Associate Professor Emerita of Nursing and Director of Diversity and Enrichment Indiana University School of Nursing
1942-2019
Passed by the IUPUI Faculty Council at their meeting on January 14, 2020.
Indiana University School of Nursing celebrates the life of Dr. Lillian Stokes, a transformational leader, champion for diversity, teacher, scholar, and mentor to many. Over her forty-year tenure, Dr. Stokes made significant contributions to the IU School of Nursing. She made a sustained and lasting legacy as a champion of diversity through her leadership and influence on culturally competent care and many minority professional and health initiatives, including Breaking the Myths of Nursing.
Lillian was born and raised in North Carolina, the youngest of twelve children. Even as a child, she loved to read and attend school, her dream of becoming a nurse ever-present. Graduating from Pitt County Training School in 1959, Lillian attended North Carolina A&T State University as a Biology major. To realize her lifelong dream of becoming a nurse, she transferred to Kate Bitting Reynolds School of Nursing after her freshman year, graduating with honors, and became a Registered Nurse. After working as a staff nurse for a year, she continued her education at North Carolina Central University, earning her Bachelor of Science degree with honors.
In 1965, Lillian married her true love, Robert Everett Stokes, whom she began dating during high school. They moved to Joliet, Illinois and eventually came to reside in Indianapolis in 1967 for her to further her education at Indiana University. Lillian graduated from Indiana University with a Master of Science in Nursing in 1969 and spent her early career as a staff nurse in hospitals in Virginia, Illinois, and Indiana. Dr. Stokes earned her Doctorate in Educational Psychology in 1998 from Indiana University Bloomington, once again exhibiting her commitment to higher education.
Her career in teaching began at Purdue University in 1968. Indiana University School of Nursing was fortunate to have her join the faculty as a nurse educator in 1972, where she spent the fullness of her career until her retirement in 2008. In the department of Adult Health, Lillian served as an Associate Professor. From the beginning, Dr. Stokes focused on the success and support of diverse groups of students, nurturing and mentoring them in their educational and career paths. She shared her passion for education and development of nurses with many, and helped her students understand the multiple options and career paths available to nurses. Lillian had two textbooks published that were widely used throughout the United States, Canada, and Australia. Health care in the African American community being one of her focuses, Dr. Stokes often wrote chapters for books targeted to this population.
After her appointment as the Director for Diversity and Enrichment in 1996, Dr. Stokes’ efforts led to an increase in minority recruitment, enrollment, retention, and graduation. One of her most important contributions is the development of a Diversity Statement that is still present into the school’s core values and deeply imbedded in the strategic goals for the future of the school today.
Dr. Stokes had a passion for service and spent her life giving back. She was dedicated to several ministries through Witherspoon Presbyterian Church where she was a member for nearly forty years. These various ministries include nineteen years as a Sunday School teacher, the Acolyte Ministry, Vacation Bible School, Hospitality Ministry, the Sharing Tree Initiative, and the Homeless Ministry. Utilizing her education in nursing, Dr. Stokes was one of the founders of Mothers & Mentors, a unique ministry designed to address the high infant mortality rate in the community by mentoring young teen mothers.
Dr. Stokes also served on the boards of many organizations including the National Kidney Foundation, The Orchard School, and the Executive Council of Indiana University Alumni Association. She received many prestigious awards, including her induction in October of 2019 to the Distinguished Alumni Service Award (DASA) for Indiana University Alumni, an honorary fellow of the National League for Nursing’s Academy of Nursing Education, and as a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.
Even in her retirement, Dr. Stokes continued her mentorship and commitment to diversity. During her “retirement,” she developed important programs such as “Career Connections” to mentor underrepresented students in their pursuit of graduate degrees in nursing and “Developing Future Nurse Leaders”, a mentoring program for high school students.
Maya Angelou once said, they may forget your name, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” Over her career, Dr. Stokes affected the lives and careers of many students, faculty and staff who will never forget the way she made them feel about nursing as a profession with her valuable lessons of caring and multi-cultural advocacy. Dr. Lillian Stokes left a legacy - teaching students and faculty alike how to become caring practitioners, enabling our cultural competence, and expecting that we pay her lessons forward to make a difference in the health of all people, families, populations and healthcare worldwide.
For all of Lillian’s career and service accomplishments, perhaps most important was her love for her family as she was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and family member. She is survived by her husband Robert of fifty-four years; children Scott (Chandria) and Robyn; grandchildren Chase, Bryson, and Madison; aunt Ellomethea Dixon Hueston; sisters Queenie Taft and JoAnn (Monroe) Roundtree; brothers James (Geneva) Gatlin and Paul Gatlin, as well as a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and other close family and friends.
Dr. Stokes made the IU School of Nursing better, students more successful and faculty and staff efforts relevant and responsive to needs of our community. She taught everyone who an IU Nurse is, what an IU Nurse does and how an IU Nurse leads by her example, advice and service.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the Indiana University School of Nursing
Prepared by Robin P. Newhouse, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, IUSON Dean and Distinguished Professor