Messiah College's The Bridge magazine - Summer 2016

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F E AT U R E S T O R Y

“ What I really hope people understand is that online does not mean easy.” – Louann Zinsmeister, director of the graduate nursing programs

to meet the needs of working public school music educators who seek to hone their skills and master the craft of conducting,” said Bill Stowman, director of the program, which includes three tracks: choral, orchestral and wind conducting. Although the ability to apply conducting techniques remotely was unheard of years ago, music professors now use a program called VoiceThread, which critiques students in real time. “They can watch somebody conduct, and they can insert comments into different points during it,” said Pepper. “So, you’re saying, ‘Your right hand is now too low, it should be up higher.’” Students get to know each other through synchronous learning sessions and in-person summer intensives, sharing ideas and stories. “The networking aspect of the program has far exceeded anyone’s expectations,” said Stowman. “Also, I’m surprised by how many come to campus for Commencement. The degree clearly means a great deal to them.”

NURSING

To meet the growing trends and needs in healthcare, students who already have a bachelor’s degree in nursing can choose from two graduate programs at Messiah: a Doctor of Nursing Practice: family nurse practitioner (post-BSN to DNP-FNP) or a Master of Science in Nursing: nurse educator (MSN). “Nursing meets a lot of the things we want to do at Messiah College in terms of educating people in leadership, service and reconciliation,” said Louann Zinsmeister, director of both programs. “Our graduate programs take that to the next level.” Nurse practitioners, part of a growing field, provide direct primary care to patients. The DNP, Messiah’s first doctorate-level program, requires four to six years of study. The first cohort of 19 students began classes in August. “The curriculum is built for the future,” said Zinsmeister. “The nurse practitioner is fulfilling a need of our society. There are going to be more and more in the older age group who require some kind of primary care

14 | SUMMER 2016 • THE BRIDGE • MESSIAH COLLEGE

that isn’t necessarily done in a hospital.” The MSN, on the other hand, is a two- to three-year program for those who want to become nurse educators, teaching future students to become competent nurses. Zinsmeister explained that the nurse educator workforce is retiring rapidly and new educators are needed to fill the gaps. The first cohort of nine women graduated from Messiah’s MSN program in May. One of them, Nancy Frank MSN ’16, is Messiah’s clinical liaison placement coordinator for the undergraduate nursing program. “At the end when we looked back, it was amazing how all of our learning experiences had built on each other to transform our perspectives into that of nurse educators,” said Frank, who is now working toward a Ph.D. at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Both Messiah programs are conducted primarily online, allowing students to complete coursework on their own time. Clinical hours are completed at a variety of healthcare and higher education settings.


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