About the PhD in Nursing Program
Georgetown’s PhD in Nursing program, based at our Capitol campus in the heart of Washington, D.C., is designed to be a premier full-time doctoral program for individuals who want to be leaders for change by advancing the discipline and serving in academic, community health, health care, policy, global, and research settings.
Program Features
- Draws upon the interdisciplinary and intellectual richness of a campus community
- Develops leaders for change in nursing
- Focus in ethics and health equity
- Intellectual vibrancy with renowned faculty across multiple disciplines
- Globally known, values-based academic community
- Intellectual vibrancy across complimentary academic disciplines such as ethics, law, philosophy, medicine, and policy.
- Full-time, Capitol campus-based program with integrated experiences and classes at the Hilltop campus
A Message from the Program Director
The PhD in Nursing Program welcomes students who are curious, motivated and eager to engage in inquiry, knowledge development, original research, interdisciplinary networking, advocacy and multiple forms of data dissemination. The program builds on the strengths of the University, health equity and ethics, and centers on developing skills to unpack complex determinants of health that exist at the historical, individual, organizational, system and community levels. Our graduates, as nurse scientists, will lead in research, scholarship and novel interventions to positively impact existing health inequities.
— Edilma L. Yearwood, PhD, RN, PMHCNS-BC, FAAN
Program Virtual Information Sessions
We periodically offer virtual information sessions about the PhD in Nursing program features, curriculum and application procedure.
Fall PhD Admissions Webinars
- August 28, 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. with Dr. Carol Taylor
- September 23, 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. with Dr. Carol Taylor
- October 20, 12:00 – 1:00 p.m. with Dr. Roxanne Mirabal-Beltran
- November 5, 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. with Dr. Sarah Vittone
PhD Program Admissions
The application cycle for Fall 2026 entry is open. Apply now!
- Final Application Submission Deadline – December 1, 2026
Program Questions
Please direct questions about the PhD in Nursing program to PhDinNursing@georgetown.edu.
Meet Our Inaugural PhD Students
Kate Ellis
Why Choose Georgetown’s PhD in Nursing Program?
I was fortunate to attend Georgetown for midwifery school. I was able to see the Georgetown vision put into practice. I fell in love with the Georgetown culture and its commitment to the Jesuit mission. I can think of no better place to study health care ethics and equity.
Clinical Background or Focus?
I have built my career as a nurse, and now midwife, with a focus on obstetrics and gynecology. It has always been my mission to empower women and birthing people. I have recently shifted my focus to perinatal mental health and reproductive psychiatry. I am completing an additional degree to be certified as a PMHNP in addition to my certification as a CNM. After caring for patient for years in obstetrics and gynecology, I have found that a patient’s mental health is the foundation for their overall health and well-being.
How Will You Use Your Degree?
I see myself using my PhD to focus on research in perinatal mental health and reproductive psychiatry. I feel like this a burgeoning field that needs updated research. Through the equity lens, women and birthing people have not been appropriately represented in mental health research. Additionally, I am passionate about rural health, specifically perinatal mental health and reproductive psychiatry in rural areas. Finally, I would love to use this research to help develop and influence policy.
Kenyatta Manns Hazlewood
Why Choose Georgetown’s PhD in Nursing Program?
I was deeply drawn to this program’s unwavering commitment to addressing health disparities, as I am eager to equip myself with the knowledge and skills necessary to combat these inequities. My goal is to contribute meaningfully to advancing health equity through rigorous research and advocacy.
Clinical Background or Focus?
The majority of my nursing career has been in Emergency and Trauma care, where I developed a strong foundation in acute patient management. Additionally, I have a background in public health, allowing me to bridge clinical practice and broader systemic issues. This intersection of disciplines has fueled my focus on violence prevention, particularly from a health care perspective, where I seek to address the long-term physical and psychological impacts of violence on individuals and communities.
How Will You Use Your Degree?
I envision using my PhD to conduct research that explores the physical and medical consequences of violence, particularly its effects on vulnerable populations such as children. My focus will be on developing evidence-based strategies for violence prevention and advocating for policies that support trauma-informed care. Ultimately, I aim to contribute to the creation of sustainable, impactful interventions that reduce the prevalence and impact of violence within health care settings and beyond.
Jennifer Wallace
Why Choose Georgetown’s PhD in Nursing Program?
I was excited to apply and accept the offer to join this inaugural group due to Georgetown’s focus on health equity and social justice. These are more than hot topics in the media but issues that are affecting health care outcomes and clients’ trust in the health care system. These issues align with my personal goals and with work I have completed as a Nurse Educator.
Clinical Background or Focus?
I have long been passionate about maternal and newborn health, with a strong interest in psychology and holistic approaches to care. My nursing career has primarily centered around obstetrical nursing and newborn care. Over the past 20 years, I’ve gained invaluable experience in a variety of roles, including bedside nursing, clinical management, and professional development, all within the hospital setting. In recent years, my focus has shifted to academia, where I’ve found great fulfillment in sharing my knowledge and experience with the next generation of nurses. As a professor, I take pride in mentoring and developing future nurse leaders. I currently teach courses in Maternal/Newborn Nursing and Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing.
How Will You Use Your Degree?
I hope to integrate my passion and experience with emerging trends and current needs in maternal health — particularly in improving outcomes for individuals facing mental health challenges during the perinatal period. Ultimately, I aspire to a leadership role in academia. My educational journey has been deeply influential, shaped by the outstanding mentors, teachers and professors I’ve encountered along the way. Inspired by their guidance, I aim to contribute to the advancement of our profession and help elevate the field of nursing to its fullest potential.
