Pennsylvania College of Technology has established a new scholarship to support students completing Workforce Development programs in practical nursing and emergency medical technician who wish to further their education.
The scholarship provides assistance for practical nursing graduates interested in the Nursing, LPN to RN program at Penn College and graduates of the EMT course interested in pursuing one of the college’s paramedic majors.
A staff member in Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing program was just trying things out, experimenting with what she had on hand at home, to facilitate a distance-learning lesson for Adult Health Nursing I students, but the result garnered praise for the realistic learning opportunity it provided.
Valerie J. Kovalick, simulation laboratory coordinator in the nursing program, was tasked with helping faculty to find ways to teach an unfolding case study via distance learning. Typically, Kovalick’s job is to set up such simulations in the college’s nursing labs, where students learn in-person.
The tools Kovalick used included her cellphone and a tripod, a spare computer monitor, Laerdal simulation software, video-editing software made available by the college to employees, poster board, and a husband willing to play along.
Pennsylvania College of Technology nursing student Connor J. Burke, of St. Clair, is among many in the Penn College family who are working on the health care “front lines” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 20-year-old is a sophomore on the Penn College baseball team and is in his second year of study toward a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Since the summer of 2019, Burke has been an emergency room technician in his hometown hospital, working during summer and other college breaks.
Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing program answers a national call to support nurses who seek academic and career growth.
In a position statement issued in 2019, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing asserts that it “is committed to working with the larger education and healthcare communities to create a highly educated nursing workforce able to meet complex healthcare demands today and in the future. To that end, AACN encourages all nurses to advance their education and supports the many pathways to achieving academic progression in nursing.”
Penn College has been working to provide those pathways through five nursing education options.
Fulfilling a pre-commencement tradition, Penn College’s nursing program hosted a pinning ceremony for December graduates of the Bachelor of Science in nursing, traditional. Twenty-four nursing graduates received lapel pins during the ceremony, held in the Community Arts Center on Dec. 20, the day before the college’s Fall Commencement. They also heard from speakers selected by the class: nursing faculty member Laura K. Landis, assistant professor of nursing; and fellow December 2019 nursing graduate Dustin E. Neumann, of State College. Following program tradition, the students recited the Nightingale Pledge and “passed the lamp” to a future nursing graduate.
Photo courtesy of Tina R. Strayer, nursing office assistant, completion degrees
Faculty and staff in the Penn College nursing program adopted The Cupboard for the holidays. The Cupboard is an on-campus food pantry for students, operated by Dining Services. Organized by Pamela W. Baker, assistant professor of nursing, the two-week food drive yielded 181 food items and $150 in cash. During the Fall 2019 semester, almost 90 students visited The Cupboard to obtain food.
Pennsylvania College of Technology nursing graduates again exceeded state and national pass rates on national board examinations.
Penn College offers degrees for those pursuing registered nurse and practical nurse licensure eligibility.
The National Council of State Boards of Nursing recently released the pass rates for the NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure Exam for Registered Nurses) and the NCLEX-PN, for practical nurses. Results are for those who took the exams between Oct. 1, 2018, and Sept. 30, 2019.
A member of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing faculty received this year’s doctoral scholarship from the Nightingale Awards of Pennsylvania.
Christine B. Kavanagh, assistant professor of nursing, is pursuing a doctor of nursing practice from Robert Morris University. She was selected based on professional leadership, academic achievement, leadership potential, community service and personal commitment.
Pennsylvania College of Technology nursing students teamed with the college’s Counseling Services Office to encourage students to participate in a brief, anonymous online questionnaire that is designed to help them understand concerns about the way they are feeling and receive feedback about whether – and how – to pursue assistance.
Students in the Fundamentals of Nursing course learned more about the experiences some of their future patients will face, courtesy of a donation of excess medical supplies after a faculty member recovered from a serious health issue. Dulcey J. Frantz, assistant professor of nursing, underwent chemotherapy for bowel cancer and had to use an ostomy bag. “Fortunately, she was able to have a reversal to her ostomy and is doing well,” explained Tushanna M. Habalar, instructor of nursing, who teaches the course. Since she no longer needs the bags, Frantz donated her extra supplies to the class. Every student applied an ostomy bag – with applesauce in it to simulate a bowel movement – and wore it for 24 hours, journaling about the experience. An ostomy is a surgical procedure in which an artificial opening is made to permit the drainage of waste products either into an appropriate organ or to the outside of the body.
Photo provided
School counselors, along with career and technical educators, included Penn College on a Monday tour of the area’s industrial assets. The guests began their afternoon with lunch in the new welding addition before exploring new and existing welding labs in the Lycoming Engines Metal Trades Center, then moved to the Breuder Advanced Technology & Health Sciences Center for stopovers in nursing and plastics. The groups visited several businesses in the region prior to arriving on main campus, including Lycoming Engines, Halliburton and Savoy Contract Furniture. Eyewitness News’ Morgan Parrish was along for the tours, which were facilitated by the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce.
Pennsylvania College of Technology’s newly chartered chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing was recently recognized as part of the organization’s Showcase of Regional Excellence.
The chapter was recognized for responding to Sigma Theta Tau International President Beth Baldwin Tigges’ call to all chapters and members to “connect, collaborate and catalyze to advance world health.”
An Excellence in Teaching Award was presented to a nursing faculty member during Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Summer 2019 Commencement ceremony.
Terri A. Stone, assistant professor of nursing programs in the college’s School of Nursing & Health Sciences, received the honor at the Community Arts Center on Aug. 10.
Pennsylvania College of Technology presented a Mentorship Award to alumna Andrea (Niklaus) Reed, director of nursing/patient safety, privacy and compliance officer at UPMC Susquehanna Muncy.
The award was bestowed upon Reed by Penn College President Davie Jane Gilmour during the Summer 2019 commencement ceremony, held Aug. 10 at the Community Arts Center.
Reed earned an Associate of Applied Science degree in nursing from Penn College in 2007 and went on to receive a Bachelor of Science in nursing from University of Phoenix in 2014 and a Master of Science in Nursing with a focus in leadership and health care administration from Grand Canyon University in 2018.
Physician assistant students recently visited the surgical technology lab for the last of three simulated patient cases that allowed them to participate as care providers in the emergency room, as operating room assistants and as hospitalists. Students in the ER role encountered the patients, portrayed by nursing students. They diagnosed their patient’s malady and recommended treatment. In the surgical technology lab, Scott A. Geist, director of surgical technology, led OR students through a hands-on simulation of the recommended surgery. Students acting as hospitalists then provided follow-up care.