Dr. Phyllis Sharps is the Black Nurse of the Year

With the Black Nurse of the Year Award, another sparkling accolade has been added to a nearly 50-year nursing career for Phyllis Sharps, PhD, RN, FAAN. Dr. Sharps was given the award by the Black Nurses Association of Greater Washington DC before family, colleagues, and students on Saturday, March 2.

Beginning as an expert in maternal and child health, Dr. Sharps’ work has led her to community and public health nursing, and to become a champion for diversity; in 2018 she was a finalist for the Johns Hopkins University Provost Prize for Faculty Excellence in Diversity. In recent years she has received the National League for Nursing Lilian Wald Humanitarian Award, the FNINR President’s Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award in Education and Research by the Association of Black Nursing Faculty.  At the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Dr. Sharps is a professor, associate dean for community programs and initiatives, and the Elsie M. Lawler Chair.

Several students from the Black Student Nurses Association were present to celebrate Dr. Sharps’ achievement. Students agree that Dr. Sharps’ drive to serve and vision for community care helped shape the kind of nurses they will become.

MSN (Entry Into Nursing) student Nazrin Akter writes, “I took Dr. Sharps’ community outreach class in my first semester. Her service for our community is enormous, and she brings us together with her kind voice and hidden power. Congratulations Dr. Sharps! You are our inspiration, especially to students like me who are new to the U.S. and learning the culture.”

Helena Addison, also an MSN (Entry Into Nursing) student, reflects on how Dr. Sharps helped her to work through doubts about pursuing an advanced nursing degree. “She said we need more diverse nurses in research and practice to address the complex needs of vulnerable populations and respond to the increasing shortage of nursing faculty. She reassured me, but more than that she is an inspiration to me and all nurses who want to make an impact in the community. Dr. Sharps will always be a role model and a reminder of what I can be capable of.”

Dr. Phyllis Sharps received the Nurse of the Year award for her commitment to nursing service and practice and exemplary work within the community.

View all photos from the event

Read more:

• Johns Hopkins School of Nursing Professor Phyllis Sharps is Named Black Nurse of the Year
• “Acknowledge the differences and seek to find similarities”—Diversity Q&A with Phyllis Sharps

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: SYDNEE LOGAN

Sydnee Logan is the Social Media and Digital Content Coordinator for Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. She shares what’s going on here with the world.