EMCON Alumni Newsletter February 2024

Dear Alumni,

It's a pleasure writing to you twice in a week! I hope you enjoyed reading my email on Wednesday welcoming our newest team member, Crystal Neuhauser. Crystal is our Chief Development Officer and works for the UMass Amherst Foundation alongside Ben Monat. She is passionate about meeting with alumni, donors, and friends of the college to learn about their UMass story, and be a resource for those interested in investing in the next generation of nurses through philanthropic support. Crystal's email is cneuhauser [at] uma-foundation [dot] org - please give her a warm UMass Nursing welcome!

With the second month of the year almost complete, we have had our eye on Black History Month to celebrate integral contributions to the nursing profession, UMass, and our College. We would love for you to participate in the below activities. Please click on the maroon text to learn more and register.

  • Attend: Celebration of the History of Black Nurses, Tuesday, February 27 at 7 pm, virtual
  • rgleblan [at] umass [dot] edu (subject: ) (Create: Submit up to five photos) for a public photo art collage with the theme "What brings you a sense of community and belonging at UMass Nursing?"
  • Read: Lucinda Canty shares how she uses art to bridge racial and gender divides in maternal care.
  • Listen: Gabrielle Abelard '97BS, '01MS  joins the American Journal of Nursing podcast for insights on what APRN's need to know before opening their own practice.

There are additional college wide events that you may be interested in:

Our fantastic alumni have some great updates! Please send us your latest news here.

  • Take a deep dive into research by Linda Koh '22PhD on "A remotely accessible plant-based culinary intervention for Latina/o/x adults at risk for diabetes: lessons learned"
  • Author Christine (Whelan) Knapp '72BS shares details about her award-winning Modern Midwife Series, and how her experience at UMass led her to a successful nursing and writing career.
  • Mary-Jane (Ryba) Sackett '70BS is volunteering in retirement with the Medical Reserve Corps.
  • Celeste (Calabro) Holbrook '03BS earned a Master's of Science in Health Informatics from the University of Illinois Chicago, and works in Technology Strategy and Project for Astellas Pharma US.
  • Paula Boylan '05BS is the Clinical Expert Officer at the company she created called Expertly Done Inc., leveraging her experience in nursing leadership to provide a wide range of resources to healthcare clients and vendors.
  • Sheila LaFortune '22DNP opened a private midwifery practice in Georgia, dedicated to improving access to early breastfeeding with a focus on improving maternity care. She was also accepted into the Emory Teaching Fellowship, which she begins in March.

Student perspective:

  • Christopher Tran '24BS details why he chose to attend UMass and the Elaine Marieb College of Nursing. This article also includes details about collaboration with partners across campus to address the need for healthcare providers.

It certainly is an action-packed time of year, and I hope that you will join us in celebrating our Black nurses, attending an upcoming event, submit a news update, or simply reach out with any questions.

Sincerely,

Allison Vorderstrasse
Professor and Dean
Elaine Marieb College of Nursing