Dean; Professor; Orlando Health Endowed Chair in Nursing
University of Central Florida, College of Nursing
Dr. Mary Lou Sole is Dean and Professor, and the Orlando Health Endowed Chair in Nursing at the University of Central Florida (UCF) College of Nursing in Orlando, Florida. She is also a Pegasus Professor, the highest honor for UCF faculty members. She also holds a per diem appointment as a Nurse Scientist at Orlando Health. She began her career as a diploma graduate from the Ohio Valley General Hospital School of Nursing in Wheeling, WV. She received a BSN from Ohio University, a master's degree in nursing from The Ohio State University, and a PhD in nursing from the University of Texas at Austin. She is certified as a critical care clinical nurse specialist. She has been active locally and nationally in many professional organizations, including the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) and SCCM. She is the editor of Introduction to Critical Care Nursing, one of the best-selling undergraduate textbooks. Her research focus is improving outcomes for mechanically-ventilated patients and her works are widely published and cited. Dr. Sole has received numerous local, state, and national awards for clinical practice, teaching, and research, including the AACN 2010 Distinguished Researcher, the 2013 Researcher of the Year from the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists, and induction into the Sigma Theta Tau International Researcher Hall of Fame in 2017. Dr. Sole collaborates regularly with colleagues to develop research ideas, conduct research, and publish results.