Strengthening Every Step: Enriching Your Leadership Journey
The Debbie Adams Leadership Academy at Cizik School of Nursing at UTHealth Houston prepares nurses to lead by offering curriculum that focuses on fostering effective leadership, communication, and teamwork skills.
Programs offered by the academy provide experienced and new nurse leaders with the confidence and skills to be effective leaders in complex health care environments. Our goal is to serve as a nursing leadership educational hub for students, alumni, clinical partners, and the community.
Leadership Development Opportunities
Foundations in Nursing Leadership
Offered twice a year, this two-day intensive course is designed for participants with at least two years of nursing experience. It fosters effective leadership, communication, and teamwork skills and provides 12.75 hours of nursing continuing professional development. Get the details.
Advancing Transformational
Nursing Leadership
Nurses with at least three years of formal leadership experience can grow their skills in this five-month program. Participants meet once a month in a mix of in-person and live, on-line sessions and learn about advanced leadership topics from subject matter experts. Learn more.
Debbie Adams: Fostering nurse leadership
Deborah Garrett “Debbie” Adams earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Cizik School of Nursing at UTHealth Houston in 1984 and served as an emergency department nurse for 14 years before transitioning into a business career. She combines her love of nursing with her business acumen to help talented students become nurse leaders.
A long-time partner of Cizik School of Nursing, Adams helped establish the Ambassador Program in 2016, enabling undergraduate nursing students to work with mentors and engage in leadership development activities.
Students learn management, teamwork, and communication skills to become the health leaders needed to face our country’s growing nursing shortage and health care challenges.
In 2022, Adams made the single largest gift to the school from an alumna to establish the Deborah Garrett Adams Leadership Academy. Students learn everything from business networking to strategies for managing challenging interactions in the workplace.
Adams spends most of her time on her Ceilito Lindo Ranch, dedicated to the conservation of the Texas Longhorn cattle breed.
