Kathy Karsting, RN, MPH, is public health nurse dedicated to improving the lives and opportunities of women, children, and families.  In a nursing career spanning more than three decades, Karsting has received recognitions including Community Health Educator of the Year (Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, 2005), a Nurse Who Makes a Difference (NE Center for Nursing, 2007), the Excellence in Nursing Award (March of Dimes, 2009), and in 2015 was named a national Public Health Nurse Leader by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.  She has worked in numerous public roles including local, regional, and state-level public health; Community Action; internationally in the South Pacific and West Africa with the Peace Corps; in schools and migrant programs.  Karsting is currently employed by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, as a program manager for maternal and child health programs.  She is on the board of directors for community radio station KZUM, is a member of the executive committee of the Nebraska Action Coalition-Future of Nursing, and leads the membership committee of the Heartland Regional Health Equity Coalition.  Karsting lives in Lincoln, Nebraska with her husband and three cats, and they are parents of two young adult daughters, both successfully launched into lives of their own.