Angela Banks

Angela D. Banks, RN, PhD is a Full Professor and former Chair of the Undergraduate Nursing Department in the School of Nursing and Health Professions. She teaches Pharmacology, Pathophysiology and Pharmacokinetics to undergraduate nursing students. She has been a registered nurse for more than 30 years, and prior to entering academia she worked in the cardiovascular intensive care unit and the emergency department. Her program of research focuses on women's health, health disparities, and African Americans with cardiovascular disease.

In 2011-2012, she was a Fulbright Scholar, at the Jordan University of Science and Technology, and later that year she co-authored her first book titled, “Laboratory Tests and Diagnostic Procedures with Nursing Diagnoses.” She has spoken nationally and internationally on health seeking behavior among African Americans with heart disease and disseminated the findings in peer-reviewed nursing and medical journals.

Dr. Banks' teaching philosophy, in her own words:

My teaching philosophy is built on the premise of 3 major roles. The first is a director, the second is a story teller, and the final is a gatekeeper. In the role of director, I mentor, guide and support my students through a pathway of intellectual curiosity, critical thinking and student responsibility. I navigate through difficult concepts, new terminology, and the physiology of the human body. To assist students with comprehension and understanding, I provide clear guidelines and valuable resources. As a director, I select the material, topics, and the methodology for assessing and meeting program outcomes. I apply several teaching strategies such as gaming, on-line modules, student interaction, case studies, discussion and podcasting.

My second responsibility is the role of a storyteller. I believe there is value in using myself and my personal experiences as teaching tools; and I accomplish this through storytelling. Storytelling captures the attention of my students and provides a foundation for better understanding through the use of concrete examples.

My final responsibility is that of a gatekeeper. As a gatekeeper, I establish the standards for the course and the bar is high yet achievable. As students who will become future nurses, I am preparing them to develop problem-solving strategies; and to function as competent registered nurses in a hospital, community or clinic. To meet these benchmarks, I provide an environment that is conducive to active learning, meeting course objectives and bridging the gap between the acquisition and retention of knowledge.

• Cardiovascular Disease
• Pharmacology and Pharmacokinetics
• Pathophysiology

• Cardiovascular Disease
• Health Disparities
• Marginalized Populations

• Chair of Undergraduate Department
• Chair of School of Nursing and Health Professions Peer Review
• Chair of University Peer Review

• UC San Francisco, PhD in Philosophy of Nursing, 2005
• UC Los Angeles, MN in Nursing, 1984
• University of Illinois, Chicago, BSN, 1980

• Professor
• Associate Professor
• Assistant Professor

• University of San Francisco Mentor of the Year, 2023
• Song Brown Workforce, Grant #1001537 (2023-2025) $810,000, Fall 2023
• Song Brown Workforce, Grant #1000636 (2022-2024) $384,000, Fall 2022

• Corbett, J. V. & Banks, A. D. (2019). Laboratory Tests and Diagnostic Procedures with Nursing Diagnoses. (9th ed.), Hoboken, NJ: Pearson
• Hiba Bawadi, Toqa Khataybeh, Bayan Obeidat, Abdelhamid Kerkadi, Reema Tayyem, Angela D. Banks and Hadil Sibih, (2019). “Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Contribute Significantly to College Students’ Daily Caloric Intake in Jordan: Soft Drinks Is Not the Major Contributor.” Nutrients 11(5), 1058;.
• Banks, Angela Denise, Ong-Flaherty, Chenit, Sharifi, Claire (2016). “Cultural of Oppression in African Americans with Heart Failure. Journal of Cultural Diversity, 23(4), 139-142.
• Ong-Flaherty, C., Banks, A., Doyle, M., Sharifi, C. (2016). “The Meaning of evidence and nonmaleficence: Cases from nursing. Online Journal of Health Ethics, 12(2),
• Banks, Angela Denise, Ong-Flaherty, Chenit, Sharifi, Claire (2016). Reflections on Leadership Nursing Education: A Minority Perspective, Creative Nursing, 22(4), 88-91.

Professional Memberships

• 2010 Western Institute of Nursing; current
• 2001-2003 UCSF, Committee for Chancellor’s Award for Advancement of Women
• 2001-2002 President of Doctoral Forum, University of California, San Francisco Committee for Doctoral Students
• 1999-2001 SBNA (Sacramento Black Nurses Association), Vice-President, Member of Scholarship Committee; Member of Fund Raising Committee, Vice-Chair of Community Events
• 1998 American Heart Association, Council of Cardiovascular Nursing; current
• 1997 Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society; current
• 1992 AACN (American Association of Critical Care Nurses); current

Community Service

• June 2011-Oct. 2016 Church of the Chimes, San Jose, Serving the Homeless Meals and Teaching in the Nursery School
• June 2010 Sacred Heart Community Center, San Jose, CA.
• April 2003 Mount Davidson (Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) Volunteer
• August 2000 Nurse – Medical Mission trip to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala through Celebration Life Church in Sacramento, CA.
• June 2011-Oct. 2016 Church of the Chimes, San Jose, Serving the Homeless Meals and Teaching in the Nursery School June 2010 Sacred Heart Community Center, San Jose, CA.
• April 2003 Mount Davidson (Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT) Volunteer
• August 2000 Nurse – Medical Mission trip to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala through Celebration Life Church in Sacramento, CA.