By Laura Gasque
As Alabama’s #1 ranked nursing leader, the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing continues to advance the future of nursing—with our faculty and alumni trailblazers earning national recognition from the American Association of Nurse Practitioners for their transformational impact on the nursing profession. This year, four faculty members and one alumna are being inducted as Fellows of AANP, joining the more than 50 current AANP Fellows affiliated with the School, an honor recognizing their exemplary contributions to nursing education, policy, clinical practice, and nursing and health care knowledge. An additional faculty member and alumna will be honored for their outstanding achievements as nurse practitioners. These recognitions expand and underscore UAB’s ongoing impact on improving health care access and driving innovation in nursing.
Fellows and awardees from each state will be honored at the 2026 AANP National Conference in June.
2026 AANP Fellows:
Professor, Associate Dean, Access and Engagement Felesia Bowen, PhD, DNP, RN, PPCNP‐BC, FADLN, FAAN
Bowen is a certified pediatric nurse practitioner and has distinguished herself as a national leader in the areas of pediatric asthma, health disparities and health equity. She has a strong academic nursing background with expertise in teaching, service and research. Bowen is President of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners. She is the recipient of several grant awards, including a five-year Health Resources and Services Administration grant to conduct an upstream, community-level intervention to reduce childhood obesity and its associated poor health outcomes in the Birmingham area. Her expertise in pediatric health care has been recognized at the municipal, state and national levels, including two terms of service as a member of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine Forum for Children’s Well-Being. In 2019, she was inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in recognition of her impact on children's health. She also was named FNINR Ambassador in 2023. In 2024, Bowen was named an inaugural Fellow in the National Black Nurses Association’s Academy of Diversity Leaders in Nursing.
Assistant Professor Katie Buys, DNP, MPH, CRNP, FNP‐BC, PMHNP‐BC, CNE (MSN 2011, DNP 2014)
Buys is a dual-certified Family and Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner with more than two decades of interprofessional clinical practice and nursing education experience. She develops and delivers curricula focused on social determinants of health and leads simulation-based interprofessional education activities, in addition to traditional nurse practitioner education. Buys provides integrated behavioral health care for medically underserved and rural populations at the UAB PATH Clinic and Starkville Counseling Associates. She is committed to health equity, community engagement and workforce development, evidenced by her leadership in HRSA-funded initiatives and with professional associations, including the Mississippi Public Health Association, where she serves as the chair of the Health and Racial Equity Committee.
Wanda Hilliard, DNP, MBA, APRN, PMHNP-BC (DNP 2015)
Hilliard is a Professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and a board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner with extensive experience providing mental health services to children, adolescents and adults. She delivers care through telehealth, rural emergency room settings and specialized child and adolescent programs. A published scholar and active researcher, Hilliard leads two funded research initiatives: one examining nursing burnout, stress, vicarious trauma and substance use, and another focused on preparing nurses to integrate artificial intelligence into patient care. She serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Nursing Innovation and is a member of numerous professional organizations.
Hilliard is the co-founder of the Psychiatric Advanced Practice Nurses of Houston and remains a committed advocate for advancing psychiatric nursing practice and education. She is based in Austin, Texas.
Associate Professor Lauren Mays, DNP, CRNP, FNP‐BC, FNAP (BSN 2008, MSN 2010, DNP 2018)
Mays is a board-certified family nurse practitioner and Clinic Director at UAB at The Wellhouse, the first and only primary care clinic in Alabama, mid-south, and southeast United States that is embedded within a residential recovery program for survivors of human trafficking. She is an expert in trauma-informed care and social determinants of health and incorporates both throughout her teaching and practice. In 2023, she received a PADMA award from the UAB Commission on the Status of Women for her clinical accomplishments. She also has received the UABSON’s Nancy Smith Memorial Excellence in Teaching award for her academic excellence. In 2023, she was appointed to serve on a national task force workgroup by the Association for Prevention Teaching and Research. Dr. Mays is a founding member and serves on the advisory board of the National Association of Family Nurse Practitioners and is recognized nationally as a distinguished fellow of the National Academies of Practice.
Professor, Interim Assistant Dean, Graduate Clinical Education - DNP Tedra Smith, DNP, CRNP, CPNP-PC, CNE, CHSE (MSN 2004, DNP 2011)
Smith is a pediatric nurse practitioner with a specialization in primary care. Through a Health Resources and Services Administrator grant, Smith collaborates with i3 Academy to provide health screenings and assessments to the community, taking nursing education beyond the classroom and providing experiential learning opportunities for students. Smith serves on the National League of Nursing Board of Directors and the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties Simulation Committee. In 2025, she was a recipient of the UAB President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. In 2023, she was recognized as the National Black Nurses Association Inc. Advanced Practice Nurse of the Year. She also is the recipient of the Cindajo Overton Outstanding Nurse Educator Award from the Alabama State Nurses Association and UAB School of Nursing Marie O’Koren Alumni Award for Innovation. She previously served as President of the Alabama League for Nursing and received the ALN Lamplighter Award in 2019. Additionally, she serves as the Editor for the Pediatric Nursing Journal and as a reviewer for multiple journals focused on pediatric health care and nursing education.
2026 AANP State Award for Outstanding Contributions:
-Alabama
Associate Professor, Interim Assistant Dean, Graduate Clinical Education – MSN, Co-Coordinator, Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner Kelley Borella, DNP, CRNP, WHNP‐BC, FAANP (BSN 2002, MSN 2005, DNP 2014)
Borella has been a faculty member of the School since 2012. She maintains a faculty practice at Cooper Green Mercy Health Services, providing comprehensive women’s health care to underserved women in the Birmingham community. She is on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health, where she plays a key role in shaping national policy, education and practice standards for women’s health nurse practitioners. In 2023, she received the Inspiration in Practice Award from the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health. She was inducted as a Fellow of AANP in 2025.
-Louisiana
Jennifer Lemoine, PhD, DNP, APRN, NNP-BC (DNP 2011)
Lemoine serves as Associate Dean and Professor at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette College of Nursing and Health Sciences. She is a neonatal nurse practitioner and is recognized nationally for promoting the health and well-being of women and children through practice, research and in health policy. In 2014, she was one of eight faculty members in the country to be appointed to the national AACN Faculty Policy Intensive. Lemoine has been an active member of the Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners since 2010, serving on the Executive Committee as Health Policy Co-Chair and currently holds the position of President-Elect. In 2016, her work was awarded the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses' 2016 research paper award.