Dr. Stephen Cavanagh

Biography

Stephen J. Cavanagh is the Dean of the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis, where he leads the School and collaborates on the development of five graduate degree programs within the interprofessional Nursing Science and Health-Care Leadership Graduate Group. His research focuses on health care workforce development, particularly maximizing the use of advanced practice nurses. Cavanagh has secured over $16 million in funding to enhance nursing practice arrangements and to promote diversity within the health care workforce in response to the projected nursing shortages due to an aging population and increasing technology in healthcare. Before joining UC Davis in 2019, he served as a Dean and Professor at the College of Nursing, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and held various leadership roles at Wayne State University, where he contributed to establishing the University Health Clinic. He began his academic career in the United Kingdom, implementing major reforms in nursing education. Cavanagh holds a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Texas at Austin, a Master's in Public Administration, and a Master's of Science in Health Care Management from the University of La Verne, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Nursing from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne Polytechnic. He is also a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Executive Nurse Fellow and has published over 40 scholarly papers in nursing research. Cavanagh is a fellow of several prestigious organizations in nursing and health care leadership and currently serves on the board of directors for the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

Research Interests