Wendy Degraffenried

Wendy DeGraffenried, BSN, RN, serves as the President and Founder of Path of the Heart, Inc. since April 2007, where Wendy leads community wellness and art programs aimed at fostering well-being and mindfulness. As an Adjunct Professor of Nursing at the University of Alaska Anchorage, Wendy teaches a remote Mental Health Disruptions lab and advocates for integrating mindfulness-based stress reduction into nursing curricula. In addition, Wendy has been a School Nurse for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District since August 2007, where efforts focus on community health and equity. Wendy also contributed as the State School Health Nurse Consultant for the State of Alaska's Division of Public Health, leading COVID-19 response strategies. Previous nursing roles included working as a Psychiatric Registered Nurse at UHS and the Alaska Psychiatric Institute. Wendy earned a BSN from the University of Alaska Anchorage and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Mindfulness & Resilience Building, Artificial Intelligence, and Psychedelic Therapy at the same institution.