Gamecock Nursing Nation
ANSWERING A CRITICAL NEED
New satellite campus transforms clinical education experience
DEAR COLLEAGUES, ALUMNI AND FRIENDS,
It’s no secret: The University of South Carolina College of Nursing continues to exceed expectations every year. For 2023-2024, we achieved our fourth No. 1 ranking from U.S. News & World Report, along with record funding from research and grant awards and philanthropic gifts, record growth with student enrollment, and continuous stellar academic and research impact. Our bar is high, and we keep aiming higher. I am honored and inspired to work with so many amazing students, staff, partners and alumni.
The 2024-2025 academic year will mark a transformation in the college’s history. Garnering more space to meet our mission has been a long time coming. With our new satellite campus completed in July 2024, our physical footprint has doubled, which allows for significant expansion of students, educational programs, practice innovations and research initiatives. We are committed to providing a world-class education, and the new satellite campus equips our pre-licensure students with a cutting-edge simulation training center, flexible and high-tech classroom spaces, and modern collaborative spaces to enhance learning and engagement. Along with our plans for a new Biobehavioral Research Center on the renovated Columbia campus and impressive portfolio of top-tier faculty and staff, we are proving our commitment to attract and retain South Carolina’s ‘best of the best’ nursing talent.
In this issue, you will read more about our new clinical education building. You can learn about the revolutionary innovations in our classrooms and communities, research impact, and talented and inspiring students, faculty and alumni leaders who are manifesting change.
My sincerest gratitude is extended to our entire Gamecock Nursing Nation for your ongoing dedication and commitment! Let’s continue to elevate our profession while making a difference in our world. We are ready to lead the challenge.
Jeannette O. Andrews Ph.D., RN, FAAN Dean and Helen Gurley Wolford Professor of Nursing
Follow me on X @DeanUSCNursing
DEAN JEANNETTE O. ANDREWS
Director of Communications and Marketing
Nicole Meares
Communications Manager
Rebecca Lang
Senior Director of Development
Monica Cromer
Administrative Assistant
Erica Neet
Contributing Writers
Tisha Felder
Gregory Hardy
Joynelle Jackson
Contributing Photographers
Bonnie Smith
Kim Truett
Designer Francesca Novotny
College of Nursing University of South Carolina 1601 Greene Street Columbia, SC 29208 sc.edu/nursing
Phone: 803-777-7412
@UofSCNursing
4 / Heartfelt discovery: Advancing understanding in congenital heart defects
Technology now allows for 3D-printed models of the human heart, and students are gaining clearer insights into patient anatomy.
6 / VR: Revolutionizing health care education
An innovative virtual reality simulation allows students to better learn and empathize how patients are impacted by living conditions.
8 / College of Nursing leads state in NIH funding for second consecutive year
Meet four faculty members whose transformative initiatives are improving health outcomes for the state’s vulnerable populations.
16 / Breastfeeding benefits mothers as much as babies, but public health messaging often only tells half of the story
Human milk provides the optimal nutrition for infants, and mothers can reduce their risks of diabetes and breast and ovarian cancers.
20 / Making space for innovation
Construction is slated to begin in 2025 on a Biobehavorial Research Center that will expand the college's research facilities.
BRIEFS
National League for Nursing hails College of Nursing as a Center of Excellence
The National League for Nursing designated the University of South Carolina’s College of Nursing as a Center of Excellence for the 2024 term.
The NLN recognizes schools that consistently invest resources to distinguish their commitment to areas of nursing education. For the second time, the College of Nursing was honored for demonstrating sustained efforts in enhancing student learning and professional development.
Heartfelt Discovery: Advancing understanding of congenital heart defects
Congenital heart defects (CHDs) are among the most prevalent birth anomalies, impacting nearly 1% of newborns in the United States. In 2004, South Carolina took a proactive step in monitoring these conditions with the enactment of the South Carolina Birth Defects Act, which led to the South Carolina Birth Defects Program (SCBDP). According to their 2022 report, more than 8,000 births were marked by some manifestation of cardiovascular defects between 2008 and 2021.
An Honors Convocation was scheduled for the 2024 NLN Education Summit in September in San Antonio, Texas.
NATIONAL RANKING
For the fourth straight year, USC's College of Nursing was ranked No. 1 nationally for its online master's in nursing program, according to U.S. News & World Report's annual online programs rankings released in January. “We continue to have an urgent need for additional nurse practitioners, nurse educators and other advanced roles in nursing to meet the health care workforce needs, and our flexible and high-quality online graduate programs are meeting the needs of our nursing graduate students and their current and future employers,” says College of Nursing Dean Jeannette Andrews.
These anomalies present a formidable challenge to aspiring pediatric nurses, due to their intricate physical nature and distinctive irregularities. Traditional pedagogical approaches—often reliant on textbooks, two-dimensional depictions and classroom discourse—can sometimes fall short in eliciting active learning.
But now, three-dimensional printing is changing all that.
