Judith Pechacek, DNP, RN, CENP

Dr. Judith Pechacek has served as a professional nurse in a variety of settings for forty years. Her practice career was spent as a general staff nurse, nurse leader, manager and nurse executive. In 2013, she accepted a faculty position at the University of Minnesota, School of Nursing, teaching in the Health, Innovation and Leadership track in the Doctorate of Nursing (DNP) program. From 2015-2025, she served as the Assistant Dean for the DNP program, the largest hybrid DNP program in the nation with over 300 full time students in eleven specialties. Her teaching responsibilities have focused on leadership, quality, business and global studies. Her scholarship is dedicated to interprofessional practice and the connection to quality patient outcomes. In addition, Dr. Pechacek was named as the Senior Quality Nurse Scholar and faculty member for the Veterans Administration Quality Scholars (VAQS) Fellowship program. She also serves on multiple boards in the community, as a University committee member and is actively raising two teenagers on her Century farm in Rural Minnesota.

DNP, University of Minnesota

MS, University of Minnesota

BAN, Metropolitan State University

ADN, Inver Hills Community College

LPN, St. Paul Vocational Technical Institute

• Certified Executive Nursing Practice, American Organization for Nursing Leadership
• Peer Review Certification, Quality Matters
• Registered Nurse, Minnesota Board of Nursing

• Outstanding Contributions to Graduate and Professional Education Award, University of Minnesota, 2025
• Unit Service Award, University of Minnesota Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, 2023
• Daisy Award for Exceptional Mentorship, University of Minnesota School of Nursing, 2023
• Excellence in Innovation Award, University of Minnesota, School of Nursing Alumni  Society, 2022
• E. Louise Grant Award, University of Minnesota School of Nursing, 2020
• Outstanding Nurse Administrator of the Year, Minneapolis-St. Paul Magazine, 2016

• American Nurses Association
• American Organization for Nursing Leadership
• Minnesota Organization of Leaders in Nursing
• Minnesota Organization for Registered Nurses
• Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society

Hamer, J. D., Nayyar, R., Yarlaggadda, S., Arredondo, K., Pechacek, J., Horstman, M. J., & Godwin, K. M. (2025). Interprofessional quality improvement simulation: A virtual simulation activity for geographically distributed learners. Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice, 38, Article 100737. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjep.2024.100737 

Gingerich , S., Jonsdóttir, G., Wentzel, J., Flaten, C., Pechacek, J., & Bragadóttir, H. (2024). Developing global leaders through international partnership: A collaborative model for graduate nursing programs. Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, 11(2), Article 6. https://pubs.lib.umn.edu/index.php/ijps/article/view/6370 

Flaten, C. B., Pechacek, J. M., Potter, T. M., & Mueller, C. (2023). Planetary health in nursing curricula: How one school transformed nursing curricula as they integrated planetary health concepts with the 2021 AACN essentials. Journal of Professional Nursing, 49, 52-56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2023.08.010 

Pechacek, J., Anderson, D., Lund, R., & Drill-Mellum, L. (2022). Healthy work environments: An interprofessional partnership model to promote positive workplace culture. Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, 9(2), 7-7. https://doi.org/10.24926/ijps.v9i2.4978 

Bragadóttir, H., Potter, T. M., Pechacek, J. M., & Bjarnadóttir, T. (2020). Transforming global leadership skills in graduate nursing programs using an intercultural setting and a case study on refugees. Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, 7(1), 2-2. https://doi.org/10.24926/ijps.v7i1.3011 

Pechacek, J. M., & Zaccagnini, M. (Eds.). (2019). The doctor of nursing practice essentials: A new model for advanced practice nursing (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Pechacek, J. M. (2019). Emerging roles for the DNP prepared nurse. In M. Zaccagnini, & J. M. Pechacek (Eds)., The doctor of nursing practice essentials: A new model for advanced practice nursing. (4th ed). Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Pechacek, J. M. (2019). A template for the DNP project. In M. Zaccagnini, & J. M. Pechacek (Eds)., The doctor of nursing practice essentials: A new model for advanced practice nursing. (4th ed). Jones & Bartlett Publishers.

