Tracy Koehler, MSN, RN, assistant professor in the Avila University School of Nursing, recently received the Outstanding Community Service Award from the Research Foundation of Kansas City.
The award recognizes those who demonstrate involvement in their communities and encourages faculty and students to provide leadership and service. Koehler has been very involved in the Avila community since joining the staff full time in fall 2018.
Koehler’s service to the community began in earnest almost a decade ago at Church of the Ascension, her home church in Overland Park, Kansas.
“I’ve spent the past seven or eight years volunteering with our church’s Youth Faith Formation, aiding the children at our parish through the confirmation process,” she said. “I decided to get involved when my oldest child was about to begin the process, and he felt a bit intimidated by all of it. I told him that I would be right there with him through the whole process.”
In her years volunteering, she has taught at nearly every grade level, helping children from first grade to eighth grade in their Catholic education. In addition to her work at the church, she and her family are set to participate in Dear Neighbor Day, Avila’s annual community service and engagement event. Taking place on April 13, dozens of groups from the University will be volunteering at organizations throughout the Kansas City area.
The award is available to all nursing faculty at Avila, the Research College of Nursing at Rockhurst University or William Jewell College and includes a $1000 honorarium. Past Avila winners include Jessica Brunsman, MSN, RN, CPN, for its Teaching Excellence Award and Bruce Voegele, MA, BSN, RN, for Outstanding Community Service.
For more info about the award, please visit the Research Foundation. To learn more about the Avila University School of Nursing, please visit its homepage.