Three Generations, One Passion: Celebrating the Nursing Journey of Gail McCracken, Jamie, Jodie and Alexa
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Archive for Nursing – Page 2
Forty-five nursing students and 12 “rad tech students were awarded Associate of Applied Science degrees. All must still complete required licensing exams
Forty-five nursing students and 12 “rad tech” students received their Associate of Applied Science degrees in separate pinning ceremonies earlier this month. According to the Community College news release of May 16, the “rad tech” ceremony took place May 5 and the nursing recognition took place on May 12. It includes the names of the graduates.
The following is a portion of the May 16, 2023 press release issued by Yavapai Community College describing the two ceremonies.
Dozens of Yavapai College graduates soon will be filling the ranks of registered nurses and radiologic technologists in healthcare centers locally and wherever their hero careers take them.
The 45 future nurses and 12 future “rad techs” successfully completed their coursework to earn Associate of Applied Science degrees. The YC graduates, who also must complete required licensing exams, were feted at separate pinning ceremonies earlier this month at the YC Prescott Campus.
At the “rad tech” ceremony on May 5, student speaker Ty Schroeder said the 2023 cohort overcame individual and group struggles to learn, grow and succeed together. “We as a cohort cannot wait to take what we’ve learned and experienced and use it to elevate the industry,” he said.
Like many of her fellow graduates, Kara Yazzie benefited from scholarships during a career-training journey she launched in 2007. Speaking at the rad-tech pinning ceremony on behalf of fellow scholarship recipients she said the Community Healthcare Scholarship “fueled my personal fire to do the best I possibly could.”
Her appreciation for the scholarship increased during clinicals when she was able to ease an anxious patient by speaking to him in Navajo. “I felt completely honored to have helped this elderly man on this day, and throughout the remainder of the program this instance would replay in my head, and I cannot help but think that if it was not for the Community Healthcare Scholarship donors, I would not have been in the position to help my people.”
YC’s spring nurse pinning ceremony took place on the birthday of nursing’s founder, Florence Nightingale, May 12. After receiving their pin from a loved one, nursing graduates light candles and recite the Florence Nightingale Pledge – a promise to be devoted to the welfare of others.
Ceremony speakers acknowledged the fortitude and sacrifices demanded of those who choose nursing careers while reminding them that their future success will require more than knowledge and skill.
“… What will make you wildly successful in this role and in life is being a good human,” YC President Dr. Lisa Rhine told the graduates. “Your character and integrity will take you places your talent cannot… Good humans and great nurses live their lives with integrity and grace, conduct their lives with purpose and give their best effort,” Rhine said.
In her remarks, YC Nursing Professor Maria Thomas encouraged graduates to continue learning, practicing resilience, and believing in themselves as they transition from student to professional.
“You will be challenged, and you will stumble or fall at some point… When that happens, resilience is how well you bounce back.” Thomas said, adding, “Who you are has value. Don’t forget that… Never forget that you are capable, determined, perseverant, unique, and amazing.”
Following is an alphabetical listing of the spring 2023 YC Nursing Program graduates:
Elizabeth Adame, Sirena Alvarez, Matthew Arvo, Cassandra Bailey, Ashley Bauer, Yadira Bautista-Burgos, Tanner Beaman, Victoria Burns, Lorena Camargo, Diana Cardoza, Rebecca Casper, Brendan Cassidy, Will Cooper, Rhyann Davies, Michelle Diaz, Staci Fowler, Sarah Friesen, Cheyene Gabbard, Sandra Hauptman, Jill Hernandez, Erika Jourdier, Julianna Kamholz, Tyler Kirkeeng, Sarah Kramer, Destiney Lewis, Maria Mansky, Natalie Martinez, Sierra McDonald, Abigail Mendoza Pina, Lee Neiman, Guadalupe Ocampo, Megan Palmer, Carrie Parker, Shaena Ramirez, Alex Reeves, Alexa Rodriguez, Patricia Sanchez, Ashleigh Thompson, Andrea Torres, Gina Tury, Ryan Wagner, Tyler Weatherly, Nicole Welker, Tori Winsberg, Kenzie Yarbrough.
