Mary Bennett PhD, ARNP

Dr. Bennett graduated from Indiana State University with an Associate Degree in Nursing in 1985, a Baccalaureate in Nursing in 1989 and a Master’s Degree in Nursing in 1990. She received her doctorate in Medical Nursing from Rush University, Chicago in 1997, and a post-Masters Family Nurse Practitioner from Indiana State University in 2004.

Her teaching experience started with an instructor position at Lakeland Community College in the Associate Degree Nursing program. She then returned to her alma mater to teach in the Associate and later the Baccalaureate and Graduate programs. While serving at Indiana State University she was promoted to full professor and served for several years as the Assistant Dean of the School of Nursing. In 2007 she came to Western Kentucky University to serve at the first Director of the newly formed School of Nursing, teaching in both the graduate and undergraduate programs.

Dr. Bennett is a member of the Kentucky Nurses Association, Sigma Theta Tau, Kappa Theta Chapter, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, serves as President Elect of the Kentucky Association of Baccalaureate and Higher Degree Programs, and is a member of numerous other local and regional professional organizations. She works as a nurse practitioner on a PRN basis for Commonwealth Health Corporation, and also serves as a Major in  the 181^st Air National Guard as a nurse practitioner.  Her research interests are the effects of various complementary and alternative therapies on physiologic outcomes in persons with cancer. She has several research publications and presentations in this area.  She is also interested in end of life care and decision making with current research in progress.