Megan L. Jester, PhD, RN, AHN-BC

Megan-Jester@ou.edu

Dr. Megan L. Jester is an Associate Professor for the Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing and School Health Consultant for the Institute for Child Development at the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Jester's research addresses health outcomes rooted in educational access, environmental conditions, and nursing workforce preparedness through two interconnected lines of inquiry examining social and structural determinants of health. She investigates how school built environments impact student and staff wellbeing in PreK-12 settings, particularly examining stress, autonomic function, and drivers of learning readiness, while simultaneously working to transform nursing education by developing competency-based frameworks that prepare nurses to recognize and address structural barriers to care. Dr. Jester has received funding from the Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing, the Institute for Community and Society Transformation, and Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.