Elizabeth V. Dempsey Scholarship

Criteria

Major / Minor Requirements

Class Requirements

Junior or Senior

Minimum GPA Requirement

Financial Need Requirement

Other Criteria

To be used for tuition

Recipients

Walter Andal has been an LVN for two and half years is working diligently to pursue his BS with a major in Nursing. He previously worked in a medical-surgical unit in a county hospital prior to transferring to another county facility that specializes in the rehabilitation of brain injury and spinal cord injury patients. After completing the baccalaureate nursing program, Walter plans to become more involved in the administrative and management side of the health care industry. Walter is very thankful for all the support provided by the benefactors of the Elizabeth Dempsey Scholarship Fund.

Nancy Boyd has been involved in the medical field most of her adult life. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Akron in Akron, Ohio. She started her career working in various laboratories. She worked as a phlebotomist at a local hospital in Ohio and then moved on to a job as a lab assistant in the microbiology department. After moving to Colorado, she worked in the lab for a company that produced fish vaccines for trout and salmon farms. She continued to work in the lab when the company switched to producing rabies vaccine. Several years later she moved to California and has been working at the local hospital as a phlebotomist/lab assistant. She went back to school and obtained her LVN in 2007. She has worked part time at a skilled nursing facility performing wound care and on call in the skilled nursing area of a multilevel retirement community. She is very interested in working with geriatric patients and particularly with a gerontologist after obtaining her BS with a major in nursing. She has also considered obtaining her Master’s in Gerontology. This scholarship has been very helpful in continuing her education and goals.

Rebekah Clay is a distance education student at Indiana State University. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Pre-Art Therapy from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2002. She worked as a case manager in outpatient psych and soon learned of her passion of nursing. She went back to school and obtained her LPN in 2007. She currently works at a local hospital in the Labor and Delivery unit. She would like to continuing working in Maternity after obtaining her BS in nursing. She plans to graduate in 2013. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her 3 boys and husband and is excited to welcome another baby soon. She is honored to be selected as a recipient of this award and is grateful for this scholarship opportunity.

Rachel Delaney graduated from the LVN program at American Career College (Anaheim, CA) in 2009 as the class valedictorian. She enrolled in the LVN-BS track of the baccalaureate nursing program at ISU in 2010. She is determined to do her very best in the program so she can be prepared to enter the field as a competent and compassionate RN. Her goal is to learn and apply the knowledge as much as she can and keep her GPA up in order to meet the requirements for the CRNA program. Before applying to a CRNA program, she plans to gain 2-3 years of experience in the field as an ICU or Critical Care nurse. She is very thankful to have received this scholarship as it will ease her financial load for the 2011-2012 school year.

Adam Fox is a distance student at Indiana State University. He has been an RN since 2007, working in Medical-Surgical units. He lives in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania with his wife and children. He hopes to complete the RN-BS program in 2013. He has learned through trial and error that there is no substitute for a great professor.

Jill Gauger is currently an LVN going to school to obtain a BS with a major in nursing. Her goal is to eventually obtain a Masters degree, but she would like to work as an RN to gain experience before she continues her education for a more advanced degree. Jill lives near San Diego, CA with her husband and a baby on the way. The scholarship will certainly help with their financial load as she attends school and they are preparing for a baby. She encourages anyone who is discouraged about not receiving a scholarship to just keep trying. It doesn't take much time and it can't hurt. She didn't think she would end up with the scholarship, and she did!

Tanya Gwin has been an RN since 1979. She lives in Southern California and is currently working as a clinical educator at the local community college. There she has found a love for nursing education and also a need to further her own education. This Elizabeth V. Demsey scholarship helps with her educational goals of a BS and eventually an MS degree. This gift has eased the financial load and is greatly appreciated. She thanks the sponsors and donors of this scholarship.

Amy Harig graduated from LPN school in 1994. She has been working in the field of geriatrics in various areas such as Nursing Homes, Home Health Care and Personal Care Homes. She is currently in the LPN-BS distance learning curriculum through Indiana State University. She expects to graduate in May 2013 and continue her career in geriatrics. She is appreciative of this scholarship because she is working full time night shift and every dollar helps. She is married and has a teenage son.

Rodrene Johnson graduated in 1998 with her Associates in Applied Science in Nursing. Since graduating she has been continuously employed as a RN across various disciplines within the nursing field including; telemetry, med/surg, orthopedic rehabilitation, pulmonary rehabilitation, and critical care. She has accepted and completed multiple travel assignments across the United States. She plans is to complete her BS majoring in nursing as a stepping stone to her graduate degree. She is r considering becoming a Nurse Educator.

