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The academy rotates between the two area nursing schools, Austin Community College and UT, and the industry players come and talk about opportunities within their institutions. Daylong events also have been held for high school and middle school counselors, as well as for high school students, an effort inspired by a summer internship program at the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital in Tampa, Fla.
“We try to provide very condensed, fact-based information — what a nurse is, where nurses work, what they make, how you become a nurse, the difference between associate and baccalaureate degrees,” Clipper-Salzberg said. Most of the information is presented by nurses, with brief scenarios and plenty of hands-on skills lab activities.
This year’s event was held at Austin Community College’s new health science facility, which has a 44-bed nursing lab (two 10-bed and two two-bed labs) and simulation mannequins, including two computer-operated “Sim Man” models, and a computer and simulation arm combination called Cath Sim. Seven students toured the facilities, then participated in activities including handwashing, suture-removing, administering medicine by IV, and listening to heartbeats. They heard presentations on nursing careers, nursing school (including a talk with a current student), the different nursing degrees, financial aid, and toured other areas in the health science building, including radiology and dental hygiene. Three parents participated with their children.
“The parents who came took off work to attend, so that is really cool,” Heimerl said. “We definitely see parents as potential nursing candidates as well.”
Notices about the academy are sent to counselors and science teachers at area middle schools before the school year ends. The organizers are aiming for bright students who already have shown some interest in science and technology, so students must apply to attend the academies (counselors aren’t required to apply). The application asks about grades and awards, extracurricular activities, and hobbies, and students must write an essay about their interest in nursing and how participating in the academy would benefit them.
“We try to choose candidates who will have a good, successful experience, who are good candidates for going into nursing, maybe who aren’t sure but are looking into it,” Clipper-Salzberg said. The application process also ensures that those students who attend are interested and want to be there.
The program for high school counselors, Clipper-Salzberg said, is intended to provide them with up-to-date information on nursing. “There were a lot of lightbulbs going on that day,” she said of the gathering in April 2003. “They were surprised at how much nurses made, how independent nurses are, and all the critical thinking they do. Many of them had been unsure about recommending nursing to students interested in the sciences, and they left saying they would recommend it.”
The students will be tracked, said Lori Woehl, cluster director for the health care industry for the Capital Area Training Foundation, a nonprofit providing intermediary service to help ensure that students are equipped to serve in an industry once they graduate. “We’ll contact them after nine months to see what their plans are.”
Just so students like Velazquez don’t forget how much fun they had with nursing.
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