Tara Serwetnyk, EdD, RN, FNAP, NPD-BC
(Pronouns: She/Her/Hers)
- Director of the Center for Excellence in Education
- Associate Professor of Clinical Nursing
Education
- Doctorate in Education Education Administration with a Specialization in Higher Education, 2021. University of Rochester School of Nursing. Rochester, NY
- Master of Science in Leadership in Healthcare Systems: Health Promotion, Education, and Technology, 2008. University of Rochester School of Nursing. Rochester, NY
- Bachelor of Science in Nursing, 2006. University of Rochester School of Nursing. Rochester, NY
- Associates of Science in Nursing, 2001. Monroe Community College. Rochester, NY
Bio
Tara Serwetnyk started her nursing career on a pediatric intermediate care unit at Golisano Children’s Hospital in 2002. She has experience caring for infants and children in both intensive care and general care, in-patient settings. There, her love for teaching grew as she realized the positive impact that education had on her patients and their families.
After obtaining her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Rochester, Serwetnyk followed her passion for teaching and became a nurse educator in pediatrics, and later in the Center for Nursing Professional Development at the University of Rochester Medical Center. She focused on using innovative education strategies in her practice and worked to improve professional nursing certification rates for pediatric nurses. As the training center coordinator, she served on the American Heart Association’s Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) board and implemented the RQI program at URMC with a goal to improve resuscitation outcomes.
Serwetnyk joined the University of Rochester School of Nursing in June 2018 and is now the director of academic innovation. In this role, she oversees instructional design, the development of learning resources, educational technology, Quality Matters certification, and assessment. She co-leads the Redefining our Classroom (iROC) initiative, the school’s iPad program, which successfully achieved Apple Distinguished School designation in October 2021. Serwetnyk currently serves on the School's Strategic Planning Committee and co-chairs the academic goal alongside the associate dean for education. In addition, she is the Standard III co-chair for the CCNE Accreditation Steering Committee.
In May 2021, Serwetnyk graduated from the Warner School of Education with her EdD in Education Administration with a specialization in higher education. She is a member of several organizations including the Association for Nurses in Professional Development, the New York Organization for Nurse Executives and Leaders, and Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society for Nurses, Epsilon Xi Chapter where she is an elected member of the Leadership Succession Committee.
Director, Center of Excellence in Education, University of Rochester School of Nursing, Rochester, NY, US. 1/2026 - Current
Assistant Professor for Clinical Nursing, University of Rochester, School of Nursing, Rochester, NY, US. 7/2021 - Current
Teaching Associate, University of Rochester, School of Nursing, Rochester, NY, US. 6/2018 - 6/2021
Interim Director, Center for Life Long Learning, University of Rochester, School of Nursing, Rochester, NY, US. 1/2019 - 11/2020
Senior Nurse Educator/AHA Training Center Coordinator, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, US. 5/2015 - 8/2018
Pediatric Advanced Life Support Coordinator, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, US. 9/2008 - 10/2017
Nurse Educator, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, US. 3/2009 - 5/2015
Nurse Leader, University of Rochester Medical Center - Golisano Children’s Hospital, Rochester, NY, US. 10/2005 - 9/2008
Pediatric Burn Coordinator, University of Rochester Medical Center - Golisano Children’s Hospital, Rochester, NY, US. 5/2005 - 9/2008
Staff Nurse Level II-III, University of Rochester Medical Center - Golisano Children’s Hospital, Rochester, NY, US. 3/2004 - 9/2008
Staff Nurse Level I-III, University of Rochester Medical Center - Golisano Children’s Hospital, Rochester, NY, US. 1/2002 - 10/2005
Professional Advancement Award
University of Rochester, School of Nursing, 2026
Scholarly Practitioner Award
National League for Nursing, 2024
Klainer Entrepreneurship Award
University of Rochester, School of Nursing, 2023
2023 AACN Innovations in Professional Nursing Award in the Academic Health Center Category
American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2023
Outstanding Faculty Colleague Award
University of Rochester, School of Nursing, 2022
Outstanding Faculty Colleague Award
University of Rochester, School of Nursing, 2021
Education Innovation Award
Sigma Theta Tau Epsilon Xi, 2018
Nurse of the Year Nomination
March of Dimes, 2015
UR Scholars: An Innovative Academic-Practice Pathway to Educational Access, Workforce Readiness, and Student Success
Brophy, L., Kitko, L., Valcin, E.K
AACN’s 2026 Access, Connection, Engagement (ACE) Symposium, AACN, 2026
Charlotte, North Carolina
Integrating Generative AI into an Undergraduate ECG Interpretation Course: Programmatic Challenges and Pedagogical Benefits
Dzikowicz, D.J., DiPaulo, N., Marconi, M., & Carey, M. G,
ENRS, 2026
Boston, Massachusetts
Reimagining Nursing Education at University of Rochester
Santori, K., Picard, K.,
Apple Education, Apple Education, 2025
Building Strong Foundations: Faculty Development in Competency-Based Nursing Education.
Greene, R.
