Kristina Thomas Dreifuerst, PhD, RN, CNE, ANEF, FAAN, will become professor and senior associate dean for academics at the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, effective August 1.
Dreifuerst comes to VUSN from the College of Nursing at Marquette University, where she is a tenured professor and director of the PhD program. A curriculum and teaching method expert, Dreifuerst researches how to develop, use and test innovative teaching methods to improve students’ clinical judgment and reasoning skills to be practice-ready. She also researches how educators can best be prepared to use evidence-based methods to enhance clinical teaching for practice readiness.
In her role as senior associate dean for academics, Dreifuerst will oversee all academic programs at Vanderbilt School of Nursing and provide leadership in developing and implementing new programs. She will also oversee student enrollment, student services, clinical placement and simulation.
“Dr. Dreifuerst will play a crucial role in VUSN’s collaborative academic environment, working closely with deans and academic leadership in long-range academic planning, program review, and the development and implementation of school policies, with a particular focus on accreditation, assessment, regulatory matters and curriculum,” said Dean Pamela R. Jeffries, PhD, FAAN, ANEF, FSSH. Dreifuerst will also direct VUSN initiatives in support of innovation in pedagogy, curriculum and instructional design.
“I am eager for the opportunity to both shape and influence academia at Vanderbilt,” Dreifuerst said. “I look forward to building on VUSN’s excellent academic programs and ensuring that they continue to be at the forefront of nursing education.”
Dreifuerst’s program of research focuses on preparation of prelicensure and graduate nursing students for clinical practice. She developed the Debriefing for Meaningful Learning (DML) clinical teaching method, which was used by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing for its landmark 2015 National Simulation Study. DML has been used by more than 500 schools of nursing and interdisciplinary health care programs in the U.S. and globally for traditional clinical settings, simulation and across the curriculum.
“Dr. Dreifuerst’s expertise in dynamic teaching methods is invaluable, and we are absolutely thrilled to have her at VUSN,” said Jeffries, the Valere Potter Distinguished Professor of Nursing. “Her skillset and innovative, forward-thinking curriculum planning will have a powerful, positive impact on the important work of educating the next generation of nurses.”
For her significant contributions to the discipline, Dreifuerst has been inducted as a fellow in the Academy of Nursing Education and a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing. She has received many national and international awards recognizing the contribution of her research to the field, including the National League for Nursing’s Laerdal Debra Spunt Lectureship.
Over the course of her career, Dreifuerst has authored more than 50 journal articles and 12 book chapters on best practices in teaching and learning in nursing. She is actively involved with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and the NLN and is a past president of the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning. She is currently a member of the editorial board for the journal Nursing Education Perspectives, serves as a reviewer for eight ranked nursing journals, and is a former associate editor for the journal, Clinical Simulation in Nursing.
Dreifuerst has received more than 20 grants and fellowships over the course of her career, including funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as principal investigator for her study, Exploring the State of Doctoral Education: Implications for the Nursing Faculty Shortage.
Dreifuerst joined Marquette University’s College of Nursing as a tenured associate professor in 2016. Prior to being promoted to professor and director of the PhD program, she directed its Teaching Certificate in Nursing program. She has also taught at Indiana University, Madison College, University of Wisconsin–Madison and University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh. Dreifuerst received a BA in nursing from Luther College, MS in nursing from University Wisconsin–Madison and her PhD in nursing from Indiana University.
Dreifuerst succeeds Mavis Schorn, PhD, CNM, FACNM, FNAP, FAAN, who served as senior associate dean for academics and taught at VUSN for nearly two decades before retiring in 2024.