Dean Rita P. Kelleher Award

The Dean Rita P. Kelleher Award recognizes a graduate of the Connell School of Nursing who embodies the 51²è¹Ý nurse: an accomplished nurse leader, an ethically aware scientist, and inquisitive clinician. Each year, the award is presented during reunion and the recipient shares her or his knowledge in a topical discussion.

The award’s namesake, Rita P. Kelleher, was the nursing school’s first faculty member in 1947. She served as dean from 1948 to 1968. She returned to full-time teaching and retired in 1973. Dean Kelleher died on November 2, 2009, at the age of 101, leaving a legacy that is still felt today.

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2024 Recipient

Adelene Egan ’18Ìý

Adelene Egan, RN, works in the Emergency Department at NewYork-Presbyterian / Weill Cornell Medical Center. She will receive theÌýDean Rita P. Kelleher Award for alumni achievement on Monday, April 22, 2024.

Past Kelleher Award Recipients


Click on the links below to view details from past events.

2023

Former Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

2022
Past President
Massachusetts School Nurse Organization

2021

President
The John A. Hartford Foundation

2020
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, reunion activities were canceled

2019

Director of Diversity for Nursing and Patient Care Services
Massachusetts GeneralÌýHospital

2018

Senior Nurse Anesthetist
Boston Children's Hospital

Former Chief Clinical Officer for Ebola Response
Partners in Health

2017

Board of Trustees
American Nurses Foundation and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

2016

Colonel, Army Nurse Corps, US Army Reserve
Force Health Protection Integrator, Army Health CommandÌý

Family Nurse Practitioner
Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center

2015
Associate Director of Nursing and Patient Services
VA Boston Healthcare System

2014
Executive Director, Ethics Service
Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Nurse Ethicist
Massachusetts General Hospital’s Institute for Patient Care

Co-chair

MGH Optimum Care Committee

2013

President
Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses

2012
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Brigham and Women’s Hospital


2011
Nurse Practitioner and Preceptor, Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit
New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia Medical Center

2010

Pediatric Oncology Nurse

2009

Director, Clinical Services
Partners Harvard Medical International