Distinguished Nurse Alumna

The Dean of Purdue University Northwest’s College of Nursing has received the Distinguished Nurse Alumna Award from the University of Illinois at Chicago’s College of Nursing.

Lisa Hopp of Valparaiso, who earned doctoral and master’s degrees from UIC, was recently recognized for her distinguished and accomplished career as a nursing professional and educator.

“If I am distinguished, it is only because of the education and mentorship that I received at UIC’s College of Nursing,” she said. “I learned about what it means to be a scholar, how to become part of a research group and, most importantly, I developed a mature understanding and philosophy of my discipline of nursing and the science of nursing.”

Indiana Center for Evidence Based Nursing Practice

Of her many achievements she admits being most proud of her role in establishing the Indiana Center for Evidence Based Nursing Practice, a Joanna Briggs Institute International Center of Excellence, at the PNW Hammond Campus in 2005.

Hopp also has co-authored a book, received a PNW National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant and is a former recipient of the university’s Outstanding Teaching Award.

From staff nurse to PNW Dean

From her early career years as a staff nurse in the medical intensive care unit at Rush Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center in Chicago, she moved into higher education, eventually being appointed the first Dean of Purdue Northwest’s College of Nursing in 2016.

Hopp, who has served Purdue Northwest since 1992, also is respected for mentoring junior faculty and leading numerous initiatives in support of teaching and learning. Additionally, she was an early PNW adopter of technology in the classroom, through which she helped initiate the peer mentoring program for a PNW Distance Learning Task Force.

She also holds baccalaureate degrees from Grinnell College and Rush University.