National honor recognizes commitment to academic excellence, belonging, and community-building

Rutgers School of Nursing has received the 2026 Health Professions Higher Education Excellence and Distinction (HEED) Award from Insight Into Academia magazine, the oldest and largest publication focused on best practices in higher education.

The prestigious national honor recognizes U.S. health professions schools and colleges that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to academic excellence, belonging, and community-building across all levels of campus life. This marks the fifth consecutive year Rutgers School of Nursing has received the award.

“Receiving this recognition year after year reflects our sustained commitment to creating an academic community where excellence and belonging go hand in hand,” said Angela Starkweather (PhD, ACNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN), dean and professor of Rutgers School of Nursing. “I am grateful to our faculty, staff, students, and alumni, whose contributions help create an environment where members of our community are supported, valued, and empowered to succeed.”

Rutgers School of Nursing will be featured along with other 2026 Health Professions HEED Award recipients in the October 2026 issue of Insight Into Academia.

“We use a detailed scoring process as well as a holistic approach to reviewing each application to determine who will be named a HEED Award recipient. Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where academic excellence and belonging are woven into the work being done every day across their campus,” said Lenore Pearlstein, co-publisher of Insight Into Academia.

For more information about the 2026 HEED Award, visit insightintoacademia.com.