Just Culture Champion Scholarships
Apply for a scholarship to participate in a Just Culture Champion Course
ISMP, in cooperation with The Just Culture Company, will award three winners a scholarship for a seat in the public Just Culture Master Champion Course ($3,595 list price) plus 1-year participation in The Just Culture Company’s Community of Learners, a quarterly webinar with case analysis and implementation guidance, a 30-minute structured meeting with Advisor and Winner to identify organizational pain points, and an optional tailored 60-minute complimentary Executive Briefing (must be utilized within 1 year post notification of scholarship).
Six runners-up will receive a scholarship for a seat in the public Just Culture Champion Course ($1,695 list price) plus an optional 60-minute Executive Briefing available to introduce the Just Culture model to senior leaders within your organization. This session provides a high-level overview of the model, along with time for discussion and questions to support broader awareness and understanding (must be utilized within 1 year of scholarship notification).
Candidate Qualifications
Work in healthcare
Be working currently in the field of healthcare in any setting
5 years experience
Have at least 5 years of fulltime post-graduate experience in healthcare
Commitment to just culture
Obtain a commitment to the Just Culture model from at least one executive leader in your organization
Application Process
Application Deadline: September 30, 2026
Step 1
Submit an online application.
You will receive an email confirmation containing the full application packet to complete.
Step 2
Complete the application packet.
Include your resume, a letter of intent, a description of your organization's current culture, evidence of interdisciplinary collaboration, and signed declaration documents.
Step 3
Submit your completed application packet by the deadline.
Submission details and instructions will be included in your packet.
Application Form
Please complete the following form with your contact information.
Once submitted, you will receive an application packet via email to complete.
These scholarships are awarded in honor of Judy Smetzer, former Vice President at ISMP who retired in 2022.
Judy Smetzer, BSN, RN, FISMP
Retired
Judy Smetzer, BSN, RN, FISMP
Retired
Judy Smetzer is currently retired; she previously served as a Vice President at ISMP.
The American Public Health Association honored Judy with the 2002 Avedis Donabedian Award for her work in medication safety. In 2012, she was awarded The Way-Paver for BPOC (Bar-code Point of Care) Award from the TerraPharma Project. In 2013, Judy was the first nurse recipient of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) Board of Directors’ Award of Honor.
In 1974, Judy received a diploma from St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing, Bethlehem, PA, leading to registered nurse licensure in PA. In 1992, she received a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Cedar Crest College, Allentown, PA.
Judy has been a tireless advocate for the just treatment of individuals who practice in healthcare environments as well as advancing continuous improvement of medication use systems. Judy has applied the Just Culture principles to complex cases and published seminal articles about Just Culture in the ISMP Medication Safety Alert! newsletters and peer-reviewed literature. She has been a role model, influencing new generations of practitioners and administrators to evaluate their systems for workplace justice. “We have all been inspired by Judy’s commitment to both patient safety and to her advocacy for a more fair and just response to medication errors,” adds David Marx, CEO of The Just Culture Company.
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