A committee consisting of three ACEN members representing both service and educational settings (and the executive committee) reviews applications through a blinded process and select a candidate for the Scholarship. Should applicants wish to re-apply for a second year of support; the application process will need to be repeated in the same way.

2008 ACEN Scholarship recipient Norna Waters

Norna is a Masters Student at the University of British Columbia School of Nursing. Her clinical practice has been focused in Perinatal Nursing and she holds both post graduate specialty certification and Canadian Nurses Certification in Perinatal Nursing. Currently she is a Risk Management Leader at Children’s & Women’s Health Centre of B.C. where she provides risk management support to clinical and professional services. She has also been an active member of the Association of Women’s Health Obstetrical and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) Canada holding various leadership positions on the Section Coordinating Team. She currently holds the position of Chapter Coordinator of the British Columbia/Alberta Chapter. Her research in her Masters Program is focused on factors influencing the workplace environments of Registered Nurses and how this impacts the development of patient safety cultures and error reporting.

2008 ACEN Scholarship recipient Wendy Gifford

Wendy is a doctoral student at the University of Ottawa School of Nursing. Her research focuses on leadership development for knowledge translation, including leadership to facilitate the implementation of clinical practice guidelines in nursing. She brings a wealth of clinical experience from both acute care and community sectors into her program of research that includes ICU/ER, outpost nurse practioner work in remote northern Aboriginal communities, and community program development. She holds a doctoral fellowship from the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario, an operating grant from the Canadian Nursing Foundation, and has recently received funding from the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care Nursing Research Fund to expand on her doctoral work developing individual and organizational leadership capacity in home health care.

Other important scholarship opportunities for advancement in nursing are available via the Canadian Nurses Foundation, CHSRF and CIHR.