Class of 2022 Virtual Commencement

Dr. Wallena Gould, EdD, CRNA, FAAN is the founder of the non-profit organization, Diversity in Nurse Anesthesia Mentorship Program and former Chief Nurse Anesthetist. For 15 years, this
grassroots organization program has successfully mentored over 658 diverse critical care nurses into 92 out 124 graduate nurse anesthesia programs.

Dr. Gould was the lead consultant for a $1 million-dollar HRSA Workforce Diversity Grant for the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Nurse Anesthesia Program. And, she served as AANA
Chair of the Diversity Task Force from 2015 - 2016.
In 2015, Dr. Gould was inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing.

Dr. Gould is the first Nurse Anesthetist of color inducted as a member into the Academy. In 2018, she was the recipient of The Trailblazer Award from the National Black Nurses
Association.

Most notably, Dr. Gould was the recipient of the 2019 American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology Agatha Hodgins Award for Outstanding Achievement. In August 2021, Dr. Gould was inducted in the inaugural cohort as a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology. Presently, she serves as the Vice Chair of the American Academy of Nursing Diversity & Inclusivity Committee and Vice Chair for the American Nurses Association Education and Innovation Committee. And, Dr. Gould is a Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of South Florida College of
Nursing.

Corsita has lived experience as an immigrant woman in Canada. As a Black nurse in Ontario with firsthand experience of being racialized in nursing institutions and organizations she pursued her passion for Caring. Having entered the healthcare arena first as a nursing aid she continued her studies and completing the RN program at Centennial College of Applied Arts in Toronto. Corsita’s passion to facilitate changes to in the way patients received care and her desire to positively impact patient's lives, Corsita realized that further education was necessary.
Corsita pursued a bachelor’s degree at D’Youville College (now a University) in Buffalo, New York obtaining her Master of Science in Nursing - Family Nurse Practitioner so that she could finally inform nursing policies. As President of the Toronto Chapter of Oncology Nursing and as a six-year Member-at-Large on the Canadian Association of Nurses in Oncology (CANO) Board of Directors Corsita informed provincial and national advanced practice nursing roles and healthcare delivery. As a Nurse Practitioner, Corsita recognized the need to improve the care that patients living with cancer and their families received by demonstrating Compassionate, Accessible/Advocacy/Appropriate, Respectful, Intuitive, Novel, Gentle Nurse Practitioner establishing her own consulting company CARING NP.
As a Black Nurse Practitioner, Corsita has had to justify her credibility to others in the organizations where she has worked and studied experiencing discrimination and marginalization at every level. As Co-Chair of the Black Nurse Task Force at RNAO with Dr. Angela Cooper Brathwaite (Tackling Discrimination and Systemic Racism in Academic and Workplace Settings and Black Nurses in Action: A Social Movement to end Racism and Discrimination), which were published in the Journal of Nursing Inquiry, January 2022.
Corsita is a founding member of the newly created Black Nurses Leading Change Interest Group at RNAO Corsita champions anti-Black discrimination in Nursing. Corsita is currently pursuing a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree (DNP) at D’Youville University in Buffalo, New York. Her present research focus is to “Understand the palliative care needs of Black Patients with Mental Health illness at End-of-Life” at Centre for Addictions and Mental Health. Corsita is a member of SIGMA-Zeta Nu Chapter. Corsita is a well-respected speaker and presenter sharing knowledge and experiences at national and international conferences. Corsita has authored and co-authored numerous journal articles, abstracts, and is perhaps best known for her chapters in the Manual for Radiation Oncology Nursing Practice and Education 4th edition. Corsita is a healthcare advocate dedicated to ensuring that rights and entitlements of patients are culturally reflective, equitable and holistic.