The Dean of the School of Nursing, Joane Moceri, was recently diagnosed with kidney cancer and will retire at the end of the summer term.
Moceri announced her retirement and diagnosis to nursing students Wednesday morning via email, and explained that she will be taking the next several weeks off to have her kidney surgically removed, to help treat her renal cell carcinoma. Following her recovery from surgery, she said she will continue to serve as dean until the end of the summer.
She assured students that despite her upcoming absence, nursing associate deans and faculty will maintain order throughout the program. Moceri said she plans to spend more time with her family after retirement
“I have a clear sense of priorities and plan to spend my time with my husband, kids and grandkids, and to engage in other interests in my life,” Moceri wrote in an email to the School of Nursing. “Being your dean has been the highlight of my professional life.”
Last June, Moceri, who is a first-generation college student, was named the 2017 Outstanding Alumna of the University of Washington Tacoma’s Nursing & Healthcare Leadership Program.
Moceri has been at the University of Portland since 2012 as an associate professor of nursing, and was appointed as dean by President Fr. Mark Poorman in July 2015.
