For the first time in history, a Penn student will represent nurses throughout the state in the Student Nurses Association of Pennsylvania.
Last weekend, sophomore Laura Breyfogle was elected as secretary-treasurer of the State Board of Directors in Harrisburg, the site of the annual convention.
Represented by seniors Melissa Yore and Krisana Gesuwan, junior Betsy White and Breyfogle, the group Student Nurses at Penn was honored with the Chapter Excellence Award out of 90 statewide chapters.
The group also landed the Most Outstanding Website Award and Gold Achievement Membership Award. Their faculty adviser, Diane Spatz, a professor of health care of women and children, was named Adviser of the Year.
"I am ecstatic," said Breyfogle, currently serving as treasurer of Student Nurses at Penn. "I am very proud that Penn is finally getting the recognition it deserves as a premier institution of nursing. We got awards all over the place and it was about time we got our act together and showed the state [what] we can do."
The elections process involved nominations by delegates from the various attending schools. Each school gets a certain number of delegates based upon the number of student members they have in the National Student Nurse Association. After being nominated, the candidates are given 90 minutes to deliver speeches and campaign with posters and pamphlets while meeting delegates. Polls are open for 45 minutes and only delegates are allowed to vote.
With Gesuwan as her campaign manager, Breyfogle ran against one other candidate. Her background experience as secretary/treasurer of the Nominations and Elections Committee and current role in Student Nurses at Penn are just some of her qualifications for the executive position.
"Laura is definitely a true hard-worker," said Gesuwan. "She's always on top of things and definitely can represent Penn at the state level without a doubt. We hope that more nursing students follow her lead and help get Penn Nursing's name out there."
Yore, currently president of Student Nurses at Penn, said Breyfogle would be a good addition to the state board.
"As treasurer, Laura has made significant contributions to Penn's chapter of [Student Nurses at Penn] and I am sure she will be a great asset to the state organizations as well," she said.
Breyfogle will serve as secretary-treasurer through November 2002 and will also chair the budget and scholarship committees for the state, keeping track of the organization's finances and recording accurate minutes of the business meetings.
The convention, themed "Challenge in a Time of Change" in reference to the current nursing shortage, attracted numerous students, faculty and speakers from the field of nursing. Not only were students given the opportunity to network and learn about different nursing issues, workshops on topics such as "Humor in Nursing" also provided varied perspectives.
The awards garnered by Student Nurses at Penn at the closing awards banquet made a significant impact upon its representatives. With a greater focus on increasing chapter involvement within the state and national organizations, planning more educational, community service and social activities and becoming a more active chapter overall, the organization has grown in the past year.
"I believe it has been several years since [Student Nurses at Penn] has received an award at the convention," Yore said. "The awards we received are a result of a year of hard work and a desire to change and succeed."
The Chapter Excellence Award "in particular is very significant to us, as it represents the overall changes and improvements we have made in the past year," said Yore.
"Being selected as the number one chapter in the state definitely shows our dedication and improvement," Gesuwan said.
Spatz also credits the recognition to the Penn chapter's success in tripling the Penn membership in the National Students Nursing Association.
Spatz's acceptance of the Adviser of the Year Award demonstrates her contributions to the organization. She has been the Student Nurses at Penn advisor for about a year and has encouraged greater member involvement as well as officer participation outside of the chapter organization.
"[This award] is a great reflection on all the accomplishments of the students and I am very excited about the progress that they have made," Spatz said.
She sees only "bigger and better things" for the organization in the future.
