As a child, Denise M. Korniewicz always enjoyed playing doctor and nurse. She decided in junior high school that she wanted to pursue the field professionally, so she enlisted in the military to help her complete her academic training. Dr. Korniewicz proceeded to serve as a captain in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps in Vietnam from 1973 to 1977 and to obtain a Bachelor of Science from Madonna University in 1974 and a Master of Science in nursing from Texas Woman’s University in 1977. She furthered her education with a PhD in nursing from Catholic University of America, a postdoctoral fellowship in infectious disease control and prevention at Johns Hopkins University, a certificate from the Southern Council on Colleges and Education, and certification as a registered nurse in the District of Columbia and the states of Michigan and Maryland.
Dr. Korniewicz’s first job in the field was director of the nurse practitioner program at East Carolina University. She then moved between positions like research associate at the Catholic University of America, director of the acute care program at Johns Hopkins University, associate dean of academy development at Georgetown University, research professor at the University of Maryland, and senior associate dean of research at Jackson Memorial Hospital, the Miami VA Healthcare System, and the University of Miami. Other roles include director of the doctoral research program at the University of Miami School of Nursing, dean of the University of North Dakota School of Nursing, and university research dean at the University of North Dakota. Today, Dr. Korniewicz is putting her expertise to use as the dissertation chair and professor of the Passan School of Nursing at Wilkes University. She loves being able to change the way students think; knowing she contributed to the newest generations of health care professionals is an honor. She is also proud of developing the standards for sterile and unsterile patient examination gloves and of developing technology materials used for patient care practices with the Food & Drug Administration.
To further share the knowledge she accrued, Dr. Korniewicz wrote a number of books and journal articles. Her most recent publications include “Becoming a Nurse Faculty Member: A Practical Guide” and “Conducting the DNP Project,” both of which were released in 2018. She also authored “Nursing Leadership and Management: The Advanced Practice Role,” “Infection Control for Advance Practice Professionals,” and “Pocket Guide to Infection Control,” among others. Dr. Korniewicz is currently working on another book, “The Preferable Future for Nursing Curricula.” It will be published in 2019.
In her spare time, Dr. Korniewicz likes to watch movies, sing in choral groups, and attend live entertainment, like operas and musicals.
