Clinical Associate Professor, Associate Dean for Strategic Partnership
With over 30 years of experience in nursing education, research and service in North Carolina, Byrd has established herself as a distinguished leader in the field. In her new role, she will cultivate and sustain strategic external partnerships to promote health equity and support the overall mission and impact of Carolina Nursing.
For the past five years, Byrd has served as the associate director of academic programs and coordinator of health sciences for the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS), where she expertly coordinated nursing and allied health programs for 58 community colleges.
Before joining NCCCS, Byrd was pivotal in founding the Catherine W. Wood School of Nursing at Campbell University. As the director of simulation and director of fundamentals of nursing and medical surgical nursing, she created the nursing curriculum and was instrumental in securing initial accreditation for the school. Under her guidance, the first graduating class achieved a remarkable 100% pass rate on the National Council Licensure Examination. While at Campbell, Byrd also created a cultural awareness program that facilitated meaningful connections between students and the broader campus community, equipping them with effective communication skills for interacting with individuals from diverse cultures and backgrounds.
Byrd began her research career in migrant health, where she investigated the incidence of tuberculosis in migrant farm work populations in Johnston County, N.C. Since then, she has established herself as an expert in clinical nursing leadership, rural health, and workforce development.
She is deeply involved in nursing workforce development projects across the state and currently serves on the North Carolina Institute of Medicine (NCIOM) Nursing Workforce Taskforce and Steering Committee. She also recently served on the Expert Advisory Committee for the N.C. Nursecast project led by the North Carolina Board of Nursing and Cecil G. Sheps Center. Byrd actively contributes to health policy development and serves on the Advisory Committee on Cancer Coordination and Control. Byrd is currently the chair of the North Carolina Institute of Medicine Board of Directors and was appointed to the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Farm Workers Project.