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Baltimore, Md. — The University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON) continues to solidify its reputation as one of the leading nursing schools in the nation, ranking in the top 10 across the board for public schools of nursing in all six categories in which the school is ranked, according to the newly released 2025 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate Schools.” The latest rankings highlight UMSON’s academic excellence across multiple programs, out of 285 accredited nursing schools that responded to the U.S. News survey. For the second year in a row, the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner and the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) Nursing Leadership and Management specialty both ranked No. 1 nationwide among public schools of nursing. Both UMSON’s MSN program overall and DNP Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) specialty advanced in the rankings among all ranked schools, MSN tied at No. 17 (up from No. 20 last year) and FNP tied at No. 9 (up from No. 10). Among public schools of nursing, the MSN program is tied at No. 7, and the FNP specialty is tied at No. 4. The DNP program overall is tied for No. 6 in the nation and No. 12 among all ranked schools. UMSON is also ranked No. 8 among public schools of nursing for its DNP Nurse Anesthesia specialty. “We are immensely proud of our students, faculty, and staff, whose dedication and excellence continue to make UMSON a leader in nursing education,” said Yolanda Ogbolu, PhD '11, MS '05, BSN '04, NNP, FNAP, FAAN, the Bill and Joanne Conway Dean of the University of Maryland School of Nursing. “These rankings affirm our commitment to advancing the field of nursing through rigorous education and impactful research.” The U.S. News & World Report rankings are based on a variety of indicators, including student selectivity and program size, faculty resources, and research activity, and on survey data from deans of schools of nursing that are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing. In fall 2024 and early 2025, U.S. News surveyed 683 nursing schools with master's or doctoral programs. In total, 285 schools responded to the survey. Of those, 197 reported on their master's programs, and 146 provided enough data to be eligible for inclusion in the ranking. For DNP, 202 schools responded and 158 were ranked because they provided enough data to be included. Many institutions were ranked in both, using some overlapping nursing school data that applies to both the master's and DNP programs involving research grants and faculty counts. ### The University of Maryland School of Nursing, founded in 1889, is one of the oldest and largest nursing schools in the nation and is ranked among the top nursing schools nationwide. Enrolling nearly 2,000 students in its baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral programs, the School develops leaders who shape the profession of nursing and impact the health care environment.

Baltimore, Md. – The University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON)’s Bridgitte Gourley, DNP ’08, FNP-BC, FACU, FNAP, associate professor; director of the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) specialty; and co-director of the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) Center for Interprofessional Education, has been inducted as a Distinguished Practitioner and Fellow of the National Academies of Practice (NAP). NAP membership is an honor given to health care professionals who have excelled in their field and are dedicated to furthering practice, scholarship, and policy in support of interprofessional care. The organization, founded in 1981, is an alliance of health professionals dedicated to transforming health and well-being through interprofessional education, practice, research, and public policy. Its Class of 2025 comprises distinguished practitioners from 17 health professions. Members are elected by their peers for their commitment to advancing collaborative health care. “It is an honor to be inducted into NAP as a distinguished fellow because its mission aligns seamlessly with the School’s mission of education, research, and practice as well as the mission of the Center for Interprofessional Education at UMB,” Gourley said. Her induction took place March 15 during NAP’s induction banquet and awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. Gourley joined UMSON in 2000 as a clinical instructor after earning a Master of Science in Nursing with an FNP specialization from the Johns Hopkins University. She also earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in Community Health from Johns Hopkins. In 2006, she became a member of the first class of the newly launched DNP program at UMSON, and upon completion of her doctoral degree in 2008, she was promoted to assistant professor. A year later, she began serving as the FNP specialty director. Her career has been dedicated to preparing the next generation of FNPs to care for those most in need. Her expertise as faculty is informed by her experience as a clinician and coalesces around curriculum, practice, academic clinical partnerships, and interprofessional education because patients and students benefit from team-based care in community settings.  ### The University of Maryland School of Nursing, founded in 1889, is one of the oldest and largest nursing schools in the nation and is ranked among the top nursing schools nationwide. Enrolling nearly 2,000 students in its baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral programs, the School develops leaders who shape the profession of nursing and impact the health care environment.

