“Ask ME why I want to be an RN”

Table of Contents
January 2011
Spirit Week . . . . . . . 1
Pinning . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Welcome Harriet Knowles
2
Science Fair . . . . . . . 3
Financial Aid . . . . . 4,6
Faculty Article. . . . . . 5
I’m a Hondros Nurse! 7
Hondros College Spirit Week
“Ask ME why I want to be an RN”
Hondros College School of Nursing celebrated
Spirit week Nov 29-Dec 3. Students participated in a daily contest where they asked each
other “Why do you want to be an RN?”. They
could then submit an answer from their peers
and be entered in a drawing to win lunch for
the day.
As students were preparing for their upcoming
final exams during that week, the goal of the
contest was to remind them that the reasons
they have for wanting an become a nurse are
worth all their hard work.
Students were also treated to breakfast on
Wednesday and a cookie break on Thursday
afternoon. The staff from the Dayton campus
even came up with their own cheer!
Winter Quarter
Dates to Remember
February 6
Spring Quarter
Registration opens
February 18
Spring Qtr. Registration
ends
March 14-18
Finals Week
March 18
Winter Qtr. Ends
March 19-April 3
Break
April 4
Spring Qtr. begins
We heard so many inspiring reasons from our
students during the week, from a student who
wants to be able to help veterans in their recovery, to students who have had a personal experiences that inspired them, and an overwhelming number of student who want to an
RN because it is their calling and they
want to be able to help people who need it.
Several students replied that they want to
become a nurse because they are interested in
all of the technological advancements in health
care.
We are proud of all of our students and
respect everyone’s personal reasons for
wanting to become a nurse. We also believe that each of our students has what it
takes to become a Hondros Nurse, as long
as they put in the work to achieve their
career goals. Remember that faculty are here to
help when you need it!
Thank to everyone for their participation, and
we look forward to another successful Spirit
Week later this year!
A few students who won lunch by
entering the daily contest!
Winter Pinning Ceremonies
Hondros College School of Nursing celebrated the end of the Fall
quarter with a pinning ceremony at the Dayton, Columbus and Cincinnati campuses on Thursday, December 16. Students were ready for the
Celebration after long weeks of final projects and exams.
A nursing pin is a type of badge that is worn by nurses to identify the nursing school from which
they graduated. The pin is a symbolic welcome to profession and recognition of the hard work
that it took to complete nursing school. All new nurses are “pinned” after successful completion of
their schooling. The pins from each school usually incorporate symbolism that is important to the
nursing profession or the school’s seal.
Fall graduates from Hondros College School of Nursing will walk in the Spring graduation
ceremonies in March at the Roberts Center in Wilmington.
Hondros College welcomes Harriet Knowles
Director of Nursing, to the Westerville Campus
Hondros College is happy to have welcomed Harriet Knowles, Director of Nursing, to the Columbus/Westerville campus in November. Mrs. Knowles comes to us from the Jameson Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in Pennsylvania
where she was the Assistant Director of Professional and Allied Health Education.
Mrs. Knowles earned her RN license at the Massillon City Hospital School of Nursing, BSN from Kent State University
and her MSN with a specialization in Gerontological Clinical Nursing from LaRoche College.
Mrs. Knowles is excited to get back to Ohio. She grew up in the southeastern Ohio town of Cadiz. She and her husband
Bruce will relocate after the first of the year from Pennsylvania. She has a daughter (graduate of Otterbein University)
who is a middle school science teacher in Fayetteville, Ohio and a son who works off-shore oil rig maintenance off the
coast of Lousiana.
Welcome to Hondros College Harriet!
School of Nursing honorees from the annual
Hondros College Company meeting
Each December, faculty and staff from
Hondros College’s seven Ohio locations, as
well as staff from Hondros Learning, come
together for an annual company wide meeting and holiday luncheon. At this annual
event, select faculty and staff are honored
for their exemplary performance and effort
over the past year.
Register for FREE at
www.OHHealthJobs.com
Dr. Alan Strautman, Karen Brown, and
School of Nursing President Carol Thomas
This year (2010), two members of our
nursing faculty team were selected as the
honorees for the 2010 Distinguished
faculty members. Stephanie Niceley and
Karen Brown, both of the West Chester
campus, were recognized for their dedication and mentorship.
In addition, our team of outstanding
campus directors from the three nursing
campuses were selected as School of Nursing
Associates of the year. Congratulations to Dave
Kramer, Duke Cooper and Beth Pippin!
We are so fortunate to have so many great
team members at Hondros College! It’s
always hard to select the winners for each
award.
Hondros College | Nursing Programs January 2011
Are you interested in
working in an Ohio
hospital after graduation?