Following is an alphabetical listing of the spring 2023 YC Radiologic Technology graduates:
Jonathon Cronin, Rachael Guidetti, Emily Harcus, Trevor Henkiel, Amanda Hoff-Felix, Lindsey Jones, Uriah Richards, McKayla Schilling, Ty Schroeder, Sara Tippett, Madison Ward, Kara Yazzie.
You may read the Community College press release with photos by clicking here.
College claims that most online students “are part-time adult learners, attending classes amidst other priorities including family and jobs.” New B.S. in nursing and LPN program will be online in the fall
Online courses and programs have become an increasingly important delivery mechanism for Yavapai Community College. In fact, one might argue its current and future survival appears to rest on ensuring it has large numbers of outstanding online courses.
Data delivered to the Yavapai Community College District Governing Board in April showed over 40% of credits are now obtained online. Although it produced no hard analytical data supporting its claim, it asserted that most online students “are part-time adult learners, attending classes amidst other priorities including family and jobs.”
The new Bachelor of Science in Nursing, as well as an LPN program, will be launched in the Fall of 2023. The coursework will be offered online, and intends to target Community College RN graduates who would like to upgrade their skills and credentials.
Good online learning opportunities depends on at least three things: First, the quality and stability of the technology used to deliver the online course. Second, the quality of the course content. Finally, the training and collateral support of faculty who develop a course and then teach it online.
Yavapai Community College was an early adopter of online technologies, beginning almost 23 years ago. Since then, it has invested large sums of money in technology, software and support services to improve the quality of our online offerings.
There remain fundamental unanswered debatable questions about the quality of an online learning experience for a student versus face-to-face classroom learning or a hybrid online experience mixed with some face-to-face classroom learning experiences. The answer about which learning environment is better, so far, is incomplete and generally unsatisfactory. A common response is that how learning occurs seems to turn on the specific learning characteristics of each individual student and the quality of the faculty member delivering the material. Some students appear to thrive in an online environment. Others, however, appear to need in-person classroom instruction in order to achieve their maximum potential for learning.
As more and more quality online learning opportunities appear from universities, colleges, and private enterprises, and the model of education delivery is being forever altered, the challenges for the Yavapai Community College administration are many.
Prescott based Director brings 30 years of nursing experience to the program along with extensive experience as a community college instructor
Yavapai Community College announced in a November 21 press release that Dr. Barbara Durham was selected as Director of Nursing. Dr. Durham is Prescott based and has been an employee of the Community College since 2017 when she moved from Hartnell community college in Salinas, California where she had taught for 12 years.
Dr. Durham holds a Doctorate in Nursing Practice from the University of San Francisco, a Master of Science in Nursing Practice from California State University Dominguez Hills and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Practice from the University of Windsor (1987 – 1991).
While on the nursing faculty at Hartnell College (2005 – Jan 2017) she taught advanced adult med/surg concepts, and geriatric content in nursing theory. She has authored one article, which was written in 2013 entitled, “Medication Safety: The Role of the Nurse.” (See https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25785398/ for appropriate cite.)
The press release from Yavapai Community College, written by Tyler Rumsey, appears below.
TYLER RUMSEY 21 NOVEMBER 2022
Dr. Durham has been with Yavapai College since 2017 as a nursing faculty member and has worked in academia since 2005.
Her nursing career spans more than 30 years, from working with diverse patients and students at the bedside as a critical care nurse and clinical educator to her faculty role teaching in Associate Degree Nursing Programs.
“I am extremely excited to have Dr. Durham as the Director of Nursing at YC,” said Dr. Marylou Mercado, Dean of Health Sciences, Science, Math, ABE, Health, and Wellness. “She is passionate about high-quality nursing education, student success, and patient safety, and her impact on student training will be felt immensely in our communities.”
As Director of Nursing, Dr. Durham will oversee the nursing program at Yavapai College and will advocate for students and faculty. She will also assist Dr. Mercado in moving the nursing program toward seeking approval to offer an RN-BSN degree and work with Yavapai County community healthcare partners in advancing nursing education that benefits county residents.
The Yavapai College Nursing Program has a history of excellence in nursing education. The NLCEX pass rate for 2021 AT YC was 96.05% exceeding the 2021 National NCLEX pass rate of 82.4%. The job Placement rate for 2021 YC graduates was 94%.