Baltimore, Md. – Can when you eat reduce cancer-related fatigue? The University of Maryland School of Nursing’s Amber Kleckner, PhD, assistant professor, aims to find out, with support from a four-year, $1.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health National Cancer Institute. She is examining the role that time-restricted eating plays on reducing cancer-related fatigue and other side effects of treatments. Cancer is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases in the world. With technological advances in treatments over the last few decades, there are more cancer survivors than ever. However, many people live with persistent symptoms such as cancer-related fatigue.  “We still do not understand the underlying mechanisms of cancer-related fatigue and other related symptoms,” Kleckner says. “This makes it difficult to discover preventive treatments for these ailments. Despite widespread dietary recommendations and supplements for patients with cancer in the media, there are very few evidence-based dietary guidelines. We are helping to define what dietary patterns are best during and after treatment so that people can tolerate treatment and heal from the experience as fast as possible.” People undergoing chemotherapy, radiation, and other cancer treatments endure a large symptom burden, including fatigue, cognitive impairment, pain, and gastrointestinal issues – challenges that persist long after treatment ends and can sometimes prevent people from returning to work, family roles, hobbies, and other activities that really define their sense of self. Treating the side effects of cancer drugs with other drugs can have their own side effects. But nutritional interventions can improve overall health, enhance the ability to heal, and increase resilience against further adverse conditions.  Based on a large and growing body of research into nutrition and cancer, Kleckner designs and tests nutritional programs to help address these symptoms and help people attain the quality of life they had before their cancer diagnoses. These programs include both what people are eating and when people are eating. Time-restricted eating is a popular new form of intermittent fasting. It entails only eating during a defined window during daytime hours, since in human circadian biology, energy consumption and utilization coincide with those hours. Deliberately eating food within a 10-hour eating window is hypothesized to help improve circadian rhythms, sleep quality, and energy levels during the day. Kleckner theorizes that time-restricted eating can help mitigate cancer-related fatigue through strengthening circadian rhythms. Kleckner’s study is recruiting 96 blood cancer survivors experiencing post-treatment fatigue. All participants will be asked to follow an individualized diet plan for 12 weeks; half of the participants will be asked to meet the diet recommendations in a daily 10-hour eating window to see if time-restricted eating reduces fatigue more than the control nutrition program. Kleckner’s research thus far suggests that following a Mediterranean diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes, lean proteins from fish and poultry, good fats from olive oil, and some dairy, while limiting consumption of sweets and red meats, during cancer treatment will lessen symptom burden.  Kleckner and her team are gathering data to evaluate their hypothesis that chemotherapy and/or radiation disrupts circadian rhythm and contributes to fatigue, and time-restricted eating can help counter this.  “Nutrition is really understudied when it comes to cancer-related fatigue,” Kleckner says. “After cancer is diagnosed, people really want nutrition prescriptions. They want to know what they can eat so that they can quickly overcome this cancer and get back to life before cancer.” That’s when patients turn to the internet, which is full of non-evidence-based nutrition research “because the research hasn’t been done,” Kleckner says. “There’s a huge need from clinicians, a huge demand for more specific nutrition information post-diagnosis.”  “Nutrition plays a powerful role because eating in a healthier dietary pattern is something people can do,” she continues. “There are so many questions and so many unknowns, but what you’re having for lunch? That’s something you can plan, that’s something you can do, and it can be really empowering.” ### The University of Maryland School of Nursing, founded in 1889, is one of the oldest and largest nursing schools in the nation and is ranked among the top nursing schools nationwide. Enrolling nearly 2,000 students in its baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral programs, the School develops leaders who shape the profession of nursing and impact the health care environment.