Year Started at Mercy College: 2005
- Department: Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS), Social Sciences
Education
- PhD, General Human Services, Capella University (2008)
- MSW, University of Iowa (2004)
- BA, Human Services and Sociology, Grand View College (2002)
- AA, Iowa Central Community College (1979)
Courses Regularly Taught
- SOC 102 Introduction to Sociology
- SOC 360 Death, Dying, & Bereavement
- SOC 415 A Social Justice Approach to Social Issues
- PSY 101 General Psychology
- PSY 410 Social Psychology
Clinical/Field Experience
- Student Enrichment Coordinator
- Hospice Bereavement Counselor
- Parenting Educator
- Homeless Youth Specialist
- Protective Service Worker
Research Interests and Professional Projects
- Application of Cummins Model to Retain Limited English Proficiency Learners. Co-presenter. NCA Higher Learning Commission Annual Conference. (2013)
- A Mixed-Method Study on the Meaning of Compassion as Perceived by Faculty and Students in a Small Health Sciences College. Group Poster Presentation: Mercy Hospital Advancing Evidence Based Practice Program (2010)
- Transformation of nursing students' attitudes, assumptions, and beliefs on death and dying: A mixed method study (2008)
Professional Memberships
- American Association of University Professors
Community Service Involvement
- Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement
Advice to Students
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." -- Aristotle
Personal History
My path to the educational field has been a non-traditional one. In 1979 I left college after receiving an Associate of Arts Degree in order to support and raise my two children. When my youngest child went to college I followed her and received my bachelors two years later. I thought that I would feel old returning to college in my 40’s but I discovered that I had never felt younger.
After receiving my Bachelors, I went on to earn a Masters. A few months later, I taught my first class as an adjunct professor at the same college where just four years earlier I had been a student sitting in my first college class in 21 years. It was then that I discovered my love of teaching. I was working in the hospice field at the time and the experience of working with dying and grieving individuals taught me to not put off my dreams. I took a leap of faith and began to teach full time.
I completed my doctorate in April of 2008 with my father, husband, children, son and daughter- in-law, and grandchildren all in attendance. My 4 year old grandson went to day care a few days later and proudly announced, “My grandma is a doctor!”
I truly believe that education is my calling and I feel privileged every time I step in front of a classroom full of students.