Dr. Durham grew up in Ontario, Canada, and moved to California in 1992 after graduating with honors from the University of Windsor, in Ontario, with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing. She completed her Master of Science Degree in Nursing Education from CSU Dominguez Hills in 2005 and her Doctorate in Nursing Practice with an emphasis in Healthcare Systems Leadership from the University of San Francisco in 2014. Barbara enjoys golfing, hiking, and playing pickleball in her free time.
Will oversee health sciences, math, science, physical education, and the Adult Basic Education program| Will also launch new four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing program
In an October 6, 2022, press release, Yavapai College announced it has named Dr. Marylou Mercado as the new Dean of the schools of Health and Wellness and Science and Engineering, effective October 10, 2022. As Dean, Dr. Mercado will oversee health sciences, math, science, physical education, and the Adult Basic Education program
Although she has academic oversight of the departments, her role as a Health Sciences Dean will focus on launching a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. She is also expected to create partnerships with healthcare institutions to bring new, in-demand programs to Yavapai Community College.
You may read the entire October 6, 2022, press release authored by Tyler Rumsey by clicking here.
Thirty-nine from both sides of the County take part in traditional ceremony
Thirty-nine student nurses took part in the traditional pinning ceremony on December 10, 2021 on the Prescott Campus of Yavapai Community College. They represented both the spring and fall 2021 cohort and the Verde Valley and Prescott quad cities.
Nursing Professor Dr. Barbara Durham welcomed the graduates and described the unprecedented nature of their training, which has covered two or more years. She said that the challenges included practicing nursing skills on family members and even pets at home and vying for internet bandwidth with others in their households who also were studying or working from home.
Durham also said the warmth and fellowship that student nurses regularly experience was lost in pandemic-induced separation. “Not being able to hug each other when someone is stressed, anxious or suffering… the face masks that hide smiling faces… we were missing basic human connections.”
Yavapai Community College President Dr. Lisa Rhine expressed pride in the nursing graduates for their fortitude, diligence and sacrifice in uncertain times. “To say that it is a very difficult time to be a nurse is truly an understatement.”
Dr. Rhine also said that “because of your kind and loving hearts that attracted you to this calling in the first place, make sure that you take the time to care for yourself and your own health and wellbeing. It’s only when you are at your best that you can perform at the highest levels and give your best to others.”
Following are the fall 2021 nursing graduates:
Abigal Adams
Kelli Balensky
Jennifer Bergstad
Rebecca Broderick
Alyssa Bugarin
Nick Buller
Ronny Criswell
Klara Ford
Lanai Ford
Carl Jackson
Sarah Jackson
Shilee Jones
Laura Ludvick
Kacey Martinez
John Mattison
Angelique McKnight
Halleigh Milian
Anna Miller
Danielle Mitea
Chelsea Murphy
Anna Nardo
Corey Noeldner
Samantha Paine
Jinnapat Puangwipat
Kelly Pulanco
Emma Pundt
Aidan Raute
Alfredo Rodriguez
Amy Runo
Jennifer Santoyo
Aubrey Shaw
Brittney Sherman
Sarah Stickel
Alma Toribio Salgado
Dalis Townsend
Collina Young
Participating in the fall cohort pinning ceremony were these spring 2021 nursing graduates:
Maria Contereas
Nissa Labhart
Macer Svec
SOURCE: New release by Yavapai Community College, by JJ. McCormack, 15 December 2021. Click on the following link to view news release in full. https://www.yc.edu/v6/news/2021/12/nursing.html
Students claim policy alternatives allowing students who chooses to withdraw because of mandate will receive tuition refunds, or take an incomplete on the clinical portion and complete the rest of the semester, or take the final exam and get their grade after finishing the clinical part during a future semester, are not enough | Dr. Rhine responded to similar question back in August 2021 (Video)
It was reported by the Arizona Republic newspaper and other media on November 1, 2021 that two nursing students have sued Maricopa Community Colleges over a requirement they get vaccinated against COVID-19. They claim the community college district is violating their free exercise of religion by not helping them to graduate as scheduled or providing preferred accommodations since they are refusing to get vaccinated for religious reasons.
