{"id":10320,"date":"2023-12-07T09:13:36","date_gmt":"2023-12-07T15:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin-new\/?post_type=campus_story&p=10320"},"modified":"2023-12-07T09:13:36","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T15:13:36","slug":"striking-a-balance-how-uw-green-bays-rn-to-bsn-program-supports-nursing-students-beyond-academics","status":"publish","type":"campus_story","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/story\/striking-a-balance-how-uw-green-bays-rn-to-bsn-program-supports-nursing-students-beyond-academics\/","title":{"rendered":"Striking a balance: How UW-Green Bay\u2019s RN to BSN program supports nursing students beyond academics"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Photo<\/a>
UW-Green Bay RN to BSN student Morgan Stary balances work, school and her first love, bowling. Photos by Dan Moore, University Photographer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The dynamic nature of healthcare mandates a commitment to regular learning and professional development. In an era where online education can feel impersonal, Morgan Stary\u2019s experience with UW-Green Bay\u2019s\u00a0RN to BSN program<\/a>\u00a0underscores the impact of community, commitment, and the invaluable role of advisors.<\/p>\n

Without question, Morgan Stary leads a hectic life. While she manages a full-time nursing job at Bellin Hospital in Green Bay and pursues a bachelor of science in nursing degree at UW-Green Bay, her calendar remains full. \u201cMy days off are my homework assignment days.\u201d To add to her busy routine, \u201cMonday is my bowling day, Tuesday is my volleyball day, Wednesday is another bowling day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Interestingly, bowling and nursing seem to be a unique combination for her.<\/p>\n

Born in Green Bay, Stary launched her nursing career at Robert Morris University in Chicago on a bowling scholarship. The university, not only renowned for its robust nursing program, also won the women\u2019s Bowling Intercollegiate Team Championship in 2014. The urban environment, however, didn\u2019t resonate with her preferences. She returned to Green Bay, obtaining her Associate Degree in Nursing from NWTC. One thing that never wavered was her passion: \u201cI always knew I wanted to be a nurse.\u201d Bellin Hospital welcomed her as an RN, but she was determined to elevate her career through UW-Green Bay\u2019s RN to BSN program.<\/p>\n

At Bellin, she is part of a crucial segment. \u201cIt\u2019s called our clinical decision unit, and it\u2019s for patients where we\u2019re not sure if they\u2019re going to be inpatients or if they just need a few tests and then go home. It\u2019s a very fast paced, high patient turnover floor.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nicole Micolichek, Advising Manager for UW-Green Bay\u2019s nursing program, played a pivotal role in Stary\u2019s academic pursuit. \u00a0\u201cI know Morgan was really set on having a specific time that she was done by, so we talked through what that schedule would look like\u201d Micolichek says. \u201cWe talked through what types of courses she wanted, how she wanted to blend some general education in with her nursing courses. We planned, but I mean, it was based on what she wanted and what was going to work best for her schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n

This tailored methodology sets the program apart. Micolichek explains, \u201cWe hear from a lot of students who think they want a program that\u2019s super flexible and they can do everything on their own time. Then they realize that actually sets them up to not be successful because they need a little more structure in their classes. They don\u2019t want a fully self-paced class where no one\u2019s actually helping them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite her inclination for traditional classroom settings over online ones, regular interactions with Micolichek kept Stary grounded. \u201cAll my professors have been very personable and all of them are willing to help,\u201d says Stary. \u201cNicole is the only one I\u2019ve really met in person. I\u2019ve met with her every single semester at the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Consistent engagement by advisors and faculty members is essential. As Micolichek puts it, \u201cWe end up with very few students who can\u2019t complete the work because our faculty are constantly reaching out and making sure that students aren\u2019t just being forgotten along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Balancing a career and school is not for the faint of scheduling. Stary\u2019s typical day kicks off at 7:00 AM. \u201cI\u2019m very, very lucky that I only work eight-hour days on the floor.\u201d \u00a0She also clocks 12-hour shifts on Saturdays and Sundays every third weekend. Combine this with being a full-time student, a bustling social life, and her allegiance to bowling, her schedule is undeniably tight.<\/p>\n

For Stary, achieving her BSN is more than a mere academic accomplishment. \u201cI would love to be a nurse educator but will stop for a bit after I graduate with my bachelor\u2019s to have a break from school.\u201d (But not bowling, with four 300 games and counting to her credit.) \u201cBut I could see myself going again. That\u2019s probably how my goals have developed \u2013 it\u2019s just my way of thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Written by Michael Shaw<\/p>\n

Link to original story: https:\/\/news.uwgb.edu\/featured\/11\/13\/striking-a-balance-how-uw-green-bays-rn-to-bsn-program-supports-nursing-students-beyond-academics\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The dynamic nature of healthcare mandates a commitment to regular learning and professional development. In an era where online education can feel impersonal, Morgan Stary\u2019s experience with UW-Green Bay\u2019s\u00a0RN to BSN program\u00a0underscores the impact of community, commitment, and the invaluable role of advisors. Without question, Morgan Stary leads a hectic life. While she manages a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":10324,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","institution":[111],"story_category":[],"class_list":["post-10320","campus_story","type-campus_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","institution-uw-green-bay"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story\/10320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/campus_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10320"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10324"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=10320"},{"taxonomy":"story_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story_category?post=10320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}