Devon Berry – Devon Berry

Nursing Leader, Devon Berry, on the Arts in Portland, OR

As a leader and a nurse, Devon Berry, RN, PhD, prior Executive Associate Dean at the OHSU School of Nursing in Portland, Oregon, believes that art is an important way to enrich life. This is especially true for nurses who have described their practice as being part art and part science. For the nurse, according to Dr. Berry, appreciating art can inform practice and alleviate some of the secondary suffering that healthcare providers often experience.

Fortunately, the city of Portland is rich with a large variety of engaging cultural opportunities. In Portland, you can find everything from monthly art walks, to live storytelling, to film festivals, to museums and exhibitions. The Portland Art Museum is a favorite of many locals. Complementing this large venue are many smaller art galleries with high quality exhibitions such as the Russo Lee Gallery and Nationale. The performing arts are also well represented in Portland. Several fine theatres, such as the Keller Auditorium and the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall are regularly hosting top notch theatre companies such as Portland Center Stage and the Imago Theatre. Add to this a wealth of music scenes and venues, and the local or visitor can always find a way to get in touch with the restorative power of the arts.

As a nurse, Devon Berry notes that taking time to appreciate and engage the arts can be an important element of a healthcare provider’s self-care plan. As a leader, he believes that learning to find and celebrate beauty in the world is a key skill for strengthening organizational culture. Whether nurse, or executive leader, or both, Devon Berry recommends scheduling time to get out and enjoy the cultural expressions of your community. It is good for you, those you care for and work with, and for your local artists.

Nursing Leader Devon Berry on Sports in Family Life

Devon Berry, PhD, RN, is a nurse and a leader who has served in academic settings for over 10 years. Serving most recently as the executive associate dean at the OHSU School of Nursing in Portland, Oregon, he has also led as a Director, Executive Director, and Senior Consultant at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Earlier in his career, Dr. Berry functioned as both a nursing faculty member and nurse researcher at the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, OH. As a nursing leader, maintaining balance in life is a priority. One of the main ways Devon Berry accomplishes this is by spending time with his family as a husband and father. For many families, this means being involved in organized sports.

Sports play can play a large role in family life. In the U.S. three out of every four families have at least one child involved in sports. Some sources indicate that more than 45 million children play sports in the U.S. Given sports’ prominence in American life, finding opportunities that are appealing to different families and different children is not difficult. At times, the greatest challenge is deciding which sports to be involved in and limiting the amount of time committed to sporting activities.

Involvement in sports leads to many secondary benefits beyond the fun of participation. Many children learn teamwork, self-discipline, confidence, perseverance, and tolerance for discomfort. In addition, families get to experience the camaraderie that can form among the many diverse families that are often drawn by sports. All of this can lead to rich family time that offsets the stresses of the workplace and keeps the leader balanced in their mindset when approaching their work.

Devon Berry, nursing leader, on finding beauty

Devon Berry is a nurse, a scholar, and a committed family man residing in Portland Oregon. In his career he has served in several universities including Cedarville University, University of Cincinnati, Wright State University, and most recently Devon Berry served as the Executive Associate Dean at the Oregon Health and Science University. Living in the Pacific Northwest, nurse Devon Berry has taken up nature photography as a pastime.

Over the past year, Devon has committed to posting an original photo every business day on Instagram. He often photographs flowers, trees, leaves, sunsets, sunrises, and other parts of the natural world. Year-round, most of Berry’s photographs are taken within walking distance of his home. His daily walks are part exercise, part meditation, and part photography. One of the greatest lessons Berry has learned through this ritual is how to look for beauty.

Devon Berry believes that looking for beauty requires a committed mindset. If you are not actively looking for beauty, he says, you will miss it every time. As a prior associate dean in nursing, Devon Berry has brought this discipline to his professional life. The professional world, like the natural world, is filled with beautiful moments. Instead of dew on a blade of grass or yellowing moss on a fence post, it is an act of kindness, a display of courage, or an expression of humility. Learning to see the professional world through this lens reduces stress and improves creativity. It is a practice that all can benefit from.

John Kotter’s Eight-Step Process for Leading Change

The recipient of a PhD in nursing from the University of Washington, Devon Berry is an experienced health care professional who spent four years overseeing the Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing as executive associate dean. Devon Berry’s leadership style is informed by his education, experience, and several books, one of which is Leading Change by Dr. John Kotter.

In his book, Dr. Kotter explores reasons why organizations are unsuccessful in their efforts to change. Placing particular responsibility on the leader, he presents an eight-step process with examples of how to implement such change. The process is derived from his own experiences, which include more than 40 years of observing leaders and organizations attempting to execute transformational strategies. While it was originally laid out in Leading Change, it has since been refined in Accelerate, which was published in 2014.

The first step of the process is to create a sense of urgency via a declaration or opportunity statement that stresses the importance of acting immediately. From there, leaders need to establish a guiding coalition to carry out activities; form a strategic vision; enlist a volunteer army; and remove barriers like inefficient or unproductive processes.

The sixth step in the process prompts leaders and teams to celebrate short-term victories. These milestones not only help track progress, but can invigorate and energize workers and volunteers to see that their efforts are making a difference. The final two steps are to sustain acceleration and institute change.

Trail Blazers Acquire Trio of Players from Sacramento Kings

In his most recent role as executive associate dean at the Oregon Health & Science University’s School of Nursing, Devon Berry oversaw strategy implementation and provided senior leadership for the school’s six Advanced Practice Nurse Registration programs. Outside of his professional pursuits, Devon Berry is a fan of football and basketball. He counts the Portland Trail Blazers as his favorite National Basketball Association (NBA) team.

The Trail Blazers added veteran depth to its roster on January 18 by acquiring 34-year-old forward Trevor Ariza as part of a five-player trade with the Sacramento Kings. Portland also acquired forwards Caleb Swanigan and Wenyen Gabriel, while the Kings received Kent Bazemore, Anthony Tolliver, and a second-round pick in the 2024 and 2025 draft.

Originally selected by the New York Knicks in the second round of the 2004 NBA Draft, Ariza played for eight different teams prior to joining the Trail Blazers. He averaged 6 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game this season with the Kings. He recorded a career-best 14.4 points per game in 2013-14 with the Washington Wizards. Swanigan and Gabriel played limited minutes with the Kings this season.

Both Bazemore and Tolliver joined Portland this past offseason, but neither player met expectations. Bazemore averaged only 7.9 points per game after averaging 11.6 in fewer minutes during the 2018-19 season.