Both students are getting their associate degrees in applied science in nursing, which makes them eligible to then apply for a registered nurse license.
A federal judge heard arguments from both sides during a three-hour hearing Monday, November 1 and is expected to rule shortly on the students’ request the court bar the district from enforcing a vaccine requirement.
Maricopa County Community College District graduates about 1,000 nurses a year. It requires its students meet the strictest safety procedures of the clinical partners with whom they could be randomly matched. Some clinical partners are mandating vaccinations for anyone who works in their facilities.
District officials argued the school itself does not have a vaccine mandate, but that students have to participate in hands-on medical rotations at places that may have vaccine requirements. This Maricopa policy, the Blog thinks but has not yet authenticated, is similar to a policy in place for Yavapai Community College. (See short video clip below of Dr. Rhine’s response to Cottonwood City Council question on this issue August 17 of this year.)
Margi Schultz, director of the nursing program at Maricopa College, testified at the hearing before the Federal Court that students who choose to withdraw are offered tuition refunds, or they can take an incomplete on the clinical portion and complete the rest of the semester, take the final exam and get their grade after finishing the clinical part during a future semester. Students who decline the vaccine on religious grounds and the district saying it’s unable to switch their sites or allow online clinicals, results in some nursing students being unable to complete their semester as scheduled.
Only four of the 20 nursing classes offered in fall semester have available seating as of August 4
If registration data of August 4, 2021 from Yavapai Community College is any indication, the nursing program on the Verde Campus for fall 2021 is a smash hit. Data from the College’s web site indicate that 16 of the 20 nursing courses offered this fall are already filled to overflowing.
Of the remaining four classes with seats available, data indicates one class has one opening left, another four, while the two remaining classes are nearly half full. New modern training equipment, a modern facility, the pandemic, and outstanding faculty are all factors that have made the nursing program on the Verde Campus an enormous success.
One can’t help but recall the tentative decision by the Community College a few years ago to shutter most, if not all, of its nursing training on the Verde Campus and move it to Prescott Valley. Education advocates, former nursing alums, and others were able to stop that happening. Today, the registration data from the College shows how right Verde Valley citizens were to rise up and block the effort. Everyone in the Verde Valley can now clearly see the fruits of those past efforts to keep nursing training alive on the Verde Campus.
Many classes already full six week from beginning of semester; New facility and increased interest in nursing because of Covid-19 may explain enrollment; recall how Valley Advocates only a few short years ago successfully fought the College to prevent it from moving all nursing training out of the Verde Valley
The Yavapai Community College nursing program is showing a robust enrollment for fall 2021. On the Verde Campus, three classes are completely full, while seven classes have only one seat left and three others have only two available seats. The remaining classes are mostly two-thirds full.
The new facilities in Building “L” may account for some of the enrollment on the Verde Valley Campus along with increased interest in nursing created by the Covid-19 pandemic. Whatever the reason, the overall interest in nursing training is high.
Some may recall that as a part of the 2013 ten-year $103.5 million renovation project launched by the Community College (with 95% or more of renovation going to the West side of the County), that the Community College was considering moving the existing Verde Campus nursing program to Prescott Valley. Because of the strong opposition from Verde Valley Education advocates, that plan was eventually scrapped.
Today, the wisdom of keeping the nursing program on the Verde Campus and the decision to renovate Building “L” on that campus are paying huge educational dividends as the 2021 Nursing program fall enrollment so vividly shows.
Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing on site Feb. 22-25; public invited to make comments online February 24
Yavapai Community College will host a site visit for continuing accreditation of its Nursing Program by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing Feb. 22-25. This is a regular visit that is required of all programs that are operating a Nursing program.
The Community College has invited members of the public to meet with the site team and share their comments about the program in person at an online meeting scheduled for 1 p.m. Wednesday, February 24.
The link for the public meeting as provided by the Community College is: https://www.gotomeet.me/acen014/yavapai-college-room-1.
Written comments are also welcome, and should be submitted directly to:
Dr. Marsal Stoll, Chief Executive Officer
Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing
3343 Peachtree Road Northeast, Suite 850
Atlanta, GA 30326
Or email [email protected].
All written comments should be received by the ACEN by Tuesday, Feb. 9.