2025 AOY Honoree, College of Nursing - Class of 1976, 1980
Cecil B. Drain is a distinguished leader in nursing and health care education with a career spanning more than five decades. After earning his bachelor’s in nursing and master’s in medical-surgical nursing from the University of Arizona, Cecil served in the U.S. Army for 27 years, ultimately retiring as a full colonel. He received multiple honors during his military service, including the Legion of Merit and the Meritorious Service Medal. He also earned a doctorate in educational curriculum and instruction from Texas A&M University.
Following his military career, Cecil became a faculty member at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center and Virginia Commonwealth University. In 1997, he was appointed dean of VCU’s College of Health Professions, where he served for 21 years. Under his leadership, the college's programs gained national recognition, with the nurse anesthesiology program ranked No. 1. He expanded student enrollment, developed new doctoral and clinical programs, and secured funding for a state-of-the-art building for the college.
Cecil also is an accomplished author, contributing extensively to textbooks and professional journals. He was inducted as a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing in 1988 and the Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions in 2004. Among his many awards, he received the Helen Lamb Award and the Dornell Mase Award for his outstanding contributions to nursing education and practice.
Cecil’s most cherished accomplishment is his 59-year marriage to Cynthia Pfaff, with whom he has three children and eight grandchildren.
