced the landscape of health professions education and accessibility. She is the founder and executive director of the DocsWithDisabilities Initiative and holds appointments as an Associate Professor in the Departments of Learning Health Sciences and Family Medicine at the University of Michigan.
Dr. Nikia Grayson, DNP, MSN, MPH, MA, CNM, FNP-C, FACNM (she/her) is a trailblazing force in reproductive justice, blending her expertise as a public health activist, anthropologist, and family nurse-midwife to champion the rights and health of underserved communities. Graduating with distinction from Howard University, Nikia holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and a master’s degree in public health. Her academic journey also led her to the University of Memphis, where she earned a master’s in medical anthropology, and the University of Tennessee, where she achieved both a master’s in nursing and a doctorate in nursing practice. Complementing her extensive education, she completed a post-master’s certificate in midwifery at Frontier Nursing University.
Dr. Tia Brown McNair is the Vice President in the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Student Success and Executive Director for the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) Campus Centers at the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) in Washington, DC. She oversees both funded projects and AAC&U’s continuing programs on equity, inclusive excellence, high-impact practices, and student success. McNair directs AAC&U’s Summer Institutes on High-Impact Practices and Student Success, and TRHT Campus Centers and serves as the project director for several AAC&U initiatives, including the development of a TRHT-focused campus climate toolkit. She is the lead author of From Equity Talk to Equity Walk: Expanding Practitioner Knowledge for Racial Justice in Higher Education (January 2020) and Becoming a Student-Ready College: A New Culture of Leadership for Student Success (July 2016 and August 2022 Second edition).