Building bridges to learning
Three-dimensional printing is revolutionary technology that harnesses digital image data to craft bespoke objects layer by layer. With recent advancements, the costs of 3D printers and materials have plummeted. Leveraging therapies with 3D-printed models of the human heart can provide pre-licensure nursing students with enduring insights into congenital heart defects, thus bolstering the retention of knowledge and fostering the delivery of superior patient care.
Assistant professor Stephanie Schaller is working with interim department chair of professional nursing practice Kate Chappell , assistant professor Teresa Bowers and simulation center manager Lonnie Rosier under a Helen Gurley Wolford innovative teaching grant titled Building Bridges to Learning: Advancing Congenital Cardiac Defect Understanding Through 3D Printing in Nursing Education.
Incorporating therapy models into an interactive instructional framework proves to be a potent approach to educating nursing students, particularly on topics of complexity and opacity.
“I wanted to find a manipulative to help my students, who I could tell were struggling with understanding congenital heart defects,” says Schaller. “With the affordability and advanced technology of 3D printing, we were able to make one model that simulated four different congenital heart defects. This small group classroom activity has my nursing students engaged in their learning and is a unique teaching innovation.”
Nursing students who engaged with 3D printed models exhibited significant enhancements in their grasp of anatomy, congenital heart defect nursing expertise and confidence when tending to pediatric patients with CHDs when compared to peers subjected solely to traditional teaching methods. Moreover, cardiac nurses attested to the efficacy of 3D printed congenital heart defect models in enhancing their learning, with 74% acknowledging its superiority over two-dimensional imagery.
“The tactile experience of manipulating a 3D-printed heart model into several different congenital heart defects
allows students to engage in learning and increase their understanding of these defects,” says Schaller. “This experiential learning approach not only deepens their comprehension of congenital heart defects, it prepares them for real-world clinical scenarios.”
Student working on a 3D-modeled heart.
Student Grace Coleman with faculty member, Stephanie Schaller.
REVOLUTIONIZING HEALTH CARE EDUCATION
In a world of budding technology and virtual reality, there is an opportunity to view different perspectives on health disparities in new ways. That’s what USC College of Nursing’s Kate Bernheisel aims to do, along with support from Jan Kubas and Sevilla Bronson.
By advancing their VR simulation experience, “Seeing Through My Eyes,” they were awarded an additional teaching innovation grant toward the project. They hope to enhance student understanding of poor health outcomes and the negative impacts Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) have on patients.
homeless clinic. That meant providing care in the clinic, on the streets and in shelters.
“I also worked in a rural setting taking care of migrant farm workers in a clinic and at their home and places of work,” she says. “I was able to experience the stark difference in how I lived versus how my patients lived.”
This experience, along with not being able to lead students through clinical experiences in the community during COVID, inspired the VR idea. Students can now better understand how living conditions impact patient health and lead to health disparities.
Prior to teaching at USC and becoming an assistant professor in the Advanced Professional Nursing Practice and Leadership Department, Bernheisel worked for a few years as a nurse practitioner in a
“I’ve always told students they need to know that every patient in the hospital comes from somewhere and goes home to somewhere,” Bernheisel says. “They need to know what those ‘somewheres’ look like in order to holistically understand how to care for their patients.”
In the 360-degree video simulation, students can witness how mundane tasks can be challenging to those who lack the necessary resources. The “lived experience” scenario Bernheisel’s team developed is based on a patient, Mr. Bland, who is learning to live in a wheelchair. Students witness issues including food access, accessibility, safe housing, economic stability, access to health care and transportation.
To measure the effectiveness of the simulation, students undergo surveys before and after to assess changes in empathy and understanding of health disparities. Additionally, students work on written case studies and reflect on the role of nurses in addressing health equity.
Knowing that students wish to continue VR work, Bernheisel plans to expand and create new 360-degree video experiences based on the lives of other patients experiencing poor health outcomes for a library of scenarios.
Student takeaways include:
“This honestly was the best experience I've had both in this class and the College of Nursing as a whole. It is a nice change of pace from the lectures, and the small group size and hands-on learning help me better get a grasp on the information.”
“The simulation improved my understanding of vulnerable populations and allowed me to realize ways I can help as a nurse.”
“I felt the emotions as I believe the patient was feeling. Very immersive.”
Additional thanks to the VR Community of Practice group that meets at USC, recently retired USC professor Joan Creed and Pipeline Faculty Fellow Ayzia Taylor.
When seated and set up with 360-degree VR view, you can experience the perspective of Mr. Bland, the fictional subject who has been recently bound to a wheelchair.
REMARKABLE RESEARCH
The University of South Carolina College of Nursing sees record research growth, National Institutes of Health funding.
Committed to supporting and enhancing faculty research and scholarship, the college's Office of Research helps develop faculty and Ph.D. students as scientists and scholars and provides specialized expertise to enhance success.
Last year, the college retained the top spot in the state for funding among nursing from the National Institutes of Health.
The NIH is the largest public funder of biomedical and behavioral research in the world, leading to decades of advances that improve health, revolutionize science and serve society more broadly. It annually awards more than 60,000 grants that directly support more than 300,000 researchers at more than 2,500 institutions.
