Marianne Cockroft

Marianne Cockroft, PhD, MNEd, RN, serves as Associate Professor Emeritus in Health Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing, with a focus in Public Health and Community Practice. As a clinical associate professor prior to her 2021 retirement, she has been a nursing educator across university, community college, and hospital settings. Her academic and professional career centers on public and community health nursing, disease prevention, health and safety promotion, high-risk behaviors, chronic diseases in aging populations, and self-care management for individuals across the lifespan, from infants to seniors. Dr. Cockroft excels in assessing health needs of individuals, families, and communities, developing targeted interventions, and serving overlooked populations with unmet healthcare needs. Notable achievements include founding and co-directing the UNC School of Nursing Mobile Health Clinic in 2016, which delivers nurse-led care to vulnerable clients in Wake County, North Carolina; establishing a wellness center for seniors in Durham County; creating a playgroup for parents and toddlers as a child abuse prevention strategy; forging partnerships for school health and occupational health clinical sites; and innovating public library venues for clinical teaching opportunities. She secured funding from Christ the King Lutheran Church for a mobile Chronic Disease Self-Management Project providing education and skills training to marginalized groups in Western Wake County. Currently, she holds the position of Executive Committee Nursing Section Vice Chair of Education at the North Carolina Public Health Association.

Dr. Cockroft's impactful contributions to public health nursing have earned her prestigious recognitions, including the North Carolina Public Health Association's Margaret B. Dolan Award in 2019 for demonstrated commitment to quality care, excellence in service, leadership, and professionalism; selection as one of 100 Distinguished Public Health Nurses in North Carolina in 2019; and designation as Tar Heel of the Week in 2016 for her dedication to medically underserved populations. She has advanced scholarship in the field through publications such as 'Nurse-Led Mobile Health Clinics: An Opportunity for Student Scholarship and Faculty Practice' (Journal of Nursing Education, 2020) and 'Beyond the Front Door: A Complex Home Visit Simulation' (Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 2017). Her career emphasizes building partnerships among parents and children, patients and community resources, and education-service collaborators, significantly influencing health equity and community practice.

Professional Email: cockroft@email.unc.edu