Niki Currier died in December from cardiac arrest of unknown cause; annual award is co-named in her honor

One by one, to cheers and applause, nursing graduates jubilantly and triumphantly crossed the commencement stage to receive their Master of Science of Leadership in Nursing Education degree. 

Then came the name of Nicole Currier, and no other name followed. Then one by one, audience members began to stand. Soon, the entire commencement crowd was on its feet, giving a standing ovation as a woman wearing her daughter’s graduation regalia and clutching a picture made her way across the stage. 

The woman was Paula Currier, and the picture was of her daughter Nicole, who passed away in December from sudden cardiac arrest of unknown causes at the age of 41. Nicole should have been walking across the stage to claim her degree. Instead, on the day before Mother’s Day, it was Paula Currier who finished her daughter’s journey, first by sitting with Nicole’s (known as Niki) classmates, then by walking in a pair of Niki’s shoes and wearing her daughter’s cord and pin from the Sigma Theta Tau, nursing’s honor society. A poignant moment that won’t soon be forgotten.

“I thought that I would be watching her as the proud mother; instead, I was the sad but very proud mother,” said Currier of her walking in Niki’s memory. “It was bittersweet, and very emotional. I did it to honor her. Niki worked very hard for the degree, so I needed to accept it for her.”

Two people in graduation gowns hug on a stage while one holds a photo of a young woman
President Jones (r) hugs Paula Currier as she crosses the stage at the 2026 Commencement.

Niki Currier was a cardiac ICU nurse at Brigham and Women’s Hospital who made a mark at the hospital and in the classroom.

“Niki was incredible,” remembered Rachael Salguero, assistant professor and track coordinator of the Leadership in Nursing Education program. “She just was lively, so positive, was so proud of herself to get her master's and to become a nurse educator. It's a huge, huge loss.”

A loss whose memory was memorialized with the inaugural Nicole Currier and Ann LeBrun Memorial Leadership in Nursing Education Writing Award, named for Currier and LeBrun, who worked with the MGH Institute for years on new nursing education programs and was the director of patient care services at Cooley Dickinson Hospital before she died in February.

“It was a very small way to honor a remarkable student and nurse,” added Maura Abbott, dean of the School of Nursing.

“This award is a great tribute to her. This program has been great,” remarked Paula Currier. “The students that she worked with were great. And what really honored my daughter was when they had her funeral; the dean showed up along with three of her professors, her advisor, and several of the students. And to me, that was incredible and a huge honor to her.”

A man and woman in graduation attire stand next to each other with the woman holding a photo of a young woman
School of Nursing Assistant Dean for Student Success Steve Ciesielski and Paula Currier, holding daughter Niki's diploma moments after receiving it.

Niki Currier’s compassionate approach helped her see the person as a whole, not just as a medical diagnosis, and led to a desire to help with the psychological components of patients who were in the ICU for a long time.

“Niki Currier was an exceptional nurse, student, educator, and person,” said Karen Hunt, Currier’s advisor for her thesis on educating ICU nurses to better recognize and assess delirium. “It was truly a privilege to work with her at the IHP during her final semesters in the MS Leadership in Nursing Education program on her scholarly project. She was deeply committed to improving delirium recognition among critical care nurses, and through her dedication and passion, she made a meaningful impact in this important area. Her intelligence, compassion, and determination will leave a lasting impression on all who had the opportunity to know and work with her.”

“Niki felt there's no resources to give to families or the patients about things like delirium, dementia, PTSD, and all the psychological things that come along with being in ICU for a long time, and that’s why she did her thesis on that,” said Paula Currier. “Did the nurses have resources that they could give to patients, and how to spot these things in patients?”

Currier, a nurse herself, says her daughter was very dedicated to her work, that when she was at the hospital, it was all about what was best for the patients and their families.  

“When the medical staff didn’t think patients were going to make it, Niki started giving out EKG strips of the patient's heartbeat; she’d roll it up and put it into a bottle and give it to the family member, as one of the final moments of that patient’s life,” said Paula Currier, proudly. “And that became a thing through all of the ICUs, and now they do it routinely.