Experiential Learning Summit, University of Rochester, School of Nursing, 2024
Rochester, New York
Empowering Improvement by Fostering Faculty Development for Competency-Based Nursing Education and Assessment Purposes
Greene, R.,
Innovation at Altitude Continuous Improvement Summit, Embry Riddle University, 2024
Fostering Innovative Faculty Development: Growing Competency in Nursing Education Course Design
Greene, R.,
University of Rhode Island Innovative Education Conference, University of Rhode Island, 2024
Implementing ePortfolio to Evaluate Competency-Based Learning in Nursing
Wolf, R.R., Greene, R.R., Brophy, L., Ciurzynski, S., Rosario-McCabe, M., Rotondo, L.
American Association of Colleges and Universities ePortfolio Institute Capstone Conference., American Association of Colleges and Universities, 2024
The changing landscape in nursing education: Virtual and on demand education seminar
Malek School of Nursing Professions Seminar, Malek School of Nursing Professions, Marymount University, 2024
Arlington, Virginia
Professional panel on online teaching
Online Learning Symponsium, University of Rochester Medical Center, 2023
Embracing Innovation: Utilization of technology and best practices to implement an online physical assessent course
Burke, K., Lee, L.
Nursing Education Research Conference, 2023
Washington, District Of Columbia
Teaching Nursing Online with the University of Rochester: Leveraging video for professional development and practical skills
Knowles, R., Rosario-McCabe, M.,
Webinar and on-demand video, Harmonize Learning, 2023
Creating a dynamic learning environment to prepare next-generation nurses
Burke, K.
Lippincott Education Innovation Summit, Lippincott, 2023
Nashbille, Tennessee
Leveraging technology to design 21st century nursing education
Rotondo, L.
Apple Nursing Education Summit., Apple, 2023
Cupertino, California
Providing nursing education graduate students with a course-embedded writing coach: A pilot of a peer review process
Burke, K., Greene, R., Stanek, S.,
AACN Transform, AACN, 2022
Orlando, Florida
Academic innovation and the new vertical expansion
University of Rochester Alumni Reunion, University of Rochester, School of Nursing, 2022
Bridging the Gap: How a Multi-modal Approach to Teaching Population Health Changed the Student Perspective of Poverty
AACN Transform 2021 Conference, 2021
Addressing Health Equity Education through a Community-based Telehealth Experience
AACN Transform 2021 Conference, AACN, 2021
Reimagining Nursing Education
Apple Education Event, 2021
Examsoft and Integration of Apple Products for Student Assessments
Examsoft Assessment Conference, 2021
Education of the Next Generation of Nursing: SON iROC Initiative
FLONEL Event, 2021
How to Add Collaboration Tools into your Course
Faculty Workshop, University of Rochester, 2020
Fostering a Learner-Centered Approach: Use of iPad Technology as a Teaching/Learning Tool to Support Innovative Assessments
American Association of Colleges of Nursing Baccalaureate Conference, 2019
iPads in Medical and Nursing Education
University of Rochester Faculty Summit, University of Rochester School of Nursing, 2019
Rochester, New York
Transforming a Hybrid Health Assessment Course to an Engaging Distance Learning Experience
Association for the Assessment of Learning in Higher Education Conference, 2019
UR Medicine’s Commitment to High Quality CPR
RQI 2020 Keynote Event, 2018
OUR RQI Experience
American Heart Association Education Conference, American Heart Association, 2017
Supporting Clinical Nurses in the Dissemination of Best Practices
Professional Development 2017 Convention, Association for Nursing, 2017
Can Nurses Have Fun and Successfully Prepare for Specialty Certification?
Professional Development 2015 Convention, Association for Nursing, 2015
Online Basic Life Support Courses Gain Efficiencies while Maintaining Quality Outcomes
Professional Development 2015 Convention, Association for Nursing, 2015
Online Basic Life Support Courses Gain Efficiencies while Maintaining Quality Training Outcomes for Registered Nurses in a Large Academic medical Institution
American Heart Association Conference: Scientific Sessions, American Heart Association, 2013
Dzikowicz, D.J., DiPaulo, N., Serwetnyk, T.M., Marconi, M., & Carey, M.G. (2026). Generative AI for ECG Interpretation Education: Impact on Nursing, Studet Performance, and AI Model Accuracy. Nurse Educator. DOI: 10.1097/NNE.0000000000002178
Wolf, R.R., Greene, R., Brophy, L.A., CIurzynski, S.M., Rosario-McCabe, M., Serwetnyk, T.M., Rotondo, L.D., (2025). Navigating a Transition to Competency-Based Nursing Education with a Systematized ePortfolio Assessent.. International Journal of ePortfolio.
Burke, K. B. & Serwetnyk, T. M. (2022). . Using Adobe Spark and Google Maps to Create and Share Patient Education for an Intermediate Medical/Surgical Nursing Course. Case Studies – Digital Scholars at Rochester.
Ciurzynski, S. M., Gottfried, J. A., Serwetnyk, T. M., et al. (2022). A Narrative Review of Training Approaches to Address Low Volume High Risk Pediatric Resuscitation Skills. Journal of Nursing Practice.
Serwetnyk, T., Filmore, K.., VonBacho, S., Cole, R., Miterko, C., Smith, C., Smith, C.M. (2015). Comparison of Online and Traditional Basic Life Support Renewal Training Methods for Registered Professional Nurses. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development.
Ciurzynski, S. & Serwetnyk, T. (2015). Increasing Nurse Certification Rates Using a Multimodal Approach. The Journal of Nursing Administration.