Our research mission has expanded with the addition of new faculty scholars who, with existing faculty, have generated new research and grant awards over the past 10 years.
Nursing researchers improve communications through collaborative treatment in ways that strengthen health management, empower patients and families, and decrease outcome disparities.
Transforming how we prevent diagnose and treat illnesses, their research will have significant impacts on addressing health care for South Carolinians.
Currently, they are working to find solutions for multiple rural and minority health disparities; improve quality of life and health-related outcomes in vulnerable minority adults and their care partners; and understand challenges faced by patients and how they relate to social determinants of health (SDOH).
Here are four examples of the critical work our faculty is performing for vulnerable populations, maternal and infant health and transformative initiatives.
DEMETRIUS ABSHIRE PHYLLIS RAYNOR
Vulnerable Populations
Health care services and programs designed for men may be more appealing, engaging, and effective for promoting men’s health.
Demetrius Abshire, an assistant professor and co-director of the Smart Start Nursing Program, seeks to improve health among Black men in rural South Carolina evaluating the impact of two 12-week health programs tailored for them.
The purpose of his study is to investigate whether a newly developed football-themed weight management program for approximately 30 Black men in Orangeburg and Barnwell counties called “GameDay Ready” can be more effective in reducing body weight compared to a “Walking and Health Education” program.
Both programs focus on improving health in different ways and involve meeting in-person once a week with other volunteer participants for about an hour. This study focuses on understanding what kinds of programs might work best for helping Black men make positive lifestyle changes to lose weight and improve their health.
Men are expected to live nearly six fewer years than women, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Of South Carolina women married to men the same age, 15% will be widows as they enter retirement.
Maternal and Infant Health
A distinguished doctoral-prepared advanced practice nurse, Phyllis Raynor’s research strives to improve health outcomes for South Carolina families with substance use disorders. Her work is concentrated in underserved areas, particularly rural communities and among demographics with fewer opportunities for treatment.
Contrary to the framing that substance use disorders are a moral failing, Raynor emphasizes it as a chronic brain disease in need of understanding and care. She highlights the societal stigma attached to individuals, particularly pregnant women, stressing the need for non-punitive approaches to treatment.
Early in Raynor’s career, she volunteered for a faith-based recovery support program where she taught behavioral health promotion strategies such as refusal skills training and coping skills. One woman during a presentation asked, “How do I become a good mother when I’ve never been that before?” This served as the motivation for Raynor’s research journey, emphasizing the critical need for addiction support systems and resources.
Collaborating with researchers, local organizations, health care providers and parents in recovery, Raynor is at the forefront of initiatives to increase access to proven treatments and harm reduction strategies. For underserved populations, she has been working with a mobile app manufacturer to tailor digital support for pregnant people and their families.
“Although using substances may be an individual thing, it has a family impact,” Raynor says. “We need to start looking at recovering the family, not just the individual. Because if you don’t feel like you’re a good parent, that’s a factor in a person returning to substance use.”
Transformative Initiatives
Lori Vick was awarded an NIH grant in 2020 titled Hydroxyurea Adherence Project (HAP) to collaborate with sickle cell disease patients and improve health outcomes with Hydroxyurea treatment.
Now, she’s part of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital’s Sickle Cell Nursing Boot Camp, a globally recognized program addressing the critical need for specialized education and training for nurses who care for sickle cell disease patients.
“I grew up with a family with sickle cell – they were all siblings,” Vick says. “While I was in graduate school, they told me about their lack of care, the constant pain they endured, and the challenges they faced from health care providers. It was then that I realized the dire need for better advocacy, awareness, and treatment options for individuals suffering from this debilitating disease.”
In 2023, the Brazilian Ministry of Health invited Vick to bring the boot camp as its first intensive outside the U.S. She and other nursing experts shared their comprehensive Train the Trainer evidence-based curriculum to educate other nurses about what is truly happening in the body of a sickle cell disease patient. The pyramid of learning is designed with a lifespan approach, exploring comorbidity and chronic disease complications with follow-up support as those nurses returned to their communities.
Bernardine Pinto's work focuses on breast cancer which is the second most common cause of death from cancer among women in South Carolina. Black women have a lower five-year survival rate at all stages of 82%, while the rate for white women is 92%, according to the American Cancer Society.
A mammogram is the best way to find breast cancer for most women. When detected early the five-year relative survival rate is 99%. However, the National Cancer Institute states that breast density can make a mammogram more difficult to interpret and lead to missed diagnoses; therefore, it is a risk factor for breast cancer. Dense tissue can hide cancers because the difference between a tumor and white areas in the mammogram is hard to distinguish.
“Women who have dense breast issue should not completely rely on mammograms and advocate to have additional screening done, such as a 3D mammogram, a breast ultrasound or MRI,” says Pinto, the associate dean for research and co-director of the Cancer Survivorship Research Center.
As of September 2023, all mammogram reports sent to patients in the U.S. will be required to include breast density.
