Health Sciences Division Welcomes New Director

by Leah Carpenter

With  nationally accredited nursing programs, the Nursing and Health Sciences Division is expanding to assist students to reach their goals in nursing education.

Dr. Rose Beebe, the current chair of the Nursing and Health Sciences Division at WVU Parkersburg, will no longer be the chair and director of the department after ten years. The department is bringing in a new chair for the Nursing and Health Sciences Division in October 2016.

The department will not be losing Dr. Beebe’s guidance as a director though. She will now oversee the workings of only the RN-BSN program.

“I will remain the nurse administrator of the RN-BSN program with 100% of my time devoted to the program,” Dr. Beebe said.

Cheryl Michaels, from Salem University, will be leading the Health Sciences Division from now on said Dr. Beebe. The department is excited for the new director.

“We look forward to welcoming her,” Dr. Beebe.

Michaels will be the director of surgical technology, pharmacy technician and patient care technician. Michaels will also oversee the associate degree nursing program.

“The chair of Health Sciences is also the director of the associate degree nursing program,” said Dr. Beebe.

The associate degree nursing programs at WVU Parkersburg, prepares students to sit for the NCLEX and become licensed as an RN for safe entry-level nursing practice.

“With the associate degree in nursing, students are getting the cores knowledge to be safe entry level nurses,” according to Dr. Beebe.

Upon completion of the associate degree nursing program, graduates who become licensed as an RN may return to school to get their bachelor’s degree in nursing.  The RN-BSN program focuses on the  general education courses required for a bachelor’s degree, in addition to upper level nursing courses that provides an RN opportunity for career mobility and/or graduate study.  This gives them the chance to work and come back to school to get their bachelor’s degree in nursing.

“This model allows our students to go two years to get the Associate of Applied Science in Nursing, become licensed as an RN, then come back and get the additional stuff courses they need for the bachelor’s degree while working as an RN,” Dr. Beebe said.

The RN-BSN nursing program has drawn more interest after the program gained national accreditation in Summer 2016 Dr. Beebe.

“The national accreditation has demonstrated to the public that we value quality in a program,” Dr. Beebe said.

The associate degree program, also nationally accredited, accomplished a 100 percent NCLEX pass rate in May 2016, making it the third cohort to receive a 100 percent pass rate. Each graduate through WVU Parkersburg is being offered career opportunities as nurses.

“Our graduates are sought after,” Dr. Beebe said. “We have hospitals that come here to recruit our graduates.”

With 100 percent of the full-time faculty qualified and Masters prepared, the department is prepared for new students.

“Currently, 100 percent of our fulltime faculty are masters prepared,” Dr. Beebe said.

The department are prepared to offer the education to increase the number of baccalaureate prepared nurses in the area.