Archive: News & Announcements 2020-2021

  • Congratulations to all of our 2021 CONHP Award Recipients.
  • Congratulation to Brittany Busby (PA ’21) on being one of the 2021 recipients of the Graduate Leadership & Service Award.  This award recognizes a graduate student who has consistently made contributions that benefit others in alignment with the University mission to lead and serve through academic and/or extracurricular accomplishments, volunteer work, community activism, or public service.
  • Congratulations to Jennifer Smolnicky, CONHP Academic Advisor, on being awarded the SEAC’s (Staff Employee Advocacy Council) April 2021 Employee of the Month.
  • Congratulations to DNP student, Shelly Warren, who has had her posted accepted for presentation this fall at the National Doctorate of Nursing Practice conference in Chicago.  An additional congratulations to Dr. Chris Kurtz for her direction, instruction, and mentoring as Shelly’s scholarly project adviser.
  • Congratulations to Cecelia Frankewich (Public Health and Spanish major ’21) on her induction into Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest academic honor society.
  • CONHP is very proud of the following seniors who received the 2021 Valpo Student Life Outstanding Leadership & Service Award on April 25, 2021:

    – Justin McClain – BSPH (Public Health)
    – Kiera Pratt – BSHCL (Healthcare Leadership)
    – Jordan Schlender – BSHS/PA (Health Science/Physician Assistant)
    – Lillia Pogue – BSHCL (Healthcare Leadership)*
    – Paige Mecyssine – BSHCL (Healthcare Leadership)

    *Lillia Pogue also was the recipient of the VUAA 2021 Distinguished Student Award.  Congratulations to all!
  • Congratulations to Dr. Julie Brandy on receiving the 2021-2022 University Research Professorship. For more information on this award, please read here.
  • Congratulations to Drs. Julie Brandy and Theresa Kessler and CONHP alum, Grace Gass, MSN ’20, on having their abstract entitled: “Using Grounded Theory Methodology to Examine the Experience of Depression During the Freshman Year of College”  accepted for podium presentation at the 35th Annual American Psychiatric Nurses Association conference for October, 2021.
  •  Congratulations to Sarah Dilday ’21, Health Science major, and to nursing major, Mireya Mota ’21 for receiving recognition certificates for Outstanding Leadership & Service.
  • Congratulations to Mykenzie Fox ’23, Public Health major, on her acceptance into the AHEC Scholars program.  To learn more about the AHEC Scholars program, please visit AHEC Scholars.
  • Sophomore nursing students, under the supervision of Professors Cynthia Felton and Karen Hernes, were able to assist with administering COVID vaccines at the Porter County Expo Center mass vaccination clinic.   You can read more about this exciting opportunity for our students here and here.
  • Congratulations to Madison Stone ’21, Nursing major, for her success in raising $700 to fill fifteen new backpacks with needed toiletries and delivering them to the New Creation Resale Shop for the men’s shelter as part of her NUR_460 service learning project.  We are proud of Madison for servicing as an exemplary example in fulfilling the course, college, and University mission of service.
  • Congratulations to Rylee Cookerly ’21, Nursing major, for being named the Missouri Valley Conference Volleyball Student-Athlete of the Year.  Please read about Rylee’s honor here.
  • Congratulations to Lillia Pogue ’21, Healthcare Leadership major, on being named to the Orr Fellowship. Please read more about Lillia’s prestigious honor here.
  • Congratulations to Carrie Higgins, M.S., program director of the Tobacco Education and Prevention for Porter County, who has been selected to serve as vice chair of the executive board for the United Way of Porter County, as well as the 2021 co-chair of Women United Porter County to guide activities to help local women in addiction recovery.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Terry Kessler and Dr. Lynette Rayman on acceptance of their abstract Vaping Attitudes and Behaviors Formed in High School and Their Influence on Behaviors in College, as an oral presentation, at Sigma Theta Tau’s 32nd International Nursing Research Congress July 22 -26, 2021.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Julie Brandy, Dr. Terry Kessler, Grace Gass and Christina Hubbert on the acceptance of their abstract Depression in Freshman College Students:  Development of a Grounded Theory as a poster presentation for the 2021 Midwest Nursing Research Society’s Annual Research Conference to be held March 24-27, 2021.
  • The College of Nursing and Health Professions is pleased to welcome Claudine Ruzga, PA-C as a clinical instructor for the PA program. Professor Ruzga previously served CONHP as an adjunct professor and both students and faculty are thrilled to have her join the CONHP faculty.
  • Congratulations to Professor Randy Brush who was recently elected as the president-elect for a three-year term of the Indiana Academy of Physician Assistants.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Julie Brandy on her recent appointment to the American Psychiatric Nurses Association Child and Adolescent Council Steering Committee.
  • CONHP is very proud of Dr. Christina Cavinder and her senior nursing students for the ‘baby shower’ they worked on this fall to gather and assemble infant care kits for the Mennonite Christian Committee (MCC).  Please read more here.
  • Congratulation to Professor Cynthia Felton on her oral presentation entitled “Nursing Education: Supporting a Clinical Instructor is the Foundation of Clinical Experiences” at the Virtual Nursing 2020 (7th International) Conference on December 14, 2020.  Professor Felton completed this work through funding from the Joyce Hagen Faculty Fellowship.
  • Congratulations to all of the College of Nursing and Health Professions’ students who made the Fall 2020 Dean’s List.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Scarlet Spain on her recent webinar entitled, “Influenza and COVID-19”.  The webinar can be viewed here.
  • Congratulations to Carrie Higgins, Program Director of the Tobacco Education & Prevention Coalition for Porter County on her November 19, 2020, community education offering entitled “Victims of Vaping:  Protecting Our Youth”.  Dr. Teresa Kessler was one of the presenters for this program.  You can read more about the event here.
  • Congratulations to DNP student Bailey Hinman on the acceptance of her scholarly project for an oral presentation at the University of Iowa Healthcare, National EBP Conference.  We also congratulate Dr. Christine Kurtz for her leadership, mentoring, and direction she provided to Bailey on this project.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Constance Sheets and Dr. Thomas Blodgett on the acceptance of their manuscript entitled, “Perception of a Nurse-Driven Urinary Catheter Removal Protocol in a Hospital Setting” for publication in the Clinical Nurse Specialist: The Journal for Advanced Nursing Practice.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Theresa Kessler and Dr. Lynette Rayman on their new publication entitled “Undergraduate Student-Faculty Collaborative Research:  A Pilot Study Exploring Care of a Family Member with Dementia” published in the Journal of Nursing Education and Practice.  The publication can be read here.
  • Professor Randy Brush will be presenting Individualized Treatment for Type 2 Diabetes: New and Novel Treatments at the Indiana Academy of Physician Assistants Virtual Annual CME Conference on December 3, 2020.
  • Congratulations to Dr. Theresa Kessler on being named a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing!  Read More