Tamika Thrasher, RN, CNE, DNP

Winston Salem State University

Tamika Thrasher, DNP, RN, CNE, has served in the nursing profession for 22 years. She earned her BSN from Winston-Salem State University, MSN in Nursing Administration from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and DNP from Chatham University. She later returned to East Carolina University, where she earned her Post-Graduate Certificate in Nursing Education. Dr. Thrasher most recently earned her CNE certification in August 2020. Dr. Thrasher’s clinical background is in pediatrics. She has worked in a variety of settings including acute care at Brenner Children’s Hospital, Davidson County Health Department as a childcare nurse and child health consultant/educator, and Winston–Salem Forsyth County Schools as a school nurse and child/family support team nurse. She has been employed as a nurse educator with Winston-Salem State University for 13 years. She currently serves in the role of Clinical Assistant Professor and coordinator of child health nursing in the traditional undergraduate BSN program. In addition to the child health nursing course, Dr. Thrasher coordinates and teaches an oral communications course for pre-nursing majors. Other responsibilities, in her role as nurse educator at WSSU, include academic advising, nursing junior class faculty advisor, preceptor for MSN students in the advanced nurse educator track, scholarly project/thesis chair for MSN students, and member of several committees at the departmental and university levels. Dr. Thrasher also serves as adjunct faculty for the ADN program at Forsyth Tech Community College and has been in that position for 6 years. Dr. Thrasher’s scholarly work focuses on reducing the risk of sudden infant death syndrome in the African American community by educating African American parents and caregivers about infant safe sleep practices and other risk reduction strategies. In addition to teaching and scholarship, Dr. Thrasher remains actively engaged in professional and service activities including serving as a member of the Board of Directors for the North Carolina League for Nursing, nurse educator representative for the North Carolina Nurses Association DNP Council, and member of the Board of Directors for Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Piedmont Triad. Dr. Thrasher is passionate about her work as a nurse educator and takes great pride in molding and preparing the next generation of nurses. She strives daily to be an influential role model, mentor, and motivator for her students. She empowers them to have confidence in their intellectual ability and challenges them to excel in ways they would never imagine.