ACNM Awards

The ACNM Foundation Excellence in Teaching Award

This award is selected by SUNY Downstate midwifery students and granted to faculty by the ACNM Foundation for demonstrating excellence in teaching through academic and clinical education, as well as exemplifying and supporting the highest standards of midwifery practice.

The ACNM Regional Award for Excellence

Suzanne Schechter was awarded the 2004 Regional Award for Excellence from the American College of Nurse-Midwives. The region included Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The award was presented at the ACNM Annual Meeting in New Orleans, La., on Saturday, May 29, 2004.

Professor Schechter is described by students and colleagues as a "mentor, role model, guiding force, and the 'backbone' of the daily operations for the SUNY Downstate Midwifery Program" according to her nomination. Professor Schechter has taught for the SUNY program for the past 18 years and was named education director eight years ago. She demonstrates exceptional organizational skills and a keen sense of anticipating the unexpected.

Professor Schechter has a Masters of Science in Nursing with distinction from Pace University and received a Certificate in Midwifery from SUNY Downstate. Professor Schechter coauthored the article, "Integrating Qualified Nurses and Non-Nurses in Midwifery Education: The Two-Year Experience of an ACNM DOA Accredited Program," featured in the peer-reviewed Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health in January, 2000.

Schechter serves a wide variety of positions inside ACNM, including its accreditation and education divisions. Locally, she has served on the Northeast Regional Consortium of Educators in Nurse-Midwifery (NERCEN) exam committee for the past thirteen years.