2011 Nursing Excellence Awards
Each year faculty elect students who have shown excellence academically, professionally and in the community. Students are recognized during UWG's Honor Convocation in April each year and their names are engraved on a plaque that hangs in the School of Nursing. Congratulations to:

Amy Morgan, BSN Class of 2011
Sherri Scroggins, RN-BSN Class of 2011

'Scholarship at UWG honors longtime nurse'
information taken but not quoted from The Times Georgian, October 25, 2009

A scholarship has been established for nursing students at the University of West Georgia in memory of Ila Mae Gunnell, a nurse at Tanner Medical Center in Villa Rica that passed earlier this year. Tanner Medical Center in Villa Rica was originally Villa Rica City Hospital, where Gunnell began working in 1964. The last 15 years of her career were devoted to the respiratory therapy department that she started and directed. Earlier this year, the respiratory department at TMC - Villa Rica was named one of the top sites in Georgia. This scholarship has been established specifically for nursing students who work at Tanner Medical Center in Villa Rica and Wellstar Paulding (where she passed in May 2009). Students must either work or have parents that work in these facilities to qualify.

Scholarship endowments can take several years to build income so that students may receive those funds, however Gunnell's family has pre-funded the endowment for a few years so that the first scholarship could be funded in 2009. The first recipient of this scholarship is Tamara Hutton, RN, who is currently working to complete her BSN and working at Tanner Medical Center in Villa Rica. Recipients receive 5 percent of the overall endowment, which at this time is $500. Long term goals are in place by the Gunnell family to grow the endowment to cover a nursing student's full tuition expense.The community has also been encouraged to donate to this endowment for current and future nursing students.

School of Nursing Awarded $1.4 million for design of nursing building! Plans have begun!

Click here for the full article

Nursing alumni writes her first book!

UWG Nursing Alumni, Sue Heacock graduated from the ASN program 1996. Sue went on to get her BSN from Indiana University, and her MSN from the University of Phoenix. Her book, "Inspiring the Inspirational: Words of Hope from Nurses to Nurses," is now available. To read the full article from The Citizen click here.

From "Georgia Nursing" Nov 08-Jan 09

"Kathy Sheriff, RN, Douglas County School System Health Services Coordinator, recently received Georgia School Nurse of the Year by the Georgia Association of School Nurses (GASN).

Kathy has worked as a school nurse for 13 years, ten in Douglas County. "I'm thrilled to bring this recognition to Douglas County schools," Sheriff said. "It's been a privilege to serve the students and staff here for the last 10 years."

Kathy received her nursing diploma from the Crawford W. Long School of Nursing, and her BSN from the University of West Georgia. She became a nurse in 1982 and worked as a cardiac rehabilitation nurse and a nurse at Emory University Hospital and Crawford W. Long Hospital before becoming a school nurse. She is also a member of the Georgia Nurses Association, American Nurses Association and Sigma Theta Tau honor society."

*This story has also been featured on the University System of Georgia homepage as a 'Shining Star'