The Virginia Lee Franklin Lecture

D. Murray and Katherine Franklin created this endowed lecture in honor of their daughter Virginia Lee Franklin, BSN '54, for the purpose of continuing her lifetime commitment to the education of registered nurses at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Virginia Lee Franklin, affectionately referred to as "Lee" by her family and friends, earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maryland School of Nursing and a master’s degree in nursing at Emory University. Her graduate studies and subsequent career focused on neurological and neurosurgical nursing. Ms. Franklin assumed a faculty role at the University of Delaware (UD) in the Department of Nursing. She remained at UD and was instrumental in its progression to a College of Nursing during her tenure. As a teacher and clinical instructor, Ms. Franklin was an active participant in the departments' curriculum development, its implementation, and its accreditation process. She is described as a dedicated professional who "continued to improve her knowledge of neurological and neurosurgical nursing and to develop expertise in nursing practice." She conducted workshops and seminars to disseminate the expanding knowledge and  science in this area as well as served as a consultant to the area Veterans Hospital and Queens Hospital in London.

Recognized by the American Association of Critical Care Nurses for her expertise in neurosurgical nursing and assisted in development of their Core Curriculum in Neurosurgical Nursing, which in 1981 served as the guide for the national Certification Examination for that specialty. At the time of her death in 1981, she was in the process of writing a text book on this topic.