Cynthia Epps, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor, Associate Dean
E-mail: cepps@westga.edu
Phone Extension: 678-839-5627
Office #: 273
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Teaching Philosophy:
I believe that all teaching is learning. Learning takes place constantly, continues throughout life, involves everyone in the classroom, and requires an open mind. Teaching therefore is, in its finest form, participative, motivational, caring, and applicable to life. Learning requires discipline, dialogue, and an attitude of expectation. I seek to make my classrooms disciplined but open environments in which students are able to participate with me in a learning experience. I do not know all the answers: the classroom is the place in which both I and the students will, through sharing and discussion, solve problems and discover new meanings.
I do not feel that one style or method of instruction is “better” than another style or method. I will utilize any teaching strategy that creates and stimulates an open and thought-provoking environment of learning and sharing. This may include everything from card games to survival exercises to (at times) lecture. My goal regarding method is to maintain an atmosphere in which all eagerly participate. I see myself as a facilitator and leader, not a disengaged and disinterested manager of papers and timelines. I seek to make the classroom environment flexible and fluid, but challenging. This means that students must come to class and be prepared when they get there.
Age is not a factor in learning. I often teach both registered nurses returning to school and generic students who are not yet professionals. Many non-traditional students attend both programs, a fact that I find both exciting and challenging. The make-up of these classes necessitates a teacher/learner that values life experiences, teaches students both to think and to write, and encourages both discipline and creativity.
The unique characteristic of this Department of Nursing is its emphasis on caring. I remain enthusiastic and committed to this distinctive, and I believe that caring is the moral and ethical basis of my practice as a nurse and as a teacher. I strive to maintain a practice which values everyone equally, encourages everyone equally, but still demands the competence expected of nurses by the public and by regulatory boards. It is my belief that the learning atmosphere fostered by the faculty of this department has and will continue to produce enthusiastic, caring, committed, competent nurses ready to continue their own teaching/learning in the many venues in which nurses practice
Courses Taught:
- Undergraduate: Nursing leadership and management;
- Graduate: health systems delivery
Education:
Doctor of Philosophy degree in Nursing; Master’s degree in Nursing; Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing; Associate of Science degree in Nursing
Areas of Expertise or Professional Interests:
Gerontology; Outcomes research; Pain management
Honors and Awards
The Scholastic Excellence Award (Associate of Science in Nursing)
Professional Memberships and Certifications:
American Nurses’ Association; American Association for University Professors; Sigma Theta Tau National Honor Society for Nursing; American Society of Pain Management Nurses
Personal Interests:
Reading, travel, family
The most unique thing about our program is…
its unique blend of caring and excellence.
