Robert Piemonte (Ed.D. ’76) who championed the profession as the Executive Director of the National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA) and other leading nursing organizations, died April 21. The cause was the coronavirus.
He was 85.
Piemonte’s honors included a Teachers College Nursing Education R. Louise McManus Medal, and his 2014 induction into the American Nurses Association Hall of Fame.
“Countless colleagues credit him with advancing their careers and professional development,” the NSNA said. “He will be sorely missed, but his legacy of extraordinary leadership will continue to advance his beloved profession.”
Dr. Robert Piemonte (Photo: TC Archives)
Piemonte held additional leadership positions with American Nurses Foundation, the New York Society of Association Executives, the New Jersey State Nurses Association, the Nurses Association of the Counties of Long Island (District 14), the New York State Nurses Association and the Nurses House.
He also served as an Assistant Director of Nursing at the NYU Medical Center; the Director of Nursing at Gouveneur Hospital; and militarily as a Chief Nurse with an army medical unit.
“My greatest reward in nursing has been my ability to offer leadership to students and novices in nursing,” Piemonte said in a 2009 interview for a NSNA newsletter.
“Mentoring others is the greatest gift we can have. I have seen individuals grow in stature and position within the profession and I am proud that I may have played some small part in their success.”
His work was also recognized by a Foundation of New York Nurses’ Driscoll Award, the Nurses’ House Dolphin Award and a designation as a Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing.
The youngest of 12 children born to Sicilian immigrants, Piemonte is survived by a sister and a number of nieces and nephews.
A scholarship in his honor has been established by The Foundation of the National Student Nurses Association.
Donations to the Dr. Robert V. Piemonte Memorial Scholarship may be mailed to the Foundation of NSNA, 45 Main St., Brooklyn, NY 11201 or made via the FNSNA website.