Dr. Ernestine Davis
FLORENCE-Dr. Ernestine Davis, a retired Professor Emerita of Nursing at the University of North Alabama, will receive an honorary doctoral degree as part of the Friday, July 31 commencement ceremonies where Dr. Davis is also scheduled to address the graduates.
Members of the UNA Executive Council approved the resolution to honor Dr. Davis “in light of her impact on the nursing program and on countless numbers of nursing students who have graduated from this institution.”
After 36 years of service, Dr. Davis retired from UNA in 2016. From 1998 until 2002, she was also Assistant to the President for Minority Affairs, promoting campus diversity, equal employment, recruitment, and retention. In 1997, she became Director of UNA’s Presidential Mentors Academy, or PMA, a scholarship, mentoring, and leadership development program for under-represented high school students. She continued in this role for two years after retiring from nursing. Dr. Davis also initiated the PMA Advisory Committee and the Multicultural Advisory Committee, both of which she chaired for many years.
Dr. Ken Kitts
Dr. Davis received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Tuskegee University, master’s degree in nursing administration from the Medical College of Georgia, and doctorate in higher education administration from the University of Alabama. She is a member of the American Nurses Association, the International Nurses Association, Phi Kappa Phi national honor society, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Dr. Davis and her late husband, Luther, are parents to daughter, Dr. Ella Michelle Davis Temple, and son, Luther Davis III.
“Dr. Davis has contributed so much to the University through her role as a professor of nursing, of course, but also in her very prominent roles of furthering our mission as a diverse, equitable, and inclusive campus,” said UNA President Ken Kitts. “Her influence on so many of UNA’s students is difficult to quantify.”
Media Release/Ms. Michelle Eubanks
Director, Communications and Marketing
University Communications and Marketing
UNA
