Before the start of the Fall 2024 semester, Dean Hudson Santos confirmed a number of additions to the University of Miami School of Nursing and Health Studies faculty and leadership lineup. “I’m excited to announce the creation of a new associate dean position aimed at enhancing the integration between the School of Nursing and Health Studies and our vital Academic Health Centers,” he said. “This step is crucial in maintaining our commitment to excellence in both education and research.”
Carol Biggs, the senior vice president and chief nursing executive for Jackson Health System, and Elizabeth L. Vieito-Smith, D.N.P., RN, the chief nursing officer for UHealth – University of Miami Health System, will serve as the school’s inaugural Associate Deans of Academic Health Centers Integration. “In this pivotal role, Dr. Biggs and Dr. Smith will join the Dean’s Executive Leadership Team, strengthening the collaboration between the UHealth System, Jackson Health System, and School of Nursing and Health Studies,” Dean Santos continued. “This integration marks a significant stride forward in our mission to lead in health education, research, and service.”
Biggs was vice president and chief nursing officer with Baptist Health South Florida before she joined Jackson in 2017. She holds a Doctor of Health Science degree from Nova Southeastern University (NSU), an M.B.A. from the University of Miami, and a bachelor’s degree from Rutgers University. Vieito-Smith began her nursing career at Jackson before becoming a nurse leader at UHealth. She earned Doctor of Nursing Practice and Master of Nursing Science degrees from the University and a bachelor’s degree from Barry University.
New Nursing Faculty
Lilian Bravo, Ph.D., RN, joined the school as an assistant professor August 15 after completing her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles, in the National Clinician Scholars Program (a continuation of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation), Division of General Internal Medicine & Health Services Research. Dr. Bravo’s research interests are to improve suicide risk detection and identify mental health service engagement strategies for ethnoracially minoritized adolescents. She is 2023-2025 fellow of the George Washington University School of Nursing Fellowship in Health Policy and Media for her project “Suicide prevention awareness among Latinx youth and young adults.” She received a T32 Pre‐Doctoral Trainee Award through the Interventions for Preventing and Managing Chronic Illness at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned both her Ph.D. and baccalaureate nursing degrees. She also received funding from the Alex and Rita Hillman Foundation and the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center.
Yhovana Gordon, Ed.D., D.N.P., APRN, FNP-BC, joins the school as associate professor of clinical and director of the Family Nurse Practitioner Program on September 1. In her two decades on the Florida International University (FIU) nursing faculty, she held increasingly responsible leadership positions, including chair of the graduate nursing department, director of the Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.) program, and most recently associate dean of academic affairs. In 2022, she was essential in submitting several Linking Industry to Nursing Education (LINE) proposals that resulted in a total funded amount of $5.22 million. As a 2022 Fellow of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, she completed HACU’s Leadership Academy (La Academia de Liderazgo). Gordon specializes in family, maternal-child, and women’s health. A past recipient of the Florida Nurses Association President’s Award, she is active in Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing and the American Nurses Association. She earned her D.N.P. from the University of South Alabama, Doctor of Education from NSU, and master’s and bachelor’s degrees in nursing from FIU.
Leadership Updates
- Carmen Presti, D.N.P., ARNP, ACNP-BC, associate professor of clinical, became the school’s inaugural director of Clinical Partnerships and Practice on August 1. The position was created, explained Dean Santos, “to better manage our various clinical sites and ensure clinical placements are available for our students.”
- Jude Dhaiti was promoted to executive director of student services, effective August 2. He is a long-time senior database analyst in the school’s Office of Student Services, as well as a University of Miami alumnus and proud ’Cane parent.
