MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2014 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Fillingane, Polk, Butler (38th), Jackson (11th), Jackson (32nd), Parker
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE LIFE AND CONTRIBUTIONS TO NURSING AND HEALTH CARE OF DR. GERRY CADENHEAD FLETCHER AND EXPRESSING THE SYMPATHY OF THE LEGISLATURE ON HER PASSING.
WHEREAS, leadership was consistently evident throughout Dr. Fletcher's career of over 50 years devoted to the nursing profession. She was Associate Dean and Dean of the School of Nursing at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM). She was instrumental in returning the School of Nursing to a College of Nursing status; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Fletcher joined USM in 1980 as a Professor and Chair of the Nursing Program. From 1983 to 1988, she continued to teach and educate hundreds of registered nurses who went on to provide excellent nursing care to the citizens of this state. She served as Interim Director of the School of Nursing before she was named Dean of the College of Nursing in 1997; and
WHEREAS, under her leadership at Southern Mississippi College of Nursing, she was Co-Project Director of a Health and Human Services Grant, and a Multidisciplinary Laboratory Approach to Gerontology Training. She served on numerous committees of the Deans and Directors of Schools of Nursing in Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, following her retirement from USM, Dr. Fletcher served on the Nursing Advisory Committee and led the fund-raising efforts for the new state-of-the-art Asbury Hall that is being built on the western edge of the USM's Hattiesburg Campus. A gift contribution upon her death provided naming rights to the Dean's Suite in Asbury Hall. She was a strong supporter of USM athletic programs; and
WHEREAS, as Assistant Administrator at Memorial Hospital in Gulfport, Dr. Fletcher was the Project Director for a Robert Wood Johnson Planning Grant, Strengthening Hospital Nursing, and led the hospital Restructuring Initiative. She was also the Coordinator of the hospital Continuous Quality Enhancement Project; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Fletcher's support for her professional organization was demonstrated by her active participation on district and state levels of the Mississippi Nurses Association. She was Director of the Council for Health Affairs for two terms, was a Delegate to two American Nurses Association's National Conventions, and was an Officer in the District 7 Association. Dr. Fletcher provided outstanding leadership in the development of Mississippi Nurses Association's Political Action Committee; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Fletcher was posthumously inducted into the Mississippi Nurses Association's Hall of Fame on March 3, 2014, the association's highest honor in nursing leadership:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend the life and public service of Dr. Gerry Cadenhead Fletcher who died on July 22, 2013, and extend the sympathy of the Legislature to her surviving family and the thanks of a grateful state for her service.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to her husband, Dr. Tyler Fletcher, Dr. Katherine Nugent, Dean of the College of Nursing, University of Southern Mississippi, and the Mississippi Nurses Association, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.