University of Southern Maine
Faculty and students work together to create a community that’s committed to learning. I think we understand that students are juggling many things but are really committed to learning. We’re innovative and very nimble with the curricula. We see what’s going on in the field and are quick to respond, so students can gain the experience they need to be prepared when they graduate.
Many of our faculty members are leaders in their field, both on the community and national levels. We’ve developed great relationships with clinical agencies and that makes agencies very welcoming to students. One example is our work with the homeless in the Bayside neighborhood in Portland. One student told me that the experience gave her a better understanding of the population. She said the next time she sees a homeless person in the hospital, she’ll have a better understanding of what they’ve gone through. That experience made her a better, more compassionate nurse. As teachers, we’re always looking for ways to foster students’ moral development.
I’ve co-edited a textbook that’s been adopted by graduate nursing programs across the country. It just published a fourth edition. The book (Advanced Practice Nursing: An Integrative Approach, Elsevier Health Publishing, 2004) has been a huge accomplishment, and it came from my love of practice. The same passion for clinical practice has informed my teaching, and all my work.
I do, because my education taught me to be relatively fearless. I didn’t grow up that way, but I learned to be like that in college, and I try to teach that. When I see students who don’t quite feel confident, I try to coach them to speak up, be assertive, and to think critically. I see their passion and compassion, and I try to foster that. Nursing is hard work; it requires compassionate intelligence and intelligent compassion. I really try to foster that in them. Also, I’m the first woman in my family to get a college degree. I think that’s fairly typical among USM students. I know where they’re coming from, and it makes me very pragmatic in my teaching.
I always look at myself as a coach. I meet them where they are and show them the possibilities for becoming the nurses they can become. There’s always the potential that students will become protégés, and I invite that. I try to create an environment that is collaborative, communicative, and safe. I want them to think, study, and disagree. This really is collaborative, interdisciplinary work. Not everything is on their shoulders. They have responsibility and autonomy, but they do have to work with other people.
It’s their dedication to the work, despite the multiple obstacles they may face. I can’t imagine doing what they’re doing at the ages and stages of life they’re undertaking it.
The leaders are the ones who are most memorable. The ones who are handling everything else and still find the willingness to lead, say, in the Student Nursing Organization. Working with them makes me feel the need to be just as dedicated, to make sure they can learn all they can.
I try to get them to embrace being novices. When they go out in a clinical setting, I have them write about their experiences, and really learn from them. I had one student who was a very good student nurse. She went out and got this great experience, but she found that people have expectations that students should know things they’ve not yet learned. She was perfectly competent, but she wrote that didn’t feel that she was. When we went over what she’d written, I reminded her that she’s still learning. From that experience, I now encourage students to embrace being novices. They need to understand that they’re still learning, and enjoy learning. You’re not a registered nurse until you pass the board.
I live in Portland, in a neighborhood about a mile and a half from campus. I love the convenience of living in a neighborhood. I can walk to stores and to school, and it’s easy to get to the water.
I really like the idea of living on the water. You can get up early enough, catch a ferry and watch the sun rise on the water, and still be to work on time.