OHHealthJobs.com provides
resources to search for
available jobs in the
healthcare field.
By registering for free, you can:
• Post and edit our resume
W. Chester Dr. of Nursing Deb Low,
Stephanie Niceley and Carol Thomas
• Express interest in a
hospital’s job postings
• Receive email notifications
when new jobs are posted
that match your skills and
qualifications.
Carol, Duke, Beth, David, and Duke’s
adorable daughter Ava
Welcome to HONDROS COLLLEGE!
Welcome to the new team members at Hondros College in our Nursing program!
Columbus
West Chester
Fairborn
• Director of Nursing, Harriet
Knowles
• Faculty, Erica Hanson
• Financial Aid Manager, Chris Kyser
• Clinical Instructor, Debbie Lyons
• Clinical Instructor, Tearea Roland
• Financial Aid Manager,
Ted Arnzen
• Clinical Instructor, Sandra Smith
And of course - all of our new students who started classes on January 3, 2011. Welcome to Hondros College!
Campus Dress Code Reminders!
The campus dress code for Hondros College
nursing students consists of a clean, pressed Hondros
College School of Nursing Scrub top and bottom. Level I
students wear burgundy scrubs and Level II wear a light
blue top and navy bottoms. Students may choose to
wear a plain white long sleeve shirt underneath as well.
CLEAN,PLAIN WHITE shoes are also an important
part of your uniform, both on campus and while at
clinical! You should wear clean, white socks that are long enough to cover your ankles as well.
In addition, visible body piercing and tattoos are not
allowed. Hoop earrings, nose rings, eyebrow or tongue
rings are not permitted. One plain stone-less, smooth
metal ring is permitted in the clinical setting. Rings
with stones are not safe when administering care to patients. A watch with a plain leather (white, brown, or
black) or metal band that has a second hand or digital
display is required. Earrings must be small studs. Only
one earring per lower ear lobe may be worn. No other
jewelry is allowed, and tattoos must be covered.
Students must wear Hondros College School of Nursing uniforms to all lecture, labs, and clinicals.
Westerville Students participate
in Science Fair
Students in Professor Joanne Zanetos’s 137 IV class participated
in the first annual science fair at
Hondros School of Nursing on the
Westerville campus. Students created laboratory demonstrations,
poster presentations and pieces of
art focusing on complications of IV
therapy which were displayed at the
college during the week of November 20, 2010.
Specific complications included speed shock with Vancomycin administration, extravasation caused by hypertonic,
vesicant infusates, infiltration, and
hematomas.
A sampling of the
posters that were on
display...arms and all!
Follow Hondros College School
of Nursing on the web!
Nursing.hondros.edu
blog.hondros.edu
facebook.com/
hondroscollegeschoolofnursing
Hondros College | Nursing Programs January 2011
New members of the Financial Aid Team
Our Financial Aid team has significantly expanded over the past few months! We are happy to welcome new team
members who are here to help make the Financial Aid process more efficient for you.
Edward Colestock joins our team as the Director of Financial Aid, overseeing all campuses. Check out Ed’s column on
page __ for some helpful tips about understanding Financial Aid.
Chris Kyser joins our team as the Financial Aid Manager on the Columbus campus. Chris recently moved from Orlando.
Also in Columbus, Shavonna Carroll joins us as a Student Finance Advisor, and
Julie Switzer now coordinates all VA and special funding for all three campuses.
At the West Chester campus, Ted Arzen joins the team as the Financial Aid Manager.
Please schedule a visit with the Student Services Coordinator or Financial Aid Manager on your campus if you have
questions about your Financial Aid.
Shavonna Carroll
Chris Kyser
Ed Colestock
March of Dimes March
for Babies
Hondros College will again be participating in the March of
Did you know you can purchase Hondros College School of
Nursing gear
at www.hondrosstudentorders.com?
There are jackets, hats, a laptop computer bag, additional
scrubs and other logo’ed items! New items are being added,
and we’d love to hear your suggestions as to what you want.
Email [email protected] with your suggestions and
feedback!
Dimes“March for Babies” events this spring. Teams will be
organized on each campus to participate. The dates for each
event are as follows:
Cincinnati area - April 17 at Sawyer Point
Dayton area - April 30 in Carillon Park
Columbus area- May 1 at the Chiller at Easton
Hondros College is a proud sponsor of the March of Dimes.
Please contact [email protected] if you would like
to be involved in planning our participation on your campus,
or if you would like to walk on the Hondros Team.
We need faculty and student involvement. Thank you!
Dayton students
raised money
for the March
for Dimes with
a Penny Wars
contest on campus in 2010
How to Succeed in Nursing School...
