About the Dean

Dr. Holly Wei is an internationally recognized nurse scientist, theorist, academic executive, and thought leader whose scholarship is advancing the future of nursing, healthcare leadership, implementation science, and artificial intelligence in healthcare and higher education. As Dean and Professor at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Nursing, she provides strategic leadership for one of the nation's largest academic nursing programs, advancing excellence in education, research, clinical partnerships, and innovation across multiple campuses and instructional sites throughout Texas.

Widely recognized for advancing nursing science through the development of evidence-informed theories and conceptual frameworks that bridge philosophy, research, and practice, Dr. Wei's scholarship integrates leadership, organizational science, implementation science, caring science, and artificial intelligence to improve healthcare and educational outcomes. She is the developer of the evidence-informed Convergent Care Theory and several influential practice models, including the Interprofessional Caring Model, ENERGY Self Care Model, PITSTOP Model, CARE Model, Caring Science Resilience Model, and the PIVOT Model, a philosophical framework that guides the responsible implementation and governance of AI in healthcare and higher education. Collectively, these theories and models have been adopted by healthcare organizations and educational institutions to strengthen leadership, improve workforce well-being, enhance collaboration, support responsible AI integration, and improve patient, learner, and organizational outcomes.

Dr. Wei's research spans healthcare leadership, healthy aging, implementation science, workforce development, organizational culture, interprofessional collaboration, healthcare innovation, and the philosophy and responsible implementation of artificial intelligence in healthcare and higher education. Her scholarly work has influenced nursing science, healthcare leadership, education, professional practice, and health policy through widely cited scholarly publications, the translation of theory into practice, and internationally invited keynote presentations. Her textbook, Visionary Leadership in Healthcare: Excellence in Practice, Policy, and Ethics, received the American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Award, earning first place in the Nursing Management and Leadership category.

Dr. Wei is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and serves in numerous national and international leadership roles that are shaping the future of academic nursing and healthcare. She is President-Elect of the International Association for Human Caring and serves on the American Academy of Nursing's Building Health Care System Excellence Expert Panel. She also contributes to several national initiatives through the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, including the Emerging Technologies in Nursing Education Task Force, the Nominating Committee, the Excellence and Innovation in Teaching Award review panel, and the AACN and AONL Academic Practice Partnership Playbook writing group. In addition, she serves in editorial leadership roles as Associate Editor of the International Journal for Human Caring, the ALSN Perspectives Column Editor for the Journal of Nursing Administration (JONA), and Editorial Board Member for several leading international nursing journals.

As Dean, Dr. Wei is leading a bold vision to position the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Nursing as a nationally recognized and internationally engaged center of excellence in nursing education, research, clinical innovation, workforce development, and healthcare transformation. Through strategic partnerships, interdisciplinary collaboration, responsible integration of emerging technologies, and a steadfast commitment to excellence, she is advancing the School's mission to prepare the next generation of nursing leaders while improving the health and well-being of individuals, families, communities, and populations across Texas, the nation, and the world.