Nursing

Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences

Nursing faculty member receives Patient Advocate Award

Donnamarie Lovestrand, assistant professor of nursing at Pennsylvania College of Technology, received the Pennsylvania Association of PeriAnesthesia Nurses’ 2020 Patient Advocate Award.

The award was presented during the association’s Annual Education Conference, held virtually Oct. 6.

The purpose of the Patient Advocate Award is to recognize individuals who demonstrate extraordinary clinical expertise, compassion, commitment, initiative and problem-solving skills in an effort to intervene on a patient’s or family’s behalf.

Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences

Penn College nursing faculty members earn doctorates

Four members of Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing faculty recently received doctoral degrees.

Admissions Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

College updates pathway to direct admission into nursing majors

Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing program will consider SAT and ACT scores in lieu of a TEAS (Test of Essential Academic Skills) score as part of the criteria for high school students to be directly admitted into its practical nursing and associate and bachelor’s degree nursing majors.

Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing program will consider SAT and ACT scores in lieu of a Test of Essential Academic Skills score as part of the criteria for high school students to be directly admitted into its practical nursing and associate and bachelor’s degree nursing majors.

Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Penn College Magazine Penn College Magazine Feature Sports

Trading uniforms

From the Fall 2020 Penn College Magazine: When spring sports were canceled and classes were moved online, two athletes traded their jerseys for scrubs. Read their stories in “Trading Uniforms.”

Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Penn College adds master’s degree in nursing education

To meet the high demand for qualified nurse educators, Pennsylvania College of Technology is launching a Master of Science in Nursing, nursing education, in Fall 2021. (EDITOR'S NOTE: This file photo was taken in 2018, predating COVID-19 protocols for masking and social distancing.)

Pennsylvania College of Technology is set to begin accepting students into its newest master’s degree offering – a Master of Science in Nursing, nursing education. The application for admission will open in January, with classes set to begin in Fall 2021.

Created for the working nurse, the curriculum for the MSN in nursing education is designed to be completed on a part-time basis within two years. All classes are conducted in an asynchronous, online environment.

Emergency Medical Services/Paramedic Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Penn College at Wellsboro Scholarships Students Workforce Development

Pathways Scholarship assists transition to degree programs

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.

Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Nursing employee inventively enlists ‘patient’ spouse

Valerie J. Kovalick, with husband Lonnie M. ...

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.

Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Nursing student helps bolster hometown hospital’s ER staff

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.

General Information Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Penn College provides varied pathways to nursing career

Pennsylvania College of Technology’s nursing program offers a variety of pathways for individuals to begin and advance their nursing education.

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.

Faculty & Staff Nursing Students

Fall nursing graduates attend pinning ceremony

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

Dining Services Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences

Nursing employees’ food drive benefits pantry

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.

Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Nursing grads achieve impressive pass rate on national boards

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.

Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences

Nursing faculty member receives Nightingale Award Scholarship

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.

Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Students practice health promotion skills to encourage peers

Pennsylvania College of Technology Community Health Nursing students show some of the handouts they provided as they educated their peers about anxiety in a busy campus lobby. From left: Amelia Buffington, of Montoursville; Rachal D. Clark, of Williamsport; Courtney P. Bender, of Lewistown; Mohanad Alquraish, of Safwa, Saudi Arabia; and Guzel S. Androvette, of Williamsport.

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.

Faculty & Staff Nursing Nursing & Health Sciences Students

Empathy hits close to home for nursing students

A faculty member's reversed ostomy equipped a nursing lab with surplus supplies and gave classmates a valuable life lesson. — A faculty member’s reversed ostomy equipped a nursing lab with surplus supplies and gave classmates a valuable life lesson.

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

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