Pinto’s research study, Moving Forward Together 4 (MFT4), aims at increasing physical activity among women facing breast cancer through a home-based exercising walking program. Participants receive a Fitbit to monitor their physical activity, and some participants are matched with a coach who will assist them with increasing their physical activity throughout the 12-week intervention.
LORI VICK
BERNARDINE PINTO
ANSWERING A CRITICAL NEED
New satellite campus transforms clinical education experience
The University of South Carolina and Lexington Medical Center opened a new 52,000 square foot facility to train the next generation of nurses during a ribbon cutting ceremony on Aug. 12.
Located on Lexington Medical Center’s West Columbia campus, the satellite clinical education building will be used primarily for clinical training of the university’s third- and fourth-year nursing bachelor’s students as well as master’s program students.
Cutting-edge technology and flexible spaces offer USC’s growing nursing student population an elevated educational experience and better prepares them to transition into practice.
South Carolina is expected to have more than 10,000 nursing vacancies by 2030 and has one of the highest projected shortages in the United States. This publicprivate partnership expands the College of Nursing’s training capabilities and creates opportunities for reducing nursing workforce shortages.
On average, the university awards 900 nursing degrees per year systemwide. Within five years after opening, the new facility will help train and graduate 400 nurses per year in the Midlands—an 80% increase annually.
“We’re proud to partner with the University of South Carolina to directly address the nursing shortage in our state,” said Tod Augsburger, president and CEO. “We are looking forward to growing the pipeline of skilled nurses for our organization and the state while continuing our mission to provide quality health services that meet the needs of our communities.”
Under the partnership, Lexington Medical Center funded the new facility and is providing clinical instructors. Students will benefit from state-of-the-art clinical education and collaboration spaces and private study spaces.
An immersive simulation center was designed to employ advanced simulation techniques to replicate clinical scenarios. Spanning the entire second level of the facility, it features several key training areas: the Acute Care Suite, which mimics hospital rooms and intensive care units; the Community Apartment, which simulates a home environment for home health scenarios; the Primary Care Suite, where students practice patient care and communication; and the Skills Suite, where students develop and refine clinical skills. All four areas of the center provide immersive, hands-on learning experiences for students, preparing them for real-world health care settings.
We’re demonstrating our commitment toward a future that will attract the most promising and talented student and faculty minds. DEAN
Close proximity to the hospital offers students a wide range of interprofessional education training as well as opportunities for clinical immersion for nurse practitioner students.
“Today, we see our college transformed,” College of Nursing Dean Jeannette Andrews says. “Our new satellite campus and its cutting-edge technology will elevate what our students can experience. We’re demonstrating our commitment toward a future that will attract the most promising and talented student and faculty minds.”
JEANNETTE ANDREWS
The University of South Carolina’s nationally ranked College of Nursing has a multi-pronged mission of teaching, research, practice, service and policy. As the state’s first nationally accredited nursing program, the college has graduated more than 12,000 nurses since 1957 and continues to attract, retain, train and grow the workforce. A national leader in exam passage rates, the college’s graduates are prepared to address local and regional health needs while improving the accessibility of quality health care.
Students
celebrate the College of Nursing satellite clinical education building opening.
Building relationships
Marilyn Chassie Sonnenberg's motivation to pursue a lifelong career in nursing stemmed from her high school experience as a candy striper, where she recognized her passion for finding ways to improve people’s lives. She grew up watching her mother, a beautician, develop lifelong relationships with clients.
As the first woman in her family to graduate college with a degree in nursing, Sonnenberg also earned her master’s and doctoral degrees before joining USC’s College of Nursing.
Her leadership began with being assistant dean for practice in 1986 and later associate dean for academic affairs and student services in 1990. She has chaired dissertations, served on the Cockcroft Fellowship committee and enjoyed working closely with students as an associate professor.
In discussing the benefits of a new satellite campus, Sonnenberg emphasizes the importance of primary care practices, especially advancing nursing practice and addressing community needs, while also fostering the growth of future nurse practitioners.
She envisions the new campus as a place where technological advancements in health care can align with a focus on patient-centered care.
“Nursing is all based on building a relationship with the patient,” she says. “I hope this is well-incorporated into their education, and that they learn to have a full vision on where to go with the patients.”
Thanks to the generous support of Marilyn Sonnenberg, the College of Nursing's former associate dean, a large classroom at the clinical education building was named in her honor. This versatile location delivers effective training to large groups, with flexibility to break into smaller rooms for interactive learning.
One of three new Skills Labs.
Students explore Acute Care suite.
Breastfeeding benefits mothers as much as babies, but public health messaging often only tells half of the story
by Tisha Felder and Joynelle Jackson
Four babies are born every second in the world, and there are only two options for their first food at birth: human milk or formula.
Global and U.S. health authorities agree, however, that human milk provides the optimal nutrition for infants. The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant’s life. Following the introduction of solid foods, these organizations recommend continued breastfeeding up to two years and beyond.
