Faculty

Dr. Rebecca Koszalinski applies technological solutions to improve the health of older adults. She is the primary investigator for a Florida Department of Health funded study with a large team of investigators, including epidemiology, water, air and environmental scientists, bench and nurse scientists, and nursing students in the investigation of health outcomes of harmful algal blooms, which is a significant problem to address for our Florida population. Koszalinski has several professional designations including a Fellow of the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses (FARN) and a founding member of the Society of Nurses, Scientists, Innovators, and Leaders (SONSIEL), an organization dedicated to growth and sustainability of nurse-led innovation. Prior to becoming a nurse, Koszalinski was engaged in bench science in pathology labs as a histologic technician. She has previously served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; an Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in the Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing; and a returning Associate Professor at the Florida Atlantic University, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing before joining the University of Central Florida in August 2024.

Education

• PhD, Florida Atlantic University
• MS in Nursing Education, Florida Atlantic University
• BSN, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh
• Certificate, Introduction to Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST), NYU School of Global Health
• NIH Summer Genetics Institute

Selected Editorial Activities

• Review Editor, Healthcare Professions Education section, Frontiers in Medicine
• Reviewer, The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences Reviewer
• Reviewer, Research in Gerontological Nursing
• Reviewer, Applied Clinical Informatics
• Reviewer, CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing

Selected Awards & Honors

• 2025 cohort member, Environmental Health Research Institute for Nurse and Clinical Scientists (EHRI-NCS)
• Scholarship Anne Boykin Institute Summer, 2024
• Top 10 Reviewer of the Year, Research in Gerontological Nursing, 2023
• Invited Member, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center Educators for Excellence, 2022
• Reviewer of the Year, Rehabilitation Nursing, 2020
• Chancellor’s Award for Success in Multidisciplinary Research: Health Innovation Technology and Simulation Lab, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2019

Selected Professional Activities

• CRRN Test Writing Item Review, The Association of Rehabilitation Nurses
• Appointee, Policy & Determinants of Health Innovation Committee, The American Nurses Association
• Conference Planning Committee Co-Chair, National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence
• Communications Committee Chair, National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence

Additional Languages

• Polish (limited working proficiency level)
• German (limited working proficiency level)