Pennsylvania Nurse, Front Page 2017 Issue 2 | Page 13

In Memoriam
Dr. Louise Fitzpatrick
PSNA Lifetime Member
by Villanova President, Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA
Dr. Louise Fitzpatrick served as the Dean of the Villanova Col-
lege of Nursing since 1978. After a heroic battle with cancer for
nearly three years, she passed away peacefully in the night.
Serving as Dean of the College of Nursing for almost 40 years,
Dr. Fitzpatrick lived and breathed Villanova and the nursing
profession. She embodied the spirit of what it means to be a
Villanova nurse – competent and compassionate, fully com-
mitted to bettering the lives of patients and the community at
large. She loved nursing, the College, her students and every-
thing Villanova.
Dr. Fitzpatrick was a Villanovan who made sure our Augustinian tradition informed every aspect of the
work of the College. She nurtured a culture of intellectual excellence in teaching and inquiry, service to
others and nursing as a healing ministry. She fully committed herself to helping others, both at home and
abroad. She sought to globalize the College of Nursing through study abroad and health promotion ex-
periences for students in countries around the world. She also emphasized multicultural experiences in
underserved areas in the United States—from the Western Shoshone Native American reservation to the
Delaplaine McDaniel Elementary School in South Philadelphia.
Under her leadership, the College of Nursing developed into a premier nursing program, recognized repeat-
edly by the National League for Nursing (NLN) as a Center of Excellence in Nursing Education. She ex-
panded the College’s academic programs, including initiating the master’s and doctoral programs, as well as
an accelerated BSN program for second-degree students. Dr. Fitzpatrick developed distance learning strate-
gies and clinical simulation initiatives with a focus on scholarship and research. During her tenure, three
centers were established: the Center for Nursing Research, the Center for Global and Public Health, and the
MacDonald Center for Obesity Prevention and Education.
A proud native of South River, NJ, Dr. Fitzpatrick was the only child of John Fitzpatrick and Bettina
Galassi Fitzpatrick, who both demonstrated to her in their work and in their lives the importance of caring
for others around them. Her upbringing led her to Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, where she focused her
work on public health in the city of Baltimore. Dr. Fitzpatrick went on to earn a BSN at The Catholic Uni-
versity of America, and her MA, MEd and EdD from Columbia University.
Dr. Fitzpatrick was a visionary whose heart and soul were dedicated to advancing the nursing and health
care field. Her leadership in creating the College of Nursing as a tangible expression of Villanova’s mission
is unparalleled. Her reach is immeasurable, as she touched the lives of thousands of students, other nursing
professionals, her staff and faculty, and many others in the Villanova community and beyond. Dr. Fitzpat-
rick’s scholarship and leadership truly reflected our core values at Villanova of Ve ritas, Unitas, Caritas. Her
legacy will live on at Villanova and in the College of Nursing, and her relentless commitment to improving
lives will always be remembered and cherished.
Please join me in remembering Dr. Fitzpatrick and her life’s work in nursing, and keep her family, friends
and colleagues in your thoughts and prayers.
Issue 2 2017 Pennsylvania Nurse 11