School of Nursing​ faculty member Maren Coffman has died

Maren Coffman, a professor in the School of Nursing, died Sept. 29.  Since joining the University in August 2004, Coffman, a registered nurse, taught several undergraduate and graduate courses and conducted research on population health, health promotion and access to health care.

“Dr. Coffman was a valued and respected member of the School of Nursing faculty and the broader University community. Her dedication to student success, scholarly excellence and community engagement was truly outstanding. She will be deeply missed,” said Susan McLennon, director of the School of Nursing.

Fluent in Spanish, Coffman had extensive experience working in the Latino community and was co-investigator on a five-year National Institutes of Health-funded study to examine social determinants of health in the Latino community. Her internal and external research grants included the American Nurses Foundation Presidential Scholar award. In 2009, Coffman was one of 15 nurse educators in the country to receive a three-year $350,000 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Nurse Faculty Scholar Award.

Coffman completed a Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. She then spent 18 months living in Venezuela, where she learned the customs of the people and the Spanish language. Her Master of Science in Nursing is from Syracuse University, and she earned a Ph.D. in nursing from the University of Connecticut, where she received the 2005 Outstanding Doctoral Student Award.

A celebration of life will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Palmetto Funeral Home, 2049 Carolina Place Dr., Fort Mill, South Carolina, 29708. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to support UNC Charlotte students through the Maren J. Coffman Doctoral Nursing Education Scholarship. After selecting the gift amount under Designations click “Show More+,” a box will pop up; search for the Maren J. Coffman Doctoral Nursing Education Scholarship.