Dr. Jane Milliken

After teaching as a sessional instructor in the School of Nursing for four years, Jane Milliken was hired onto the regular faculty in 1998, and retired in 2012. She completed all her post-secondary studies at the University of Alberta, graduating with a BSc in Nursing in 1970, and an MA (1990) and PhD (1998) in Sociology.  

Her teaching focused on data analysis and research methods, as well as hospital and community clinical practice, while her research interests were the families of those with mental illness, chronic illness, and aging, as well as nursing education and student evaluation. Along with two colleagues, Drs. Schreiber and MacDonald, Jane founded an informal Grounded Theory Club in 1997 to discuss grounded theory research and mentor new grounded theorists in the method. The club has persisted into the present, meeting weekly and attracting virtual members across Canada and internationally. 

Jane enjoyed the committee work of the school, and chaired many of its committees, particularly in the undergraduate programs (on campus and post-RN). For several years, she was the Associate Director of Undergraduate Education, and served as Acting Director of the School for one year. She embraced working with collaborative partners, representing the School on the evaluation committee of the Collaborative Nursing Program of BC (later known as CAEN, the Collaboration for Academic Education in Nursing). 

Program review and accreditation captured her interest, leading to work with the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN), where she spent a year on the Board, chaired the Task Force on Clinical/Practice Education, and became trained as an accreditation reviewer. She conducted accreditation reviews of programs in several Canadian provinces, often as team leader, as well as three reviews in other countries.  

Following retirement, Jane continued to do CASN accreditation reviews for several years and became a program reviewer for the Nursing Education Program Approval Board of the College & Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta (CARNA). She coordinated recent CASN accreditation preparations for UVic and partner schools, and consulted with the University of Northern BC (UNBC) around student evaluation in nursing practice. Then, she really retired to focus on grandchildren, her garden, and more volunteer work.