Elnaz Kermani graduated from her LVN program in 2008. Since 2010, she has been working diligently on her baccalaureate degree at Indiana State University. For the past 5 years, Elnaz has been working as assistant manager at Cardiovascular Medical Group of Southern California in Cedars Sinai Medial Center. She finds her job challenging yet rewarding. Cardiology has always been a passion of Elnaz’s and she hopes to continue her work in the field of cardiology. Ultimately, it is Elnaz’s goal to advance her education and become a nurse practitioner specializing in cardiology. It is very encouraging and motivating to receive support for continuing education and Elnaz is very thankful to benefactors of the Elizabeth Dempsey Scholarship Fund for their support.

Jessica Lee started nursing in 1999 and received a practical nursing degree in 2000. As a practical nurse, Jessica worked in an internal medicine clinic her first year out of school. She then worked in long term care for six years while earning her associate's degree in nursing. As an RN, Jessica began working acute care oncology on an oncology/hematology unit where she continues working at today. After graduation, Jessica plans to become ONC certified, furthering her future in oncology. She plans to earn her MSN with a focus in oncology and gerontology. She appreciates the gift and plans to use it to further her education in nursing.

Irene McCarron appreciates such a very generous gift. She has been an LPN for several years, mostly working in a rehabilitation facility and is rying to complete the BS with a major in nursing. She plans to pursue a master's degree soon after and become a nurse educator someday. The Elizabeth Dempsey Scholarship award was very timely.

Janell Mulligan is a student at Indiana State University in the Baccalaureate Nursing program. She received her Licensed Practical Nursing diploma in 2005 from Ivy Tech Community College and has been working towards her BS with a major in Nursing since then. Working full time at a Cardiology clinic in Terre Haute, Indiana has provided even more experience in the field of nursing. Her goals are set to continue her education after earning her BS with a major in Nursing to gain her Masters but is unsure in what avenue. If she is not found in the ISU library or at work she enjoys spending time with her husband on the lake. Spending time with family and friends is also a favorite pastime. With everything that school and work entails, relaxing and de-stressing is of the utmost importance. Janell has set high goals and having the opportunity to further her education became easier with the scholarship that she recently received. No words can express the gratitude to the foundation that has made the generous gift available. So again a big thanks goes to the people that have made her goals easier to reach.

Danielle Pokorny graduated from LVN school at Maric College in San Diego in 2008. She was the valedictorian for her graduating class. She choose not to work as an LVN while focusing on her goal of becoming an RN, because she knew she would get complacent and it would take her longer to reach her goal. Danielle found ISU's program LVN to BS through the College Network and is so happy that she choose ISU. Doing online courses works so well for her and her family because her husband is active duty Marine Corps for the past 15 years and they have three boys, so it gives her the luxury of being home while still being able to do most of her coursework from the comforts of her own house. It is a very challenging program and she is enjoying learning in all areas of class work and clinical work. She knows she is in the right field because she not only puts her heart and soul into this program, she is not bothered nor does she complain about staying up until 4 am to complete course work. Danielle is really enjoying herself. She hopes to graduate next year and cannot wait to finally be at the end of the road and get out in the work world. However, she knows when she is working full time that she will wish that she was back in school. Thankfully she can continue with more education if she wants to obtain a masters degree, but for now she thinks she will just be content on working as an RN for many years. Danielle is honored to have received this scholarship and will be using it towards tuition and books.

Joanna Rempel is a single mother with a 12 year old son. She resides in San Jose, California and is in the final year of the Baccalaureate Nursing program at Indiana State University. Joanna graduated from a Licensed Practical Nurse program in 2007 and hase been practicing as a LPN at a medical center in the Urology department. She absolutely loves her job and looks forward to graduating and starting her career as a Registered Nurse. The scholarship will help tremendously with all the expenses of school and raising her son. It will allow her to pursue her dream of becoming an RN and be able to be a good role model for her son. Joanna's long term goal is to become a community health nurse and help other girls who have been in her situation. She had her son at 18 and has struggled over the years trying to make it. She wants to be a “cheer leader” for those who don’t have one and let people know you can do anything you put your mind to. Thank you so much from the bottom of her heart.

