Prof. Sandy Cayo receives Nurse of Year, 45 Under 40 awards from the National Black Nurses Association

Sandy N. Cayo, DNP, FNP-BC, APRN, clinical assistant professor at NYU Meyers, has been named the 2018 Nurse Educator of the Year by the National Black Nurses Association (NBNA), as well a recipient of the organization’s 45 Under 40 award. Cayo will receive her awards at the NBNA 46th Annual Institute and Conference, which will take place in St. Louis, July 29-August 5, 2018.

A member of the Greater New York City Black Nurses Association, Cayo is one of nine nurses from across the country to receive 2018 NBNA Nurses of the Year Awards. “These NBNA members are exemplars of excellence in nursing practice, research and academia,” said NBNA President Eric J. Williams, DNP, RN, CNE, FAAN. 

The 45 Under 40 Awards honor and celebrate NBNA members who are 40 years old and under who have shown strong leadership and demonstrated excellence and innovation in their practice setting, in their NBNA chapters, and in the communities they serve. The NBNA describes these emerging leaders as “the ‘way forward’ for our communities and our organization” and “the ‘Future of Nursing.’”

In her work at NYU Meyers, Cayo strives to bridge the gap in social determinants of health and global health education in nursing. Her research interests focus on family medicine, urban health, and complementary and integrative health, and her doctoral research focused on improving minority bone marrow transplant donor attitudes toward donation. She has worked with first-generation and minority nursing studies to help improve retention in academic nursing programs and continues to work with disadvantaged populations through education of wellness as a whole.

Cayo was also recently selected through competitive application for the National League for Nursing’s year-long LEAD program, one of three tracks in the NLN Leadership Institute designed for nurses in both education and practice who have experienced rapid transition into leadership positions or aspire to advance their status in management or administration.