Human milk can be given to infants directly through breastfeeding or by pumping or expressing human milk into a cup or bottle. The health benefits of breastfeeding and human milk for infants stem from its composition, which includes vitamins, minerals and antibodies that can prompt its composition to change over time to meet the growing infant’s needs. The dynamic nature of human milk leads to commonly known benefits, such as lower risks of ear and gastrointestinal infections among infants who are breastfed. However, there are other benefits for infants that many people aren’t aware of, as well as for the breastfeeding mother and society.
We are women’s health scholars with combined professional expertise in maternal obstetrics nursing and public health. Together, we co-founded Mocha Mamas Milk, a research and support initiative focused on improving breastfeeding among Black families in South Carolina, a state where just 55.1% of Black infants are breastfed, compared with 75.2% of white infants.
Human milk is personalized medicine that can benefit both the mother and infant. We are personally and professionally passionate about this because many people are not aware that some of these benefits can save lives and reduce persistent health disparities.
Lesser-known benefits of breastfeeding for infants
One significant benefit of breastfeeding not widely known by the public is its ability to lower the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS. SIDS, sometimes referred to as “crib death,” is the unexplained death of a baby, usually under 1 year of age.
Some risk factors include stomach- or side-lying sleep, low birth weight, sleeping on a soft surface or overheating. A large analysis of studies found that infants who received any human milk for at least two months had nearly a 50% lower risk of SIDS.
This reduction is notable for two reasons. First, the reduction in risk occurs about 60 days following birth, which is several months before the six-month exclusive breastfeeding guideline is met. Second, the protection from SIDS was the same for infants who were exclusively breastfed compared to infants who may have received formula in addition to any breastfeeding.
In addition, breastfeeding can significantly protect premature infants – those born before 37 weeks of pregnancy – from developing a condition called necrotizing enterocolitis, an inflammation of the intestines that can be fatal. While this condition is rare in full-term infants, it occurs in 5% to 15% of preterm infants.
Benefits for mom, too
Breastfeeding also provides important benefits for the mother, such as reducing risks of diabetes and breast and ovarian cancers. Breastfeeding for any length of time compared to never is associated with a 10% decrease in hormone receptor-negative breast cancers, which are more common in younger women. These cancers cannot be treated with hormonal therapy and often grow faster than the more commonly diagnosed hormone receptor-positive breast cancers.
The reduction in risk from breastfeeding is even greater for Black women, who are more likely to be diagnosed with these hormone receptor-negative breast cancers
and have worse prognoses and fewer treatment options. Any way of reducing the risk for Black women is critically important because, compared to white women, Black women are 40% more likely to die from breast cancer, yet 4% less likely to be diagnosed with the disease. There is also growing research suggesting the positive impact of breastfeeding on a mother’s mental health. One possible reason for this is that oxytocin – often called the “love hormone” because of its association with bonding – plays a role in the maternal-infant bonding process.
After delivery, the release of oxytocin causes human milk to flow – a process called the letdown reflex – and initiate breastfeeding. This release of milk can satisfy the new baby and leave the mom with “warm and fuzzy” feelings toward her baby. Research also suggests that breastfeeding can reduce the risk of depression . A 2021 study also found that the longer a woman breastfed, the lower her risk for postpartum depression.
Closing racial gaps
Despite the benefits of breastfeeding to both infants and mothers, few U.S. families are able to sustain breastfeeding over time. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2022 Breastfeeding Report Card – the latest data that is currently available – shows that more than 80% of infants start out receiving human milk, yet just over a quarter of them are exclusively breastfed through six months.
Black infant-mother pairs not only have the lowest breastfeeding rates in South Carolina, but they also have the lowest rates nationally, compared to other U.S. racial and ethnic groups. More recent data from the National Vital Statistics System of U.S. infants born in 2020 and 2021, shows that only 74.5% of Black infants were breastfed, compared with non-Hispanic Asian infants (90.1%), non-Hispanic white infants (84.0%) and Hispanic infants (86.8%), based on analysis of birth records collected by the CDC.
Breastfeeding offers a wealth of health benefits for both infants and mothers
Infants who are breastfed have reduced risks of asthma, ear infections, SIDS and more, while breastfeeding can lower a mother's risk of high blood pressure, diabetes and certain cancers.
HELPS PROTECT INFANTS AGAINST
Asthma
Obesity
Type 1 diabetes
Severe lower respiratory disease
Ear infections
Sudden infant death syndrome
Gastrointestinal infections
Necrotizing enterocolitis for preterm infants
Black infants are also more likely to die from SIDS and to be born prematurely. So increasing breastfeeding among Black families could lead to saving significantly more Black infant lives.
The Southeast U.S. is where the widest racial gaps in breastfeeding exist. In addition, infants living in Southern states are less likely to achieve national goals for breastfeeding at 6 or 12 months old compared to infants living in other regions of the country.
