Northeast Community College was a place of inspiration for the 2025 Nebraska Community College Association Distinguished Alumni award recipient, Kari Wade of Lincoln.
Wade accepted the award recently during the Nebraska Community College Association (NCCA) Fourth Quarter Meeting and Annual Conference in Lincoln. She was also recognized during the annual Northeast Community College Foundation Achievement Awards celebration in September.
Kari (Andersen) Wade, Ed.D., MSN, RN, CNE, who graduated from Northeast Community College in 2000 with an associate’s degree in nursing, is a full professor at Nebraska Methodist College. She serves as coordinator for the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) – Education and Leadership in Healthcare track, coordinator of the Doctoral Scholarly Project, and faculty member for both the Doctor of Education (Ed.D) and Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs.
“I changed who I was because of coming here to Northeast,” Wade said during the annual Northeast Foundation Achievement Awards celebration September 25. “The second week of the nursing program, I said, ‘I’m going to be a nurse educator.’ And it was because of the faculty that I was being exposed to.”
Wade specifically mentioned her Northeast instructors, Karen Weidner, now director of nursing programs at Northeast, and Alice Kindschuh, with whom Wade co-developed the doctoral program at Methodist College.
“I just kept surrounding myself with people who inspired me because it made me want to keep going further,” Wade explained.
Her leadership journey began at Northeast, where she served as an officer in the Nebraska Student Nurses Association and attended the national convention in North Carolina.
“I realized that our voices can make a difference,” Wade said, “and that inspired me to get involved with professional organizations, eventually leading me to be president of the largest health professional organization in Nebraska, the Nebraska Nurses Association, during Covid.” Wade continues to serve the Nebraska Nurses Association as immediate past president and chair of the Political Action Committee.
Outside of her professional life, Wade finds strength through running, having completed marathons in Nebraska, Kansas, Montana and Hawaii, and the New York Marathon. She said she started running because of a personal tragedy.
“I know running is sort of an exercise cliché, but it truly changed my life,” Wade explained. “And now I surround myself with people who inspire me in that way to be the best version of myself – healthy, physically in shape, mentally strong and physically strong.”
One of her running mates attended the Norfolk ceremony with Wade.
Wade also credits her husband, Dr. Shawn Wade, an emergency medicine specialist in Lincoln, with inspiring her. She said when she wanted to start a family, but also wanted to earn her doctorate, he encouraged her to do both.
“I was putting up walls for myself, but he’s not,” she said. “He encouraged me to go and do my thing, be successful, chase my dreams.”
The Wades have been married 23 years and have two children, Keira and Ian.
Northeast President Leah Barrett praised Wade’s accomplishments, saying, “Kari Wade’s journey from Northeast student to healthcare leader exemplifies the transformative power of a community college education.”
The Distinguished Alumni Award is presented annually by the Nebraska Community College Association to one distinguished graduate of each of the community college areas. To be eligible, recipients must have previously been awarded the Northeast Alumni Hall of Success Award. Wade was inducted into the Northeast Alumni Hall of Success in 2015.
Wade honored
Dr. Kari Wade of Lincoln (right) received the 2025 Nebraska Community College Association Distinguished Alumni award from Northeast President Leah Barrett.
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