Advice for new students, by Dr. Mark Hopkin~ Westerville Campus
Each newsletter, we include an article or two from our
distinguished faculty. This issue, we asked Dr. Mark
Hopkin, A&P instructor in Westerville, to write a
bit of advice for new students. (Although - also good
advice for current students!)
I was asked to write a short piece for a newsletter at Hondros
College School of Nursing, and include perhaps some advice
to new students. Welcome, new students. We’re glad you’re
here.
My advice? Work hard, study a lot, and do well on exams.
Okay, too obvious. Besides, you all know the goals, which was
that last thing, and the other two are, well, not useful because,
too general. So, a bit of more practical advice. Ask yourself
questions. Ask your neighbor questions. As you leave the
classroom, on the way to the restroom or the lunch counter,
or where ever you may be headed, ask one of your classmates
some specific question from the lecture. What is it exactly
that the smooth endoplasmic reticulum does? What are the
characteristics of a lipid? These two are from Anatomy and
Physiology, which I teach, and which I also know are classes
from the first quarter of both the LPN and RN programs.
Maybe asking these questions sounds dumb. It isn’t. Repeating the facts from the lecture you just heard is a way of reinforcing your memory. You should do this after every class.
And on your way into the class the next time it meets.
Rote memorization is boring and tedious and lame. And useful and effective and invaluable. The more times you repeat
something, the easier it is to remember when you need it.
And asking each other questions helps you anticipate what
questions your teacher might ask. I suggest you start with the
easy questions, then work up to obscure details and arcane
principles when you and your classmates are ready.
When you ask, “What is a biological membrane made of?”,
and everyone around you says, together and without hesitation, “A lipid bilayer and proteins,” then you can start asking
questions about what kinds of lipids and what those proteins
do. (Proteins only do two things--stick to things and change
shape--but variations of those two things make proteins the
most useful of biological macromolecules.)
Another piece of advice. Don’t get hung up over little
things, just get them done. Be a minute early to class. Use
the restroom BEFORE class. Turn off your cell phone,
unless you are using it in class at the instructor’s request.
Make sure every day that you have your uniform ready for
tomorrow. Never allow yourself to break the rules, even
if other people do. Don’t assume the teachers, or anyone
else, will take a relaxed view of requirements for the uniform or anything else. If the rule says one small earring is
okay, don’t wear two small earrings.
There isn’t any need to fuss over little rule violations,
so don’t make any, and we won’t fuss. We all have better
things to do. But if you do skip a few steps or bend a rule
here or there, we will notice.
Nurses are trained to notice things. That’s part of any assessment.
Assume you won’t get away with anything, and act accordingly. I also advise getting enough rest. A good night’s
sleep is helpful for keeping your brain working properly
(another tidbit from A&P). Eat well, meaning plenty of
veggies and some fruit. Get some exercise.
Laugh at your teachers’ jokes. Leave early for class, because traffic will always be worse than you hope. Expect
to stay a little late for clinicals and labs and even some
classes, because there will be little things that need to be
done at the end, and they won’t annoy you as much if you
aren’t anxious to get out. Ask for help when you need it;
it’s okay if you don’t know something, and it’s always better to ask and learn than to keep trying to hide your ignorance. People (yes, teachers are people, too) like answering
questions. It makes them feel smart. So take advantage
of that; ask questions. Ask + Answer = Education. We’re
delighted you’re here. Good luck.
Faculty, if you would like to submit an article,
please email [email protected]
Hondros College | Nursing Programs January 2011
From the desk of Ed Colestock, Director of Financial Aid
FAQ’s for students moving from the LPN to RN Program
How many credits do I need to take to qualify for
financial aid?
You need to take at least 6 credits to qualify for financial aid.
If you are eligible for Pell grants remember that the Pell grant
award can increase or decrease any time you are taking less than
12 credits.
Should I try and stay full time in the first quarter?
The decision to move classes is always up to the student; however taking into consideration both the academic and financial
aid options is important. In order to received financial aid you
need to have at least 6 credit hours, so if receiving loans during
this term is vital then you will need to move at lease one class
to the first term. (Soc 150, SPH 100, or ENG 101). If the
academics are more important, then register for the classes you
want to take, but keep in mind that your financial aid will be
effected by the number of credit hours you are taking, and that
you are responsible for any costs not covered by financial aid.
Why do I have less funding in the first terms of RN?
Federal Regulations state that a student can only receive so
much funding in a 30 week period. During the 4th or possibly
even 5th term of the LPN program your financial aid was reset.
This will affect the amount of funding you can receive in the 1st,
and possibly 2nd terms of the RN program. During the end of
the LPN program you will also be at a higher grade level which
also allows for slightly higher loan eligibility, and then when you
move on to the RN program you start over again at freshmen
level.
