EMCON Alumni Newsletter September & October 2024

Welcome to the 2024-25 school year! I was thrilled to welcome our alumni back to campus this past weekend for our September Alumni Board meeting and Meet and Greet with TED Style Talk during Homecoming. A sampling of pictures are available for your viewing pleasure.

Speaking of our Alumni Board, I want to thank Janet Secatore '69 for her 35 years of service to the board and Gen Conlin '93 for her 31 years of service. Janet and Gen have been instrumental in shaping the alumni experience at our college, and we wouldn't have the alumni community we do without their leadership. I also wish to thank Linda Koh '22PhD and Sarah Fiske '22PhD for their service to the board and for helping to shape an oral history initiative that follows up on the 2013 project the Alumni Board spearheaded. Linda is joining our faculty and we are thrilled to have her on board!

We are continuing to evolve the student experience, and I am excited to share with you there is a brand new study abroad opportunity for nursing students to spend their winter intersession studying in Cyprus, Greece. They will be able to earn nursing credits, volunteer in community-based projects, study with local guest lecturers, meet Ministry of Health government officials, visit local hospitals and clinics, and participate in guided excursions to cultural and historical sites. I'm looking forward to sharing out with you what the experience is like from the students who go there!
 


Alumna Profile: Sheila LaFortune '22DNP 

Sheila took the time to share about her background, why she became a nurse, and advice for current students. In particular, she notes: "Be ready to study hard and ask for help early in the program. The faculty are great. They want to see their students succeed and they will help whenever they can."

Sheila and husband Jean met Assistant Director, Donor Relations Ben Monat in Atlanta for brunch last month. 

As Sheila said, Faculty make our College great, and I've got quite the rundown of accolades and accomplishments to share with you.  
 

Fabulous Faculty


Lucinda Canty named BusinessWest Healthcare Hero

Canty is a 2024 BusinessWest Healthcare Hero for her work to improve health equity for traditionally underserved women of color. Canty joined our college in 2022 and has been an advocate for our students and the community ever since.

Having a distinguished career as a nurse midwife, Canty has a love for teaching and mentoring both undergraduate and doctoral students. She leads the Seedworks Health Equity Program, where students have the opportunity to receive mentorship. She founded Lucinda's House, where students have the privilege of working with mothers who have recently given birth, to make sure they have all of the resources they need.

Crystal Neuhauser, Chief Development Officer for the UMass Amherst Foundation, nominated Canty, and explained that "her dedication to her students is evident in her commitment to fostering an environment where future nurses and midwives are trained to understand and address health disparities." Read more here.

Congratulations Lucinda, we are thrilled you are receiving this deserved recognition!!!

Jeungok Choi, Jess Dillard-Wright, and Memnun Seven become Fellows of AAN

Three EMCoN faculty have been selected as Fellows of the Academy of Nursing: Jeungok Choi, Jess Dillard-Wright, and Memnun Seven. They were selected for "their substantial and sustained impact on health and health care", and will be honored at the academy’s annual Health Policy Conference later this fall in Washington, DC.

Eight faculty received promotions

It's important for us to retain excellent faculty, and eight faculty are receiving promotions, including six who received tenure.
 

  • Terrie Black '15DNP, Clinical Professor
  • Constance Flynn '87MS, Clinical Associate Professor
  • Memnun Seven, Associate Professor with tenure
  • Yeonsik Noh, Associate Professor with tenure
  • Lisa Wolf, Associate Professor with tenure
  • Joohyun Chung, Associate Professor with tenure
  • Carrie-Ellen Briere, Associate Professor with tenure
  • Jess Dillard-Wright, Associate Professor with tenure

Recognition of our programs
 

As a result of these fantastic nurse educators, it's no surprise that our Elaine Marieb College of Nursing has jumped from to 26 from 52 overall and our online education programs have been ranked 12 out of 186 by U.S. News and World Report. Our master's programs were the only programs in Massachusetts ranked in the top 30.

We are also introducing two new Graduate Certificate programs:

Please join us!

Providence, RI Alumni Reception
Saturday, October 19, 4:30 – 6:00 p.m.
Xaco Taco, 370 Richmond St, Providence, RI 02903
Meet and greet networking style reception, immediately after the Sigma 15 Nursing Research Symposium.

2024 Western MA Healthcare Summit
Monday, October 28, 7:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Student Union Ballroom, UMass Amherst
No cost to attend, please register by October 19 here.

  • Keynote Speaker: Kate Walsh - Massachusetts Secretary, Executive Office of Health and Human Services

Nurse Resilience Retreat
November 8 - 10, 2024
Mt. Ida Campus 
Join an inspiring group of nurse colleagues for an uplifting weekend of relaxation, reflection and writing.
Register here
Registration closes October 15

Seedworks Symposium
December 5, 2024
UMass Amherst
Details forthcoming

EMCNEI Corner

The Elaine Marieb Center for Nursing and Engineering Innovation has established an active and ongoing academic-clinical collaboration with the Baystate Medical Center (BMC) in Springfield, Mass. This collaboration brings cutting-edge healthcare research into the real world setting with projects such as the examination of IV Smart Pump efficiency and the development of a more stable chest tube holder. We were recently featured in BMC's 2023 Nursing Report, which highlighted recent center work to advance the nurse-engineer approach.

In Closing

Our vibrant and dedicated alumni make our college strong, provide examples of success for our students, and are rightfully being acknowledged for the significant impacts they make. I hope that you will continue to share your good news and please join us at an upcoming community gathering.

I'll write tomorrow with an additional exciting piece of news. Enjoy the start of the fall season!


Sincerely,

Allison Vorderstrasse
Professor and Dean
Elaine Marieb College of Nursing