Please join us in congratulating Dr. Audria Denker, DNP, RN for her election as Director Southeast Region by the Organization of Associate Degree Nursing (OADN) for a two-year term.
OADN serves as the national advocate for the over 1,200 associate degree nursing programs across the country with the focus to advance excellence in nursing education and community college pathways into registered nursing careers. OADN is the only organization that advocates for associate degree nursing at the national level by using a collective voice to continue delivering opportunities for nurse educators, as faculty and leaders. Dr. Denker’s responsibilities as Director Southeast Region include the development and implementation of OADN’s strategic plan, and serving as a board liaison to southeast US healthcare communities and workgroups, and OADN member nursing programs.
In addition to her appointment with OADN, Dr. Denker has been appointed as an alternate member for a three-year term to the NCLEX® Examination Committee by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) Board of Directors beginning on October 1, 2021. The responsibilities related to this appointment include advising the Board of Directors on matters related to the NCLEX® examination process, including examination item development, security, administration, and quality assurance to ensure consistency with the Member Board’s need for examinations, and develop NCLEX® prototype items that use technology-enhanced item types focused on measuring clinical decision making/judgment.
Dr. Denker joined Galen College of Nursing in 2005 after several decades of experience in clinical practice and healthcare management. She currently serves as Executive Vice President of Nursing (EVP). In her current position, she is responsible for day-to-day program operations, staffing and workload, clinical operations, simulation, and student support; as well as additional academic responsibilities for campus expansions in partnership with Healthcare Corporation of America (HCA). During her tenure as EVP, all prelicensure RN programs obtained ACEN programmatic accreditation and all program pass rates have exceeded state and national averages.
Dr. Denker is an active leader in numerous civic and charitable organizations and holds a Kentucky Governor-appointed position on the Executive Committee of the Kentucky Board of Nursing since 2018. Dr. Denker received the Associate of Science Degree in Nursing from Pikeville (Kentucky) College (now the University of Pikeville), and the Master of Science in Nursing and Doctor of Nursing Practice from Bellarmine University in Louisville.
