The university’s decision to leave the Patty Hanks Shelton School of Nursing and create an on-campus nursing program has prompted mixed emotions from ACU nursing students.
Freshmen entering in fall 2011 will be the first students in the new program, set to open in 2013. Under the current system, all nursing students leave campus for their junior and senior years.
Rachel Phillips, senior nursing major from Abilene, said she benefited from taking classes at the Shelton School of Nursing but also believes an on-campus program will be advantageous for the university.
“I’ve really enjoyed my time at Patty Hanks,” Phillips said. “The professors have been great. I really liked being off campus. It gave me a broader perspective, and it was neat getting to see different people. I think it will help the university and broaden their ability to reach people – it will definitely attract more students.”
Phillips said she received a quality education from the nursing school but recognizes the opportunities an on-campus program will present.
“I think the nursing school is excellent quality – I feel really prepared after going there,” Phillips said. “They have 100 percent passage on NCLEX, our board test we have to pass to get our RN. But with an on-campus program I do see potential for combining nursing with missions and other things like psychology.”
Morgan Negaard, senior nursing major from Biloxi, Miss., said the education she received at Shelton School of Nursing provided a level of diversity an on-campus program will not be able to duplicate.
“I feel like I’ve learned a whole lot,” Negaard said. “It’s a diverse learning environment. There are adults with kids and people from other countries at Patty Hanks Shelton. It’s a better learning environment because you are learning to work together with people from different backgrounds. It’s more real-world.”
Negaard said she is concerned the loss of the large number of students ACU sends to the Shelton School of Nursing will hurt the program.
“I’m nervous about how it will affect the consortium,” Negaard said. “ACU makes up such a large percentage of students, and I’m worried about how it will affect them. I’m sure they’ll be fine. I’m really attached to the students and faculty there.”
Ashleigh Banda, junior nursing major from Irving, recently switched her major to nursing. She said she has some concerns about the Shelton School of Nursing and believes an on-campus program will be better for the university.
“The downside to doing nursing at Patty Hanks is you don’t get to go to Chapel, which is a good place to congregate and worship,” Banda said. “You don’t get the same ACU feel. It seems like once you go to Patty Hanks you don’t go back to ACU.”
Banda said she believes the program will be good for ACU, attracting more students to the program and the university in general.
“ACU has done so many great things since I’ve been here,” Banda said. “I’m really happy they are going to start their own on-campus program. When you apply to ACU, you don’t want to go somewhere else.”
