Bio

Degree

MS in Family Nurse Practitioner

Maryville University

BS in Nursing

Goldfarb School of Nursing

BA in Marketing/Advertising

Columbia College

Published Works

• Allert, J., Brower, E., Brunel, K. M., Helldoerfer, L., Krentz, C., Little, C. K., Tucker, M., Valdivieso, K. . Enhancing Diversity and Equity Through Holistic Nursing Admissions. Nurse Educator,
• Little, C. K., Helldoerfer, L. . Expanding Nursing Education through Ethnic Studies and Social Justice. ,

Research Interests

1. Increased stress related to Nursing Students from marginalized communities
2. Increasing inclusivity through admissions
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Teaching Interests

My goal is to train all future nurses to their fullest potential. I work to instill a well-founded sense of confidence and competence that will make them strong nurses as well as knowledgeable educators for their patients. Through a learner-centered, inclusive and highly responsive pedagogy, I guide my students as they develop the skills they need to succeed in the field of nursing. At the forefront, I infuse my lessons with my enthusiasm and dedication to my students, encouraging them to become healthcare workers who always champion their patient’s best interests through education and advocacy while consistently educating themselves in our ever-changing field of nursing.
In my classroom, I believe in inclusivity and acceptance, taking into account diverse student populations and varied prior educational experiences to help each individual student succeed. Through inclusivity and acceptance, I create an enriching and enjoyable environment for my students to ask questions, take part in discussions, and help them accept and implement feedback that is positive and constructive. When I have facilitated this environment in the past, my students have exceeded their own expectations. Recently, in conversation with a current student, they let me know that they would have dropped out of the program if it were not for my encouraging words and patience to make sure that they understood specific content matter.
My instructional style focuses on student-centered learning. I build on my inclusive, accepting student community to foster a classroom of mastery-focused learning. I achieve this by creating a nonjudgmental learning environment in the classroom where asking questions is encouraged. Creating this atmosphere relaxes students and increases meaningful learning. I also use multiple modalities during lecture such as discussion, physical models, supplemental audio/visual, and personal experiences related to the material. In each format, I encourage my students to engage with the materials actively, asking questions of their classmates and myself to build an appropriate breadth and depth of knowledge. Notably, I prioritize assessment of each individual student’s strengths and weaknesses, helping them to understand how to see their own successful techniques. Once this has been completed, the students can easily reach the desired level of proficiency.
I am also a reflective educator. Much like I provide feedback for my students, I seek out feedback. I listen to students, peers, and superiors who help me to evaluate and strengthen my teaching technique. In class, I have students reflect on their learning and my lectures as I strive to improve my delivery of the necessary material. Peers and superiors offer advice and strategies to meet the needs of my students. Anonymous student reviews of my class are also helpful when reflecting on my teaching. Teaching reflectively for the past two years has really helped me to improve my instructional capabilities.
From my first days as a nurse, educating patients was one of my favorite aspects of being a Nurse and Nurse Practitioner. Expanding patients’ knowledge on their own health conditions and preventative medicine became a central passion. When I decided to pursue nursing education as a career, I wanted to have a positive impact not only with my students but also in the field of Nursing. Channeling my passion for education into teaching future health care workers has been extremely gratifying, and knowing that I have a positive impact for the nursing field is incredibly fulfilling.

Office Hours

Monday 1100-1300
Tuesday 1100-1300
Wednesday 1100-1300