Dr. Mary Catherine (Katie) Ehlman is Professor of Gerontology, Director of the Center for Healthy Aging and Wellness and recipient of the Hershel B. Whitney Endowed Professorship in Gerontology in the College of Nursing and Health Professions (CNHP). Ehlman is a licensed Indiana nursing home administrator and is a certified health education specialist. Since 2013, Ehlman has mentored over 30 students in graduate and undergraduate research-related projects. Her own research and scholarship in the areas of nursing home quality and student attitudes about aging have been published in numerous peer-reviewed and refereed publications. Ehlman’s efforts have been awarded more than $4.7 million dollars in grants, both internally and externally, where she is principal investigator. The most significant is the $3.7 million grant awarded in 2019 from the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) for the USI Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP). Recently, Ehlman led a CARES Act telehealth-funded initiative, funded by HRSA and connected with the GWEP, in the amount of $90,625. Additionally, Ehlman brought together a regional team to participate as a subawardee with Indiana University Nursing Home COVID-19 Action Network funded at $70,000.
At USI, Ehlman helps plan the Mid-America Institute on Aging and Wellness and was a member of the project leadership team for USI’s MAGIC Project, a collaboration with renowned geriatrician Dr. Bill Thomas. She also developed a nursing home administrator residency program resulting in USI becoming the first academic institution in the state of Indiana to create and implement an AIT Residency program. She is co-faculty sponsor for two student groups: STELLAR and Sigma Phi Omega.
Outside of the University, Ehlman is a member of the Indiana Governor’s Council on Aging, a member of the Indiana Dementia Care Advisory Group Meeting statewide taskforce. Ehlman was a recent 6-year board member for SWIRCA & More, does consultation and service work with Southwest Regional Nursing Home Collaborative, and is a past member of Sigma Phi Omega National Gerontology Honors Society, the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, and the Gerontological Society of America, among other councils and advisory boards. She is also the head coach for the Evansville Harrison High School Girls Soccer Team.
She has been recognized with the USI Dr. Jane Davis-Brezette Faculty Excellence Award in 2019 for her contributions to the success of USI student athletes through mentoring and classroom achievement. In 2017, she received the CNHP Excellence in Teaching award, and in 2016 with the National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) Distinguished Honorary Member for Scholarship, Leadership and Service awarded by the USI NSCS chapter.