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Bimbola Akintade is a Professor and Dean at East Carolina University College of Nursing. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. He serves as a member of the North Carolina Institute of Medicine Task Force on the Future of the Nursing Workforce and the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Nurses Association. He is a former commissioner with the Maryland Healthcare Commission and a pioneer member of the Board of Directors for the Doctor of Nursing Practice of Color (DOC). He serves as the Vice Chair for the Area Health Education Centers Board of Directors and as a Board Member for the Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculty and its Finance Committee. He is an inaugural member of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s (AACN) Essentials Implementation Steering Committee, Chair of the AACN Assessment Expert Working Group, and completed Â鶹APP inaugural Diversity Leadership Institute program. He is also a co-founder of the Network of Black Male Nurse Leaders. He was recently inducted into the ECU College of Nursing’s Hall of Fame. The impact of Dr. Akintade’s work as a leader, expert clinician, and scholar is evident in his roles as Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor, editorial board memberships, peer-reviewed publications, professional awards, and acknowledgments.

Michael P. Cary, Jr. is a tenured Associate Professor at the Duke University School of Nursing. Dually trained as a health services researcher and applied health data scientist, Dr. Cary utilizes AI to investigate health disparities in aging populations, thereby promoting health equity and improving healthcare delivery. He co-directs H.U.M.A.I.N.E.™, an initiative dedicated to equipping nurses and healthcare professionals with the knowledge and skills necessary for the responsible use of AI in clinical practice.

As the Equity Scholar for Duke AI Health, Dr. Cary leads interdisciplinary research efforts to investigate algorithmic bias, identify algorithms that exacerbate health disparities, and implement strategies to mitigate their harmful effects.

Dr. Cary contributes to AI governance through his involvement with the Duke University Health System’s Algorithm-Based Clinical Decision Support Team, emphasizing the critical role of nurses in evaluating AI technologies, ensuring trustworthiness, and monitoring their impact on patient care.

Dr. Derrick C. Glymph is a Founder and Treasurer of the Network of Black Male Nurse Leaders (NBMNL) and a distinguished nurse anesthesia leader, educator, and retired military officer. A rare Triple Fellow, he holds the distinguished designations of Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (FAANA), Fellow of International Academy of Addictions Nursing (FIAAN), and Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN). He is also a Triple Certificate holder — Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA), Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator (CHSE), and Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) — reflecting mastery across clinical practice, simulation, and nursing education.

He holds dual doctorates — a PhD in Nursing Science from the University of South Florida (2022) and a Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice from Virginia Commonwealth University (2011).

Dr. Glymph serves as Associate Professor, Assistant Director, and Clinical Education Coordinator for the Nurse Anesthesia Program at the Duke University School of Nursing. He brings more than 30 years of nursing experience, including two decades of clinical practice as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) and over 15 years as an educator and administrator.

He serves on multiple editorial boards, including as Associate Editor of the Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing, and on the Board of Directors for the National Board of Certification and Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA). His clinical focus includes obstetric anesthesia and pain management. His research centers on substance use disorder, harm reduction, and mentorship — including the development of the ROLE Framework, a structured model for mentoring the next generation of nurse anesthetists and male nurse leaders.

A proud U.S. Army Reserve veteran, Dr. Glymph retired at the rank of Colonel after 35 years of distinguished service.

Dr. Ernest J. Grant is a Clinical Associate Professor and Vice Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the Duke University School of Nursing. He is also the immediate past president of the American Nurses Association (ANA), the nation’s largest nurse’s organization representing the interests of the nation’s 5.3 million registered nurses. He is the first man to be elected to the office of president of the American Nurses Association in its 130 years of existence.

A distinguished leader, Dr. Grant has more than 30 years of nursing experience and is an internationally recognized burn-care and fire-safety expert.  He also serves as adjunct faculty for the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Nursing, where he works with undergraduate and graduate nursing students in the classroom and clinical settings.  For the past four years in a row, Dr. Grant has been recognized by Modern Healthcare Magazine as one of 50 Influential Clinical Executives in Healthcare and as one of 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare. In 2013, Grant received the B.T. Fowler Lifetime Achievement Award from the North Carolina Fire and Life Safety Education Council for making a difference in preventing the devastating effects of fire and burn injuries and deaths within the state.

In 2002, President George W. Bush presented Grant with a Nurse of the Year Award for his work treating burn victims from the World Trade Center site. He was inducted as a fellow into the American Academy of Nursing in 2011. Grant holds a BSN degree from North Carolina Central University and MSN and PhD degrees from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He also has received two honorary doctoral degrees from the University of Wisconsin and the Thomas Jefferson University, in Philadelphia.

Dr. Michael L. Jones is Associate Dean for Engagement and Professional Development and Executive Director for Advancement at East Carolina University College of Nursing. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) and an elected member of the Academy’s Fellow Selection Committee. Dr. Jones currently serves as Chair of the AACN Access, Connection, and Engagement Leadership Network (ACELN) and Co-Chair of the AACN ACE Symposium Planning Committee.

A nationally recognized nurse leader, scholar, and mentor, Dr. Jones is Co-Founder and Vice President of the Network of Black Male Nurse Leaders, a national collaborative focused on leadership development, mentorship, and increasing representation in the nursing workforce. His work centers on leadership strategy, workforce development, academic practice partnerships, and building sustainable pathways into the nursing profession. He is the founder of the Emerging Health Care Scholars Leadership Institute, a grant-funded pipeline initiative designed to increase interest in nursing among middle and high school students.

Dr. Jones previously served as Chair of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Advisory Panel on Clinical Trials and currently serves as Advisory Board Co-Chair for the Nurses’ Health Study 3 at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He is a contributor to the American Nurses Association’s Nursing Administration: Scope and Standards of Practice and has authored multiple peer-reviewed publications focused on leadership and workforce advancement.

He is a proud member of the Rho Phi Chapter of Chi Eta Phi Sorority, Incorporated, and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated. Through scholarship, mentorship, and national leadership, Dr. Jones remains committed to cultivating leaders, strengthening institutions, and shaping the future of nursing.