Some notes to accompany this principle:
A) Students who take 4 or 5 quarters to complete the LPN
typically have higher amounts of student loans in those last
quarters of LPN, leaving less money to use in the first quarter
to two quarters of RN.
B) The government has a rule that a student may only borrow
the maximum amount of loans that their grade level allows in
a 30 week time frame. The 30 week includes the last quarter
(quarters) of LPN and first quarters to two quarters of RN.
C) Students move from being a sophomore as an LPN
(based on the credits completed in that program), then
drop back down to a freshman as an RN (cannot transfer in a full 36 credits to be considered a sophomore).
This principle also limits loan eligibility for student
loans in the first one to two quarters of the program.
Hondros College | Nursing Programs January 2011
Should I move general education classes forward to
quarters that have less credits because I have transfer
credits?
As you advance in the program you will move from a freshman to a
sophomore to a junior based on credits completed. This advancement
also allows you an increase in student loan eligibility. For this reason
leaving more classes in later quarters when you have more eligibility
will allow for more of the cost to be covered by loans. Just keep in
mind that you need at least 6 credits to get financial aid.
The best scenario is to move the Eng 101 to the first term so you are
over the 6 credit hour thresh hold, this also allows you to stay full time
in the final term of the RN program. With no other transfer credits
coming in the only term that will be less than full time is term one. As
the number of transferred classes goes up, so do the number of terms
that will be below full time. Make sure to check your transfer credits
in CAMS regularly.
The second and third quarters have higher costs.
What should I do to address the balances due in those
quarters?
A) You should save any refund you receive in the first quarter to pay
for balances due in the second quarter
B) You should look for alternative financial assistance to help you
pay for those balances. We have 2 private loans posted under nursing financial aid on hondros.edu.
C) Hondros can assist you with a payment plan to address your
balance due. The financial aid office can write those payment plans
for you. Keep in mind that the plan must be written at least 10 days
before that quarter begins and you will be expected to make the first
payment at least 5 days before the quarter begins. There is a $25
payment plan fee that will be factored into your payments.
What to expect from Financial Aid
If you have applied into the RN program, make sure to register during
the open registration period. Once you have completed registration
Financial Aid will begin working on awards. Awards will be placed in
the My Financial Aid section of the student portal between the end of
the registration period and the end of the term. Once this has happened, you will receive a letter notifying you that funding for the next
loan period has been entered. You will need to log in and accept or
decline the awards.
Do you have questions that you would like Ed to
answer in the next newsletter?
Email us at [email protected]
I’m a Hondros Nurse!
Angie Pierson, a student at the West Chester campus, shared the following story on November 21. Great story Angie! We are
proud that you are a HONDROS Nurse!
Now that I am an LPN and continuing RN student, I have long feared how I would react in an emergency. Today, as a Hondros LPN graduate and RN student, I found out. By golly I think I did okay! I thought I would share this with those of you
who worked so hard to train me for this moment.
My family was having dinner with my sister at Patriot Ridge Nursing Home in Fairborn. An older lady, who was there visiting,
was walking between the tables, tripped over a child’s foot and chair. She fell to the tiled floor landing on her face. When she
could not get up, I rushed to help her. I was scared to death but I put my fear aside and ran right to her.
I assessed the situation and her condition while comforting her as she was embarrassed, in pain, and crying. I did an emergency
head to toe assessment. She was bleeding from her nose. I asked for some towels and went to work on her nose bleed. I got it to
stop bleeding but was still concerned about a possible fracture. I questioned her about her pain and injuries while continuing
to comfort her and ask her family questions about her medical history and current medications. I requested a squad be called
but the lady refused.
Another nurse who works at the nursing home requested we set her up once we were sure there was no spinal or neck injuries.
When we were setting her up she screamed in pain with her shoulder. I supported her shoulder with my hands and insisted
we keep her sitting. I again requested the squad be called and again she refused. I talked very comforting to her and finally
convinced her to allow a squad to be called.
When the paramedics arrived, I gave them all of the information and assisted them in getting her on the stretcher. I assured
her everything would be alright and she thanked me as the paramedics took her away to the hospital. I then evaluated myself
and the situation to see if I responded appropriately. I felt so proud to be a Hondros nurse.
I just wanted to thank Hondros and all of my wonderful nursing professors for teaching me to be
a good nurse. It was an awesome feeling to have the knowledge and skills to help someone in need.
Sincerely,
Angie Pierson, LPN
What does it mean to
Be a
HONDROS
Nurse?
A HONDROS Nurse is:
a Critical Thinker
Accountable
Respectable
Ethical and
Sensitive
Hondros College | Nursing Programs January 2011