Removing barriers to breastfeeding
Reducing barriers is critical to closing racial and geographic gaps in breastfeeding and allowing U.S. mothers and their infants the opportunity to benefit from the life-saving qualities of human milk. Studies show that addressing work-related barriers by making investments in paid family leave, for example, could increase exclusive breastfeeding rates by 15%.
The U.S. is one of the only countries in the world that does not provide national paid family leave.
HELPS PROTECT MOTHERS AGAINST
High blood pressure
Type 2 diabetes
Ovarian cancer
Breast cancer
Depression
Workplaces that support breastfeeding breaks and provide safe and clean spaces for expressing and storing human milk are also important in promoting breastfeeding. Given that U.S. women’s labor force participation rates are at a record high, the importance of reducing barriers in the workplace cannot be overstated.
The U.S. Agency for International Development estimates that every U.S. dollar invested in breastfeeding yields $35 in economic returns.
Societal investments in breastfeeding-friendly workplace policies will not only yield cost savings and extend breastfeeding rates, but they will shift the burden of breastfeeding from simply being an individual choice to being a public health priority.
This article was written by College of Nursing faculty members, Tisha Felder and Joy Jackson and is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license.
MAKING SPACE FOR INNOVATION
With a new clinical education facility available to meet the needs of USC’s growing nursing student population, the college saw an opportunity to transform and expand its research capabilities.
In 2025, construction will begin on a Biobehavioral Research Center that will provide dedicated space for faculty research, enhancing expertise and improving health outcomes for South Carolina and beyond.
Located in the Williams-Brice Building, the new research center will feature an experimental laboratory where faculty and their research teams can process and store specimens and conduct experiments. Additionally, there will be a clinical research and innovation suite for conducting studies and focus groups.
“Not only are we expanding our new registered nurses, but with the doubling of our physical footprint on two campuses, we are able to expand our graduate programs and research initiatives on the Columbia campus,” says College of Nursing Dean Jeannette Andrews.
The college’s existing research centers generated more than $20 million in new grant funding since 2019. Last fiscal year, nursing helped lead the university to achieving a record-breaking $309 million in sponsored awards.
Karen Wickersham, associate professor and interim assistant dean for research, is spearheading the project in collaboration with university leadership and architects.
"This new research center will advance our college’s work, fostering collaboration with university, community and industry partners,” says Wickersham.
Rendering of the Biobehavioral Research Center main entrance.
Rendering of experimental laboratory.
This new research center will advance our college's work, fostering collaboration with university, community and industry partners. KAREN WICKERSHAM
Approximately 1,600 square feet of experimental laboratory space will occupy the former simulation center, which is now located in the satellite clinical education building in West Columbia. The experimental laboratory facilities will be fully equipped for college faculty and their research teams to perform assessments and process samples on-site.
The laboratory will support a wide variety of molecular biology, cell culture, biomarker analyses, microscopy, immunostaining and human physiology research, all aimed at understanding complex diseases to improve patient care outcomes.
According to Wikersham, whose cancer research samples are currently managed by an outside lab, the center will also help save time, grant dollars and reduce the margin for error.
The experimental laboratory will also include areas for student work, bench space and an office for a new laboratory director.
“This new dedicated lab space will enable us to apply for a wider range of grants and increase our research output,” says Wikersham.
The center’s Clinical Research and Innovation Suite will feature the latest technology and equipment for clinical studies. Spanning over 4,000 square feet, it will include a spacious patient intake area and a clinical exam suite. This space will host a community collaboratory, areas for physical activity and exercise research and focus groups, as well as offices for visiting researchers.
Plans also include a dedicated space for pediatric, adolescent and young adult-focused research.
"The university has a bold vision to be a part of the solution in South Carolina with workforce and health care excellence,” says Andrews. "With expanded research facilities, we'll be able to recruit and retain more faculty and students, contributing to the nursing pipeline."
FACULTY AWARDS
The 2023 Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award was presented to Teresa Bowers for her exceptional, proactive commitment to aligning course content with student needs while maintaining empathy. Faculty nominators praised her for striking a balance between rigorous standards and compassionate support to create opportunities for student success.
The 2023 Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award was presented to Jackie Haverkamp for empowering DNP students through innovative teaching methods. Her manuscript, How to Translate DNP Projects into Professional Manuscript Submissions, guides students in preparing their work for journal submissions. According to faculty members who nominated her, she fosters peer mentoring discussions that enrich learning experiences.
The 2024 DNP Project Award was presented to Jessica Gonzalez for “Assessing Organizational Readiness for EvidenceBased Practice Change for the Implementation of a Post Operative Neuropathic Mastalgia Scale Among General Surgery Ambulatory Practices.” Faculty who nominated Gonzalez said the work was well received at her practice site and improved patient care standards.
The University of South Carolina Office of the Provost recognized Joynelle Jackson , associate professor at the College of Nursing, with the Clinical Practice Teaching Award at the annual faculty awards ceremony. Jackson works with families to increase breast/chest feeding equity and encourage success in Black communities.
