BALTIMORE, Md. – A professor whose significant contributions accelerated the growth of the School of Nursing’s programs was named the 2025-26 Mullan Distinguished Teacher, the University’s highest faculty award.
Joining the School of Nursing faculty in 2008, Dr. Mary Packard helped lay the foundation for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, grounded in caring science, and served as the school’s chair of undergraduate studies. She contributed to the design of NDMU’s University Academic Building, a best practice site for nursing education that houses the high-tech clinical simulation lab, the Center for Caring with Technology. Additionally, she has helped write institutional grants and participated in multiple program accreditation efforts. Just last year, the Baltimore Magazine honored her as an outstanding nurse educator with its Excellence in Nursing recognition. She also received the Nurse Faculty Recognition Award from Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) in 2023.
“[Dr. Mary Packard’s] own teaching is part of the School of Nursing’s success story not only because of her expertise and dedication to centering her students’ learning and experience, but also because of her commitment to bringing that learning into the wider community,” said Dr. Martha Walker, provost and vice president for academic affairs at . “She continues to identify learning opportunities that encourage students to develop intellectually and to develop personally.”
Outside the classroom, Dr. Packard engages her students in service-learning and leadership opportunities. Her students have volunteered at the Caroline Center, a nonprofit workforce development organization serving women; Marian House, an organization offering rehabilitative services and housing to women and families; and Villa Assumpta, the Motherhouse for the Atlantic-Midwest Province of the School Sisters of (SSNDs) and home for retired sisters. She has regularly led students on a trip to the United Nations in New York for the annual Commission on the Status of Women.
In service to NDMU, she chairs the University’s Global Solidarity Committee and has served on many other elected committees throughout the years. She completed the SSND Associate program in 2021, reaffirming her deep commitment to the charism of the SSNDs, as well as NDMU’s mission of educating leaders to transform the world.
The Mullan Distinguished Teacher Award recognizes excellence in teaching and significant contributions to and the broader community. Presented annually at Commencement since 1976, the University selects one faculty member based on nominations from administrators, faculty, and students.
Established in 1895, (NDMU) is a private, Catholic institution in Baltimore, Maryland, with the mission to educate leaders to transform the world. has been named one of the best "Regional Universities North" by U.S. News & World Report.
