Ronald Rollon DNP-FNP 2023

Ronald Rollon completes his DNP with a Family Nurse Practitioner specialization in 2023.

He is the recipient of the 2023 Elaine Marieb College of Nursing Leadership Award.

This award recognizes a DNP student who has shown exceptional leadership qualities in both academic and scholarship achievements.  Leadership, as a defining quality of this program, has been demonstrated throughout their academic career within the College of Nursing. 

Ronald was one of four recipients of the 2022 CVS award, which is given to deserving students enrolled in a Family Nursing Practitioner program. He was also the 2022 recipient of the Dr. Eileen Hayes Memorial Scholarship, showcasing his outstanding passion for mentorship in order to win the award.He was selected for an NP residency program via a competitive process.

About Dr. Rollon

Ronald was born in rural Philippines and grew up in Anaheim, California. He earned a bachelors degree in nursing and a master's degree in nursing focusing on education. He is currently a registered nurse in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and also serves as a military nurse in the U.S. Navy Reserve. 

Ronald spoke about his nursing journey in a recent conversation:

What inspired you to become a nurse? 

I originally wanted to be an accountant like the rest of my family members. My mother pushed me to nursing to exploit the potential she saw in me. I hated the initial nursing coursework, but as soon as I stepped in to my first clinical setting, I knew I had found my calling and niche.

How did you decide to pursue a DNP?

When I undertook the journey to become a nurse, I ultimately wanted to finish the academic pathway of this profession. Even through continuous socialization in the profession, I was torn between DNP and PhD. My love for nursing research along with professorship drew me to PhD. However, I realized that I also wanted to remain bedside to remain true to what nursing is originally about. As a compromise, I chose the DNP route with FNP specialization to broaden my area of influence whether it be in research, patient care, or medical treatment.

How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect your work?

I am a perioperative nurse by trade. However, I find that I frequenstly fulfill positions outside of this specialty, including critical care, informatics, or administration. I needed to be flexible with learning and become transparent of my limitations for best outcomes. This ideology was what I needed during deployments and school years in order to succeed. 

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Tell us about your experience as a UMass Amherst Nursing student: 

As part of my induction to UMass Amherst, I visited the campus to immerse myself in the school’s environment as well as its culture. My nursing faculty were all engaging and accommodating, particularly during this COVID-19 crisis and my deployments. They employed various learning strategies that I had never encountered in my other academic endeavors. Furthermore, the school’s long-standing, robust curriculum was very intensive and impressive.

Despite being a distance learner, I love that the Nursing faculty were really in tune with their students! They eagerly and happily highlight individuals who show passion for their work. 

What is your favorite quote or philosophy?

"Still round the corner there may wait
    A new road or a secret gate,
 And though we pass them by today,
    Tomorrow we may come this way
 And take the hidden paths that run
    Towards the Moon or to the Sun."

- J. R. R. Tolkien

What are your feelings about being selected for the 2023 DNP Nursing Leadership Award?

Leadership is something I do not actively think about. Although I have made several self-assessments of my preferences and behaviors, I never really brought the concept to the forefront until recently when I was nominated for the 2023 DNP Nursing Leadership Award. In my tenure as DNP student at UMass Amherst, I tried to guide individuals particularly my nursing colleagues through higher learning via different strategies. I helped individuals with their evidence-based practice projects, shared perspectives on research, mentored undergraduate and graduate students, guided career progressions, shared available resources along with many others actions. Many would argue that these behaviors do not have formal semblance of leadership but they do share similar impacts. At core concepts, my actions led, inspired, supported, roused, motivated and many more, all in the name of our professional growth and self-development. I am far from what one would call an expert leader but we can start somewhere. We can understand our strengths, limitations, styles, and then evolve to empower, uplift, and transform. I felt grateful for the nomination and beyond thrilled to be selected to win the 2023 DNP Nursing Leadership Award! This was not due to personal characters alone as I had plenty of help from my family, friends, colleagues and faculty! UMass Amherst instilled those leadership qualities very subtly, one thing I am just now realizing at the tail end of my program. This leadership award helped me gain the confidence to start calling myself a leader in my own way. 

What are your hopes and plans for the future? 

After I acquire the DNP - FNP specialization, I hope to help underserved vulnerable communities including the veteran and LGBTQ populations outside of my specialty. I also plan on laying more groundwork for nursing research, which might lead me back to Amherst for my PhD!