Diane Denise Washington
Biography
Diane Washington joined the University of Virginia School of Nursing in October 2011 and brings more than three decades of executive-level administrative experience to the School. Over her tenure, she has served as executive assistant to Dean Emerita Dorrie K. Fontaine and Dean Emerita Pamela F. Cipriano, and as assistant to the School’s seventh dean, Marianne Baernholdt, the Pew Charitable Trusts Dean and Professor.
Currently serving as Executive Assistant for School Initiatives and Support, Washington partners with faculty and staff across the School, including Academic Operations, the Office of Strategic Wellness and Opportunity, which includes the Compassionate Care Initiative and the Community Health & Wellbeing. Diane staffs two School of Nursing Faculty Governance Committees, namely the Awards & Recognition Committee and the BRIDGE Committee. She also serves as an events consultant and strategist for major School of Nursing events and is the school’s proofreader for the bi-weekly CHARTED newsletter and the Virginia Nursing Legacy Magazine, published three times annually.
Before joining the School of Nursing, Washington held leadership roles across the University of Virginia Health System and beyond, including Administrative Office Manager for the UVA Medical Center Finance Department, executive assistant to the Chief Financial Officer and later the Chief Executive Officer of Southern Health, a managed healthcare company, and assistant to the chair of the Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging, Dr. Michael Dake. She began her administrative career as a receptionist for UVA Patient Financial Services, recruited by retired Medical Center Finance Director Mary K. Bednar.
Washington is an active member of multiple professional and community organizations, including the State of the Executive Assistant and Office Dynamics International. Her prior affiliations include UVA’s Exceptional Assistant Network, Toastmasters Club of Charlottesville, Dr. Joanne Pinkerton’s Women’s Health Awareness Committee, and the UVA Black Faculty-Staff Employee Resource Group (BFS-ERG).
Her contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including the School of Nursing Accomplished Service Recognition Award for Outstanding Contributions (2012), the School of Nursing Dean’s Award for Excellence in Innovation (2014), and special recognition in 2019 for successfully concluding the Fontaine deanship while onboarding the newly appointed dean, Pamela Cipriano. She is also a two-time recipient of the UVA Medical Center and School of Medicine Employee of the Month Award. In 2025, she received the BFS-ERG Lincoln Lewis Staff Recognition Award for encouraging critical thinking, inclusive action, and integrity in leadership. She was elected by her peers as a Staff Senator representing the School of Nursing for a two-year term beginning in 2025. Later in 2026 the University Staff Senate elected Ms. Washington to serve on its Executive Committee as Co-Director of the Advocacy Committee. Recently Washington received the 2026 School of Nursing Dean’s Award for Staff Excellence in Leadership.
A strong advocate for lifelong learning, workplace wellbeing, and employee support, Washington has completed extensive training in mental health awareness, wellness peer support, mindfulness, respectful workplace practices, de-escalation, and bias awareness. Her training includes certification as an Adult Mental Health First Aider through the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, peer support and facilitator training through the Wisdom & Wellbeing program, Stress First Aid, Stepping in 4 Respect Train-the-Trainer certification, and Mindfulness for Healthcare Employees through the UVA Mindfulness Center. She also completed the Higher Education Program for Executive Level Assistants (HEPELA) through the UVA School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Washington is currently enrolled in the UVA School of Continuing and Professional Studies Strategic Administrative Leadership & Communication (SALC) Institute for the 2026-27 academic year.
Washington recently was one of five invited panelists on the UVA Health Schwartz Center Rounds “The Pearls We Carry” on September 11, 2026. Schwartz Center Rounds are interprofessional panel-based discussions that allow healthcare workers to reflect and share about how they are affected by their work. The goal of the program is to foster and support empathy, collaboration, and compassion for self and others.
Washington is one of two from the University of Virginia to participate in the 2026 Commonwealth Mentorship Program (CMP), serving as a Mentor. CMP provides a platform to enhance mentorship and leadership skills while making a significant contribution to the development of fellow state employees.
Washington earned a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Virginia and holds three certificates of completion from the UVA School of Medicine’s Mini-Med School program. She is deeply committed to fostering supportive, inclusive, and healthy workplace environments and actively contributes to initiatives that strengthen employee engagement and wellbeing across the University community. Diane received her 40-year service award pin from the University of Virginia this past August 2026.