Sydney West
Why Choose Georgetown’s PhD in Nursing Program?
With its commitment to social justice and health equity and its foundation in Jesuit ideals, Georgetown offers an ideal setting for me to pursue my research interests. Having been affiliated with three other Jesuit institutions, I am intimately aware of the emphasis that Jesuit values place on improving disparities, acting with integrity, and recognizing inherent human dignity. I am interested in addressing inequities in reproductive health care for vulnerable populations, and I can think of few other educational models that offer such an ideal match for my goals. Because there exists a fundamental ethical component with regard to my interest in reproductive health research, I believe that Georgetown will offer the space necessary to contemplate these questions in the discerning manner necessary to ensure that work in the field is both just and honorable.
Clinical Background or Focus?
I have practiced obstetric nursing in the greater Baltimore area for the past five years. I am broadly interested in obstetric health outcomes and reproductive health literacy, as well as cultural understandings of the birth process. I also hold a Bachelor’s degree in Romance Languages and Literatures. An integral piece of my nursing practice is my ability to communicate with my patients in both English and Spanish, and I am acutely interested in the role of language barriers in obstetric settings, particularly obstetric emergencies.
How Will You Use Your Degree?
After graduation, I would like to pursue a position in nursing academia in order to advance my research goals, remain engaged with other scholars, and train future nurse scientists.
Program Leadership
Edilma L. Yearwood, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, FAAN
Program Director, PhD in Nursing Program
Mabintou Ouattara
Senior Program Coordinator, PhD in Nursing Program
mo887@georgtown.edu / 202-687-2482
Program Faculty
Nursing PhD students work with faculty who have expertise in multidimensional and complementary areas, including ethics, health equity, health disparities, mental health, women’s health, cardiovascular science and physiology.
Intima Alrimawi, PhD, MSN, MPH, BSN
Dr. Alrimawi’s research focuses on improving the quality of care for vulnerable families and children with complex health concerns or chronic diseases. Her secondary research interest is the development of nursing education to promote optimal outcomes in nursing education.
Rick García, PhD, RN, CCM, FAAOHN, FNYAM, FAADN
Dr. García is an Inaugural professor in Georgetown’s PhD in Nursing program. His career spans leadership in academia, regulation and health policy, including roles at the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, New York University and the Florida Board of Nursing. Dr. García’s work focuses on the intersection of advancing health equity, strengthening licensure integrity, and shaping nursing education policy. He co-led the first national Social Mission Metrics study of ADN programs and co-created the Falsified Identity Tracking System (FITS), which has been used by nursing boards nationwide since 2009. A fellow of multiple national organizations, Dr. García is also a published scholar and principal investigator on NIH-funded initiatives promoting diversity in biomedical research and large-scale initiatives like the NIH’s All of Us Research Program.
Ella Heitzler, PhD, WHNP, FNP, RNC-OB
Dr. Heitzler’s research seeks to support healing and increase the health equity of cisgender women and transgender persons who have experienced gender-based violence. Her current work explores the sexual violence screening practices (screening rates, questions utilized to screen, barriers to screening, and facilitators of screening) of nurse practitioners, midwives, and physicians who specialize in reproductive health care.
Roxanne Mirabal-Beltran, PhD
Dr. Mirabal-Beltran studies women’s health inequities and patient-provider communication. She is particularly interested in the use of Community-Based Participatory Research to facilitate access to health and health education. Her current work partners with the Wash and Spin to Health / Washington Avanzando la Salud Hispana (W.A.S.H.) Community Advisory Board to develop a reproductive health educational intervention to roll out in DC laundromats.
Liz Stokes, PhD, JD, RN
Dr. Stokes is a nurse ethicist, attorney and leader with deep expertise at the intersection of ethics, policy and health-care innovation. She holds doctoral and graduate degrees in nursing, law and bioethics, and brings a wealth of multifaceted expertise in practice, education and research. Dr. Stokes is a nationally recognized thought leader whose work spans legislative advocacy, regulatory reform, and the development of tools and training programs that advance social ethics and professional standards in health care. She has served as principal investigator and advisor on numerous policy-informed research initiatives and leads efforts to promote ethical leadership and inclusive practices across academic, clinical and governmental institutions.
Carol Taylor, PhD, RN
Dr. Taylor’s passion is making health care “work” for everyone — equity. She studies pedagogical strategies to prepare the next generation of frontline caregivers to address ethical challenges. Her research interests include clinical and organizational ethics and spiritual care. She is the primary author of all 10 editions of WolterKluwer’s “Fundamentals of Nursing: The Art and Science of Person-Centered Care.”
Sarah Vittone, DBe, MSN, MA, RN
Dr. Vittone has more than 25 years of experience in clinical ethics consultation and is a primary consultant with the ethics consultation service of the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics. Her clinical ethics interests are in complex decision-making, surrogate decision-makers, and issues at the interface of vulnerable populations and health systems.
Edilma Yearwood, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, FAAN
Dr. Yearwood, a qualitative researcher, uses community-based participatory action, ethnography and grounded theory methodologies in her research grounded in promoting and advocating for health equity. Her current grant is titled “Nurturing Child Well-Being: Educating Communities on Social Determinants of Health.” The project examines family and community dynamics and social determinants (FCDSD) — all of which impact the health and well-being of children and may result in poor health outcomes.