During her career at UTHealth Houston, Dr. Allison Edwards has taught six core courses in the RN-BSN program, including Professional Practice in Nursing (3701), Community Health (3601) Community Health Clinical Project (3602), Issues in Professional Nursing (3702), Management and Leadership (3703), Synthesis (3704), and Role Transition (4526W). She has been the lead faculty in three Pacesetter BSN courses, Community Health, Community Health Clinical (4521B), and Professional Practice and Leadership (4527w). She has also taught in the first semester Health Assessment Lab (3511) and served as faculty mentor for the DNP advanced seminar I practicum N6860A.  Dr. Edwards  has developed clinical affiliation agreements focused on care of people with disabilities: with Baylor’s Transition Medicine Clinic, Shriner’s Hospital-Galveston and Houston (formerly), Jewish Family Services, TCH Meyer Developmental Clinic, Camp for All, Brookwood, RISE School, Arbor School, The Center for Pursuit, Spectra Energy and Harris County Juvenile Probation Department, where she has mentored third-semester RN students as well as third-semester Pacesetter BSN students in obtaining robust public and community health experiential experience. Her last six years at Cizik School of Nursing have been focused on conducting the ASK and MOSAIC fellowship funded by an endowment and a grant with the overarching goal of providing nursing students with improved attitudes, skills and knowledge in the care of people with disabilities through experiential, clinically immersive experiences. 

Edwards has worked in a variety of leadership, education and management roles, including profit, not-for-profit and managed care facilities. Her clinical experience encompasses case management, pediatrics, medical surgical and the Operating Room. Her faculty and preceptor experience has spanned her entire career including the Central Education department at Memorial Hermann Southwest, adjunct faculty appointment for San Jacinto Methodist for medical surgical clinical at Texas Orthopedic Hospital, and over the past 13 years as an assistant professor at Cizik School of Nursing.

Dr. Edwards is the author and coordinator of the endowment for the Joan and Stanford Alexander Fellowship in Disabilities. To date, 7 cohorts of first semester senior students have participated in this cocurricular experience. 

In July 2015, Governor Greg Abbott appointed Edwards to the Texas Board of Nursing to serve a term that expired in January 2021 and re-appointed her to serve for a second term ending January 31, 2027. Edwards achieved Certification for Nurse Educators (CNE) in 2015. She is a member of the Developmental Disability Nursing Association and Sigma Theta Tau-Zeta Pi Chapter.  Edwards also serves on boards of The Center for Pursuit, UTMB Alumni, UTMB Development, Partners and as an Item Reviewer for NCLEX. 

Honors:

American Association of Colleges of Nursing- Award for Innovations in Professional Nursing Education for Academic Health Centers-Disability Fellowship.