Ohio University Southern made history this week with the appointment of the institution’s first female dean.

It was announced Monday that Nicole Pennington, associate director and associate professor of nursing, will take the reins at the university. She was chosen from a field of five candidates

This is very good news for the school and its students, especially since Pennington has already served OUS well since joining the school eight years ago.

Pennington was instrumental in building Southern’s nursing program from the ground up. That program is now one of the largest at the school.

Her hard work has also been noticed outside Lawrence County.

Pennington was named one of the “Top 20 Nursing Professors in Ohio” by onlineschoolsohio.com, selected as a 2012 Outstanding Professor by Ohio University’s Office of Regional Higher Education, a recipient of the Kentucky Governor’s Award for Children’s Health Initiatives in 2007 and has had numerous publications in the areas of children’s health and nursing education. Her article in the Journal of School Nursing on the hazards of energy drinks drew both regional and national media attention.

We are confident Pennington will continue to usher in exciting new plans for the university and that she will help it grow in order to reach more people.

OUS is an invaluable part of the community and the work that Pennington, as well as the staff and faculty, does is what will shape Lawrence County’s future.