Barbara Innes
Barbara Innes, EdD, RN earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington, a master’s degree from the University of California San Francisco and a doctoral degree from Seattle University.
Barbara has demonstrated excellence in nursing in numerous ways. She began her nursing career by serving patients and families in a small community hospital and later was selected to be a head nurse in a large urban hospital. After she earned her master’s degree she taught undergraduate students at the University of Washington and later at Seattle Pacific University as both the Dean and a faculty member influencing hundreds of nursing students who are active in the profession today. She is recognized as an excellent teacher in the classroom who clearly demonstrates the leadership principles she promotes. She has used interactive and creative classroom activities and assignments that have challenged students to strive for excellence.
Barbara was the first nursing faculty member at SPU to develop online course work for nursing students in both the RN to BS and the Nurse Educator Certificate Programs. She provided leadership in course development by creating blackboard based courses for distance learners, and the Nurse Educator Certificate Program. Her expansion of partnerships and community-based sites for RN to BS students broadened the theoretical and clinical expertise of nurses returning to earn their bachelor’s degree. She also has brought nursing education to nurses at their site of employment to facilitate the educational process for working nurses.
Barbara's membership in the Washington State Nurses Association has to date, spanned 42 years. She joined the organization in 1963 directly after completing her baccalaureate degree, and has maintained consistent membership since that time. During this time, she has been active in the organization in a variety of ways including serving as a member of the Head Nurse section when there were occupational groups and chaired the Common Interest and Goals Committee. She attended most, if not all, of the WSNA conventions as a delegate until the format changed.
Over the past 26 years, her activities have focused primarily on the educational goals of WSNA. She was active on the Continuing Education Recognition Program Committee from 1979-1982, serving as chair for some of that time, and returned to the renamed Continuing Education Approval and Recognition Program Committee later in 1998-2003. She was elected to the Cabinet on Nursing Practice and Education for succeeding terms from 1989 to 1998 and co-chaired the Cabinet from 1994-95. She has also served on several task forces including the Task Force on Access to Health Care in Washington and the Task for Development of a position paper on Articulation between Nursing Programs.
She is also a member of the Northwest Organization for Nurse Executives, the Shoreline Community College Nursing Advisory Committee, and the Council on Nursing Educators in Washington State Task Force on Nursing Articulation Model.
Barbara has authored numerous journal articles, research studies, and chapters in nursing textbooks that have been used by many students as they began their nursing careers. She has mentored numerous individuals to become contributing authors to nursing literature.
She was selected by the nursing faculty of Seattle Pacific University to serve as Dean of the School of Health Sciences, and has also served as the Director of the RN to BS program. Barbara has been widely recognized on the SPU campus as a master teacher and as such. served on the most prestigious committees such as the Instructional Development Committee whose purpose it to foster excellence in classroom teaching. In addition, she has received recognition as a Sigma Theta Tau member and was nominated for the honorary status of Emeritus Faculty at Seattle Pacific University.
She has been a collaborative, creative and positive member of the nursing community and demonstrated competence, grace and wisdom. Barbara has shared her wealth of knowledge with numerous local and state colleagues. In accordance with her philosophical sense of sharing, her contributions were always done in a collaborative style, which has greatly enhanced the health and welfare of Washington State residents.
Barbara has taught literally hundreds of undergraduate and graduate nursing students during her teaching career and has touched the lives of many students who have gone on to become excellent clinicians, researchers and leaders in nursing the broader community.