Kadek Rich would like to take this time to thank the scholarship selection committee as well as the Elizabeth V. Dempsey Scholarship donors for giving her a generous gift to continue her education. Growing up in third world country, where health care is essential yet has a low priority, this encouraged her to try to make a difference in the future. Guided by her mother with her knowledge and experience in the health care industry, she strives to continue to help people who are in need of medical and other assistance. Being a caring, compassionate, educated nurse is one of her ultimate goals aside of helping her disabled parents. Although her career started later in life than expected, Kadek started her health care career as a medical assistant, from there she continued on with her Vocational Nursing program while attending community college and obtaining Associate’s Degrees in Math and Science. She is furthering her education by enrolling at Indiana State University (ISU) to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Nursing. Managing time for school, work, home life, volunteering for the local elderly organization, she plans to graduate in December 2011. All these are partially possible because of the tremendous act of kindness by the Elizabeth V. Dempsey Scholarship donors that she is able to continue her education with a lower financial obligation. Upon graduating from ISU, she plans to continue her education by obtaining a Master of Science degree at local university and continue to practice her nursing skills.

Taranjeet Talwar would like to take this opportunity to thank the scholarship selection committee and Elizabeth V. Dempsey Scholarship for giving her a generous gift to continue her education further. Growing up in joint family system, she was surrounded by family members who were consistently in need of a healthcare professional to provide care. Inspired by the care provider’s unique ability to mitigate her family members’ pain, she decided to pursue a career in nursing. She was always keen onf helping others as it brought abundant joy and satisfaction to her. She was deluged with joy when, out of 120 student applicants, she was the only one chosen for an internship opportunity at Kaiser Permanente Hospital near her school. After graduating from high school, Taranjeet enrolled in a nursing school and graduated with her Vocational Nursing diploma. To save on costly tuition fees, she attended a community college to fulfill her general education requirements. From this community college, she obtained an Associate’s Degree in both Arts and Science. In order to enhance her merits further, she enrolled at Indiana State University (ISU) to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Nursing (BS). She is currently is a senior and plans to graduate with her BS in December, 2011. It is because of the tremendous display of generosity by Elizabeth V. Dempsey Scholarship that she is able to continue her education with significantly lower financial hardship. Upon graduating from ISU with her BS degree, she plans to further enhance her education by enrolling into the ISU’s Nursing - Master of Science (MS) program.

Krystal Umfleet has been involved in the medical field since 1995, starting out as an EMT, medical office assistant, nurse tech and finally becoming an RN in 1995. She has been involved mainly in critical care nursing, working in the ICU and Open Heart departments, as well as inpatient dialysis background. Becoming a rapid response nurse was a rewarding step, as in this role she also acts as a resource to the floor staff, providing education, support and leadership. Currently Krystal is working as an RN-case manager for the ICU, Open Heart and Neurology floors, involved in a new patient flow system that has been implemented in the facility to keep patients on track with their care and facilitate on continued movement towards recovery. Outside of the medical field, Krystal is a busy mother of 4 children (20, 17, 12, 1 1/2) and 2 stepchildren (14, 9) , with 1 grandchild (3). Her spouse is very supportive of her continued education in the nursing field. Krystal plans to continue her education after completion of her BS with a major in nursing, possibly working towards an MSN or MBA. The scholarship to assist with her continued education is warmly and graciously appreciated.

Kelli Willett expresses her sincere gratitude to the donors of this scholarship and also to the scholarship committee. Kelli was fortunate to follow in the footsteps of her mother and began her nursing career as a volunteer for Hospice then working as a CNA until she graduated with her LPN license in 2002 and then progressed to her ADN in 2004. She has been a traveling nurse for 7 years now and has lived all over the United States working on many different floors ranging from cardiac to oncology to pediatrics. She currently lives in Hawaii with her fiancé and is still doing local travel nursing along with pharmacy consulting and surveying for JCAHO preparedness. Kelli also has a passion for disaster relief and crisis management and received her Forensics Nurse Specialist Certificate from Kaplan University in 2010. She currently works with the Red Cross volunteering for local and global disaster relief. She plans to graduate with a BS with a major in nursing in 2012 and would like to continue on with a graduate degree focusing on disaster management.

Natalie Williams received her ADN from Ivy Tech, Sellersberg, IN in 1998. She worked in neurology and transplant critical care and obtained national certifications in critical care and neuroscience. With her experience, Natalie was able to obtain a position as a critical care educator that required a MSN. Taking this position encouraged her to start her nursing BS journey. Natalie has since moved on to the Veteran's Hospital and really enjoys caring for the veterans. The only thing holding her back in school is funding. She can only work part-time so she can be home with her daughter and she does not qualify for tuition reimbursement since she only works part-time. Natalie is very grateful to have been awarded this scholarship and feel very blessed to have been given this incredible gift so she can continue my education.