Beverly Foster

Beverly Foster, Clinical Professor Emerita in Health Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing, has dedicated over four decades to nursing education and leadership. She holds a PhD in administration in higher education from UNC Chapel Hill, a Master of Nursing (MN) from the University of California at Los Angeles as a clinical specialist in maternal/newborn care, a Master of Public Health (MPH) in community development from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from Syracuse University. Beginning her tenure at UNC-Chapel Hill in 1981, Foster advanced through various roles in both practice and academe, culminating in her appointment as director of the undergraduate nursing program from 1994 to 2017. She retired in 2021.

Foster's primary teaching areas included maternal/newborn care, public health nursing, and inter-professional practice. Her leadership roles encompass serving as an elected member and Chair of the North Carolina Board of Nursing from 2001 to 2008, membership on various committees of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, program site evaluator, team leader, and member of the Evaluation Review Panel for the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC), and site evaluator, accreditation team leader, and two-term member of the Report Review Committee for the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). She served on the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Essentials Task Force for the development of The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education (2021). In 2023, she was appointed consultant for the National League for Nursing (NLN) 2023 Leadership Institute. Recent publications and presentations focus on regulation, accreditation, program leadership, and educational innovations. Notable honors include the 1999 Outstanding Service Award from the Orange County Board of Health and 2008 recognition for exceptional devotion to the undergraduate nursing program from its alumni.

Professional Email: bev_foster@unc.edu