Jennifer Bowman was working as a staff nurse at a local hospital when she began to look for a career path that would take her in new directions. Familiar with the role of a nurse practitioner, she did not know about mental health nurse practitioners until her sister, a nursing student, told her about the Doctor of Nursing Practice in mental health degree program at the School of Nursing and Health Sciences.

Emma Wilson ’18 lights up when she talks about her desire to make a difference. Whether it is caring for patients in a world-class healthcare facility in Pittsburgh, working with her fellow students and peers in the School of Nursing, or delivering healthcare in a Central American barrio, Emma is changing others’ lives as well as her own.

Amanda Ifill has wanted to be a nurse since the ninth grade. After deciding that the college where she initially enrolled was not quite meeting her needs, she transferred to RMU, attracted by its individualized focus and innovative programs. The school’s simulation labs allow nursing students to practice their skills on high-tech mannequins or with trained actors. For students like Amanda, simulation provides a valuable opportunity to put into action all that they have learned in their classrooms in a safe and low-pressure environment.

Andrew Birk stretched beyond his studies as a nuclear medicine technology major at the School of Nursing and Health Sciences, and people noticed. He received the university’s 2017 Presidential Transformational Award, given annually to one graduating senior who has been transformed personally and has contributed to the transformation of the university in a meaningful way.