Lutfiyya, M. N., Schicker, T., Jarabek, A., Pechacek, J., Brandt, B., & Cerra, F. (2017). Generating the data for analyzing the effects of interprofessional teams for improving Triple Aim outcomes. In C. W. Delaney, C. A. Weaver, J. J. Warren, T. R. Clancy, & R. L. Simpson (Eds.), Big data-enabled nursing: Education, research and practice (pp. 103-114). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53300-1_6 

Lutfiyya, M. N., Brandt, B., Delaney, C., Pechacek, J., & Cerra, F. (2016). Setting a research agenda for interprofessional education and collaborative practice in the context of United States health system reform. Journal of Interprofessional Care, 30(1), 7-14. https://doi.org/10.3109/13561820.2015.1040875 

Pechacek J., Flaten, C. "Transforming Global Leadership Skills in Pre-Licensure Nursing Programs Using an Intercultural Setting," American Association of Colleges of Nursing Transform Conference, New Orleans, LA. (December 2024).

Bellegrade, K., Pechacek, J. "An Education Model to Prepare Nurses for Leadership Roles in Policy, Health Diplomacy and Global Citizenship at the United Nations," American Academy of Colleges of Nursing Doctoral Conference, Coronado, CA. (January 2024).

Pechacek J., Bellegrade, K. "Nurses at the United Nations: An Innovative Teaching Strategy to Prepare Nurses and Faculty for Global Engagement," American Academy of Colleges of Nursing Doctoral Conference, Coronado, CA. (January 2024).

Flaten, C. & Pechacek J. "Innovative Curriculum Design in Nursing a Focus on Care Coordination in Alignment with the 2021 AACN Essentials," American Association of Colleges of Nursing Transform Conference, Orlando, FL. (December 2023).

Pechacek, J., & Austin, A.  "Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Schools of Nursing," American Association of Colleges of Nursing Transform Conference, Orlando, FL. (December 2023).

Potter, T., & Pechacek, J. "Transforming Curriculum to Educate Nurses for Planetary Health," International Council of Nurses Congress, Montreal, Québec, Canada. (July 2023).

Flaten, C. & Pechacek, J. "Planetary Health: Integration in Curriculum Development," American Academy of Colleges of Nursing Doctoral Conference, Coronado, CA. (January 2023).

Pechacek, J., & Flaten, C. "Planetary Health: Essential Knowledge for Nursing - Setting the Stage for Change," American Association of Colleges of Nursing Transform Conference, Chicago, IL. (December 2022).

Venables, N. C., Rudenick, J. M., Pechacek, J., Erbes, C. R., & Diem, S. J. "A Pilot Organizational Assessment of Requests for Mental Health Care: Examining Processes Before and During COVID-19," Veterans Administration Quality Scholars Summer Institute, Virtual. (August 2020).

Pesut, D. J., & Pechacek, J. "Use of System Archetypes to Accelerate, Advance, and Deepen Systems Thinking
Skills of Nurses," Sigma Theta Tau International Biennial Convention, Washington, DC. (November 2019)

Award: Strengthening Support of Survivors with an Expanded SANE Workforce 2023
Principal Investigator: Porta, Carolyn
Sponsoring Organization: US Dept. of Health & Human Services
Award Dates: 2021 - 2024

Award: Interprofessional Advanced Fellowship in VA Quality Scholars OAA Program
Principal Investigator: Diem, Susan
Sponsoring Organization: Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Academic Affiliations 

Award: Jonas Scholars
Principal Investigators: Pechacek, Judith
Sponsoring Organization: Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence
Award Dates: 2024 - 2027

Award: Jonas Scholars
Principal Investigator: Bliss, Donna
Sponsoring Organization: Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence
Award Dates: 2021 - 2023

Award: Jonas Scholars
Principal Investigator: Fulkerson, Jayne Allyn
Sponsoring Organization: Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence
Award Dates: 2018 - 2020

Award: MHealth/Fairview Longitudinal Integrated Interprofessional Clerkship
 Principal Investigator: Pereira, Anne
Sponsoring Organization: Academic Investment Education Program
Award Dates: 2019 - 2023