AWHONN is now accepting nominations for the 2025 Awards of Excellence. If you wish to nominate a member who has demonstrated outstanding ability in one of these categories, please use this form to submit. The deadline to submit a nomination is Sunday, September 29, 2024.

Recognition and Reimbursement:


Award honorees will each receive a complimentary AWHONN Convention registration, travel stipend, Award Plaque, and an invitation to the VIP reception with a guest. The travel stipend includes one-night hotel room and tax, $500 for travel reimbursement for airfare/ground transportation, and two days per diem. Additionally, they will receive either a $200 credit for AWHONN’s online store, or a complimentary one-year full membership. 

  • Nominees must exhibit the following leadership qualities in addition to the attributes specified for each award:
  • Visionary and passionate regarding AWHONN and health promotion of women and newborns
  • Models professional behavior
  • Motivates excellence in others, encouraging opportunities for growth, change and development
  • Inspires confidence and celebrates the success of others above one’s success
  • Communicates complex ideas in a simplistic manner
  • Lives the message: creative, resourceful, confident, and passionate

Leadership

  • Advocates for optimal care of women and newborns through leadership efforts, which translate to system change
  • Contributes to promoting the profession of women’s or newborns’ health nursing within a system, culture, or division
  • Describes the advocacy or leadership contribution which promotes AWHONN’s mission
  • Contributes to promoting women’s or newborns’ health nursing on the local, state, or federal political arenas beyond employment requirements
  • Integrates AWHONN’s mission and standards in their contribution to women’s and newborn’s health through advocacy efforts
  • Mobilizes colleagues in support of a legislative or health policy issue that is reflective of AWHONN’s mission and standards
  • Enhances colleagues’ ability to influence health policy through mentoring and educational activities

Education

The Awards of Excellence in Education honors two individuals annually for their outstanding contributions to the fields of women’s health, obstetric, or neonatal nursing. This includes the Award of Excellence in Scholarly Education and the Award of Excellence in Clinical Education.

  • Contributes to the knowledge base of women’s health, obstetric and/or newborn nursing care
  • Improves professional nursing practice through teaching excellence, such as simplistically conveying complex concepts, using innovative methods, incorporating evidence-based practice standards, interprofessional education, and/or using a collaborative approach
  • Identifies the candidate’s role in education that has AWHONN Chapter, Section, national or international implications.
  • Promotes excellence in others, such as encouraging opportunities for professional growth and/or evidenced-based practice
  • Describes the educational contribution which promotes AWHONN’s mission and AWHONN’s commitment to evidence-based education and practice

Practice

  • Advances clinical excellence of professional nursing in a clinical or community setting that serves a women’s health, obstetric or newborn population
  • Integrates clinical practice of evidence-based care through an innovative strategy
  • Contributes to nursing practice which has Chapter, Section, national or international implications as demonstrated by project description, publication, poster, or podium presentation
  • Utilizes a multidisciplinary approach, leads and champions change, quality improvement, and implements evidence-based practice in a clinical or community setting
  • Describes the professional practice contribution which promotes AWHONN’s mission

Research

  • Demonstrate a history of conducting funded research that has made a significant contribution in women’s and newborns’ health nursing.
  • Publish research in refereed journals.
  • Reflect AWHONN’s goals and standards in their contribution to women’s and newborns’ health nursing research.
  • Alignment with AWHONN’s Research Priorities
  • Demonstrate a high level of scholarship in published work.
  • Promote women’s and newborns’ health nursing research within AWHONN, the nursing profession or the public.

Global Health (New in 2025!)

  • A career dedicated to outstanding commitment to evidence-based care, cultural humility, and culturally sensitive maternity care in the U.S. and/or abroad. with understanding that global communities also includes Indigenous, refugee, and immigrant communities within the U.S.
  • Demonstrated commitment to respecting and honoring global communities’ traditions, knowledge, and cultures without exploitation.
  • Goes beyond patient care responsibilities to advocate for the health of communities globally in an ethical manner and by broadening perspectives.
  • Demonstrated experience honoring the consent and lived experiences of patients, and portraying host communities in a positive and ethical manner.
  • Demonstrated experience in achieving tangible health impacts and creative problem solving.
  • Demonstrated experience enhancing access to equitable care through meaningful and collaborative connections centering patients’ rights and privacy.

Eligibility

  • All candidates must have been active voting members for at least three (3) consecutive years prior to the year of their nomination, and they must also maintain active membership in the year of nomination.
  • Candidates can be nominated for multiple awards but will only be considered for one. Candidates can either specify their chosen award when submitting materials or if they submit applications for multiple awards, they will be asked to choose one award for which they would like to be considered before judging commences.
  • Following selection as an honoree, an awardee is ineligible to receive any further awards for a minimum period of three years.
  • The AWHONN Board of Directors, National Committee Chairs, Awards Committee members and AWHONN Staff are ineligible to be considered for any AWHONN award for the duration of their tenure in said position, as well as for two years post-position

Components Necessary for Completion of Application

  • Nomination by an AWHONN member by midnight on Sunday, September 29, 2024
  • Application form completed by the candidate by Sunday, October 27, 2024
  • Uploaded current resume/curriculum vitae of candidate
  • Documentation of support, format to be specified in application, to be submitted by Sunday, November 3, 2024
  • A headshot of at least 300 dpi, to be utilized if the candidate is chosen
  • The honoree selected may be asked to be a member of the 2026 Awards Committee
  • Please note, AWHONN prohibits the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as text generators, paraphrasers, summarizers, or translators, in the preparation and submission of any award applications. To ensure the integrity and authenticity of applications, we may use various methods to detect the use of AI tools, such as human review and requiring applicants to sign a declaration stating that they have not used any AI tools in their applications and that they are solely responsible for the content and quality. By applying for any AWHONN Award, the applicant agrees to abide by this policy and to submit only their own original work.

Nominating a nurse takes minutes! Use the button below to find out more and get started on this easy process. The deadline to submit your nomination is midnight (EST) Sunday, September 29. Those nominated will have additional time to complete their application. For questions, please reach out to awards@awhonn.org.