Welcome New Faculty & Staff
Faculty
• Marissa Bartmess, assistant professor
• Jennifer Baumstark , associate professor and certified nurse midwife
• Amanda Bennett , assistant professor
• Jessica Gonzales, Pipeline Faculty Fellow
• Carolyn Harmon, professor and director, Healthcare Leadership, Nursing Informatics and Nursing Education Programs
• Anna Kell, Pipeline Faculty Fellow
• Carrie McCoy, assistant professor
• Elizabeth Nease, associate professor and research and scholarship practice partnerships liaison
• Susan Newman, Health Sciences Endowed Professor
• Lan Nguyen, assistant professor and clinical education coordinator
• Kelly Russin, director, Center for Simulation and Experiential Learning
• Sarah Sloane, assistant professor and co-director Smart Start Honors Program
• Ayzia Taylor, assistant professor
• Jennifer Taylor, assistant professor
• Kesheng Wang , professor
• Karen Warren, assistant professor
Staff
• Kevin Bloom, IT support technician
• Lisa Carter, CRM manager & systems development analyst
• Zelda Carter, academic coordinator
• Wright Culpepper, assistant dean for Student Affairs
• Terry Jeffery, Access, Belonging and Community Engagement coordinator
• Rebecca Lang , communications manager
• Nikita Maigur, clinical program coordinator
• Harsh Patel, student data analyst & awards manager
Jennifer Baumstark , Associate Professor and Certified Nurse Midwife
Before coming to the college, Baumstark was an assistant professor at Hawaiʻi Pacific University. She also practiced as a certified nurse-midwife and had the honor of attending over eight hundred births. She transitioned from a clinician to a nurse educator after earning her Doctor of Nursing Practice from Hawaiʻi Pacific University in 2020.
In 2023, the SC General Assembly approved one-time funding to create the state's only Certified Nurse Midwife program at the College of Nursing. With continued outreach to develop this new program, the college will seek accreditation in the fall of 2024.
Susan Newman , Health Sciences Endowed Professor
Dr. Newman was an Associate Professor and the Director of the Ph.D. in Nursing Science program at MUSC College of Nursing.
Her current research investigates the role of peer mentoring in the process of adapting to life with a spinal cord injury and learning to self-manage the consequences of the injury successfully. Her research includes the application of communityengaged research approaches to address issues affecting community participation, health, and overall quality of life of individuals with spinal cord injury. She has received funding from the National Institute of Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research, the National Institutes of Health, the Agency on Healthcare Research and Quality, the SCTR Pilot Projects Program, and the Rehabilitation Nursing Foundation.
"I am incredibly excited about the opportunity to join the faculty of USC College of Nursing. The endowed professorship will enable me to lead and expand the development of research efforts in the area of disability/health equity research—which is an amazing opportunity. I plan to continue my spinal cord injury research and work to start programs training providers in working with patients with disabilities as well as bringing people with disabilities into the nursing workforce. There is growing momentum in these areas across the US, which is very exciting."
STUDENT AWARDS
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The Crowell Spirit Award
Mary Kay
Outstanding Research and Scholarship Award
Sydney Reichardt
Outstanding Service to the College of Nursing
Claire Powers
Outstanding Undergraduate Clinical Performance Award
Payton Evans
Outstanding Undergraduate Community Service Award
Zoe Bowers (ER Nurse at Piedmont Medical Center, Rock Hill, SC)
The Undergraduate Nursing Impact Award
Kelsey Dailey (Lexington Medical Center ER)
Academic Excellence Award
Darby Killman
OUTSTANDING UNDERGRADUATE LEADERSHIP AWARD
NATALIE TRIMBLE
This university-level award is given to the outstanding student who has consistently been recognized by peers, faculty and organizations as an excellent leader.
Natalie Trimble has held multiple positions in student government, including the College of Nursing’s delegation chair, chair of the Health and Safety Committee and the first nursing major in an executive position as speaker of the Student Senate. She served as secretary, vice president and president of Cocky’s Canine PAALS and vice president of membership for Omicron Delta Kappa. She was a guest speaker in the S.C. Honors College course, Proseminar in Nursing, where she shared tips for success with first-year Smart Start Honors Nursing students. Trimble also attended the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s 2022 Student Policy Summit in Washington.
Trimble earned the Steven N. Swanger Leadership Award, which recognizes a senior student for significant contributions to the university as an Omicron Delta Kappa member. It has been presented since 1978 to honor the memory of the outstanding USC student leader.
“Through my research, I improved the lives of undergraduates at USC by researching their stress levels and implementing stress reduction strategies,” Trimble says. “I also widened my research scope to enhance the lives of military children.”
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L-R: Sydney Reichardt, Zoe Bowers, Dean Jeannette Andrews, Claire Powers, Darby Killman, Mary Kay and Kelsey Dailey
At the 2024 National Student Nurses Association Convention in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, USC SNA won six awards and scholarships:
• The Best Social Media for Instagram
• BTN January Monthly Theme: Heritage Pride
• SNA-SC won the most successful annual state convention (state chapter)
• Future Nurse Leader Scholarship, Breann Fogle
• AACN Critical Care Nursing Student Scholarship, Camryn Cothran
• Isabell Hampton Robb Leadership Award, Ryan Fox
The Isabel Hampton Robb Leadership Award is presented to the current or immediate past Student Nurses' Association state president whose leadership characteristics most resemble those of Isabel Hampton Robb. An organizer and visionary leader, Robb was well known for her pioneering work in establishing nursing organizations, which became the American Nurses Association (ANA), the National League for Nursing (NLN) and the International Council of Nursing (ICN).
