Colleen Conway-Welch, Ph.D., earned her bachelor's degree from Georgetown University and a Ph.D. in nursing from New York University. She was appointed Dean of the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing in 1984, the same year the School of Nursing became part of the medical center. Conway-Welch was elected to the Institute of Medicine in 1997 and was recognized by the Nashville Women's Political Caucus in 2005 during their 5th Annual Spring Revue. She is a nurse-midwife and her served on numerous national councils, including President Reagan's commission on AIDS. Conway-Welch was named by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate as a Member of the Board of Regents of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. She died in Nashville Oct. 12, 2018 following a courageous battle with cancer.