Service and Ministry Award Recognizes Dr. Rice as a “Waymaker”

Bridgette M. Rice, PhD, MDiv, APRN, FAAN, Associate Dean for Research and Innovation, and the Richard and Marianne Kreider Endowed Professor in Nursing for Vulnerable Populations, has been named the 2024 Waymaker Alumna in Service and Ministry by Eastern University’s Palmer Theological Seminary, where she received her Master of Divinity in 2017.

The annual award “acknowledges an alumna/alumnus for their life of service and ministry reflecting the reign of God in the world. The honoree vitalizes a spirit of waymaking, of innovative pursuit, and of living out Palmer's motto—the whole gospel for the whole world through whole persons—in contextualized novelty.”

Dr. Rice’s desire to integrate her professional and religious lives impelled her to earn her MDiv after she had already attained her doctorate in nursing. She says that she draws on her theological education to enrich her research and consider her academic pursuits within the context of larger systemic injustices. Reflecting on what the award means to her she said, “I don’t do what I do for recognition, but because I feel called to advocate for equity and justice in our global society. Receiving this distinguished honor from Palmer is a blessing and continued motivation to use my research and theological expertise to make the world a better place.”

A seasoned and innovative researcher, Dr. Rice has focused her work on interventions to promote health equity and reduce health disparities. Her consistently funded research portfolio aims to ensure that all individuals have equitable and just opportunities to achieve their full health potential. 

Palmer’s award announcement notes that Dr. Rice “exemplifies that theological education can reach beyond the pulpit and Church walls. The Whole Gospel for the Whole World through Whole Persons is being lived out in nursing classrooms and in research right here in the Greater Philadelphia area.”