ALUMNI COUNCIL
Stay connected with your alma mater and fellow alumni!
The College of Nursing Alumni Council fosters relationships between alumni and the college, offers career and networking opportunities and serves as an advisory group on alumni engagement. Help advocate for alumni needs, support the college through leadership and volunteerism and enhance our community. Get involved and make a difference!
To learn more contact Tyler DiPalma at dipalma@mailbox.sc.edu.
Council President: Lauren Booth
Marissa Aldridge
Anfel Crews
Bonnie Dutton
Melissa Felder
Jeanne Felder
Anne Gilkey
Mary M. Kennedy
Chasity McCray
Shir'Mel McCullough
Stephanie McDuffie
Lan Nguyen
Bridget O'Regan
Michelle Parr
Virginia Peacock
Tammy Quarles
Amy Redd
Kelly Russin
Stephanie Studnicka
Charlie Tupper
Caroline Waxman
Madison Wilson
Tracey Winchester
BY THE NUMBERS
2024 US News & World Report Graduate Online Programs four consecutive years #1
Top 1% in the country NCLEX pass rates
10,938 + Alumni in
49 States
100% ANCC pass rates for new nurse practitioner graduates
100% Full-time faculty doctoraly prepared
175 Faculty
$17.5 million grant funding in the past 3 years
8 Endowed Professorships
Top 30s in NIH funding among U.S. Colleges of Nursing three consecutive years
2 National League of Nursing Center of Excellence in Nursing Education Designations
2,100+
1st Nursing Honors Program in South Carolina Students
$771,332 in scholarships, traineeships, departmental support awarded to 360 students in Summer 2023 - Spring 2024 of USC Nursing Faculty hold distinguished national fellowships 24%
Top choice for nursing students in South Carolina
DEAN'S CIRCLE
College of Nursing Dean’s Circle donors have an immediate and substantial impact on our ability to increase outreach, expand student scholarships, and ultimately change the future of nursing for the better. We recognize those who give $1,000+ annually.
Judith and Alan Alexander
Jeannette Andrews
George and Lindy Beaver
Mike and Jean Biediger
Teresa Bowers
Opal F. Brown
Helen Bryson
Bill Carswell
Carole H. Cato
Jeanne Cavanaugh
Sarah D. Cheesman
Chuck Chitty
Roger and Helen Coffman
Stacy Collier
Bill and Nancy Comer
John and Karen Cooper
Bob and Cindy Corbett
Richard and Joan Creed
CVS Corporation
Scot and Robin Dail
Robin Dawson
Rachel W. Dieter
Sara Donevant
Jimmy R. Douglas
Charles Felton
Gary and Kimberly Glenn
Sue Haddock
Boyce Haigler
Jay and Carolyn Hamm
Anita Hammerbeck
Carolyn Harmon
Nydia Harter
Helene Fuld Health Trust
Jennifer Herman
John and Kimberly Hilton
Mary K. Jackson
Kate Jones
Ron and Eileen Leaphart
Gary and Ginger Lee
Lexington County Health Education
Lexington Medical Center
Gayenell Magwood
Nova Jane McCombs
Thomas and Karen McDonnell
Betsy McDowell
Harry K. McMillan, Jr.
Deanne Messias
Sheryl Mitchell
Cooper and Dorothy Moore
Brenda Nauful
Eric Nord and Lauren Booth
Lan Nguyen
Joanne D. Olsen
Mary Ann Parsons
Jeff and Marilyn Penrod
Barbara Pierce
Bernardine M. Pinto
Jake and Nicole Puglia
Prisma Health
Christine M. Ralyea
Alicia Ribar
Caroline and Jim Seigler
Rallie and Ruth Seigler
Margaret Selph
Harry Sharp
Sigma Theta Tau Int. Inc., Alpha Xi Chapter #036
Marilyn Sonnenberg and Beth Copek
South Carolina Physicians Care Charity
David L. Spinazzolo and Mary Morin
Jim and Martha Tingen
Karen Wickersham
Karen Worthy
TRAINING THE NEXT GENERATION OF EDUCATORS
Care always has been at the heart of Robin Hainline’s nursing career. As the community partnerships coordinator at Lexington Medical Center and coordinator of the nurse residency program, she moves the needle every day to increase the nursing workforce in our community. As a PhD student, she’s finding innovative ways to care for patients with cancer.
“My research interests in physical activity to improve outcomes in individuals with melanoma came after my father was diagnosed. I saw the impact this disease and subsequent treatment had on him. That experience drives me to find ways to help these individuals in some capacity.”