UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Each academic year, the College of Nursing honors current undergraduate and graduate students with awards in recognition of their high levels of academic excellence, outstanding leadership, and service to nursing.
On April 24, the college recognized seven student award recipients at the 2021 College of Nursing Awards event.
2021 Alumni Society Undergraduate Student Service Award
Awarded by the College of Nursing Alumni Society to a graduating senior who supports the ideals of the College of Nursing and the nursing profession by engaging in service activities that support individuals, families, and/or communities and that encourage and foster the nurse’s personal and professional development.
Recipient: Jessica Satterthwaite
Satterthwaite, a future maternity health nurse, co-created and served as president of the Multicultural Student Nursing Association (MSNA). As MSNA president, Satterthwaite supported her peers by creating study buddies and a textbook and uniform exchange. She also created opportunities for students to discuss diversity, equity, and inclusion and participate in wellness events to support their mental health.
2021 Alumni Society Graduate Student Service Award
Awarded by the College of Nursing Alumni Society to a graduating graduate student, in good academic standing, who supports the ideals of the College of Nursing and the nursing profession by engaging in service activities.
Recipient: Sanga Jung
Jung serves as the nursing delegate to the Graduate and Professional Student Association writing resolutions to advocate for marginalized graduate and professional students to promote diversity, anti-racism, inclusion, disability accommodation, and mental health improvement for professional and graduate students. Jung also volunteered at the Virtual Career Fair where she introduced various career pathways and the benefits of pursuing nursing to middle and high school students in South Korea, participated in the college’s CCNE accreditation process by representing students in the master’s program during meetings with the evaluators, and served as the captain for the Walk to End Alzheimer’s Disease campaign.
2021 Alumni Society Doctoral Nursing Student Academic Excellence Award
Awarded annually by the College of Nursing Alumni Society to a current doctoral or doctor of nursing practice student in excellent academic standing who supports the ideals of the College of Nursing.
Recipient: Jaspreet Dhaliwal
Dhaliwal has consistently demonstrated high motivation and initiative with her cumulative GPA being 3.92, all while working full-time as a nurse practitioner. As well, Dhaliwal completed the age-friendly health system's seven-month long Action Community Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Initiative and developed the framework for her DNP Project from the IHI Age-Friendly Health Systems and the 4Ms Action Community PA Collaborative for Age and Dementia Friendly Care Grant.
Dhaliwal is a board member at the Nurse Practitioner Association of Greater Rochester and participates in the Advanced Care Planning Committee, After Hours On-call Work Group, and COVID Response Team. She also serves as the medical supplies coordinator, staff education and training coordinator, and telehealth pilot project leader at her place of employment.
2021 Mark T. Kolanowski Award For Excellence in Ph.D. Nursing Research
Selected by the college’s Graduate Student Award Selection Committee and awarded to a full-time doctoral student enrolled in the College of Nursing who is engaged in research around geriatric nursing.
Recipient: Rachel Arendacs
Arendacs is a full-time concurrent master of science in nursing/doctoral student and a Robert Wood Johnson Future of Nursing Scholar. Her research interests include the improvement of cognitive and physical function for older adults suffering from dementia and she is interested in exploring the relationship between cognition and discharge outcomes in older adults with delirium superimposed on dementia.
2021 Norris Himes Adult Critical Care Student Nursing Award
Selected by College of Nursing faculty, this award is conferred on an undergraduate student who plans to pursue a career in adult critical care nursing and who has achieved outstanding success in adult critical care clinicals.
Recipient: Jessica Goldberg
Goldberg demonstrates a love for learning, shown through her confidence in the knowledge she possesses and her spirit of inquiry to learn more. She consistently demonstrates maturity and emotional intelligence, connecting with patients and families with ease, providing exceptional care, and showing an unmatched passion for nursing. Following graduation, Goldberg plans to work in New York City as a critical care nurse.
2021 Beta Sigma Student Achievement Award
Awarded by Beta Sigma Honors Society to a Hershey or University Park senior who excels clinically, exhibits strong academic qualifications, and has emerging leadership attributes.
Recipient: Megan Hixenbaugh
Hixenbaugh served as a College of Nursing student ambassador since 2017, and as a member of the Women's Leadership Initiative, club cheerleading, and THON. She was the 2020-21 president of the Student Nurses Association at Penn State. Hixenbaugh has a passion for pediatrics and upon graduation will take a position as a nurse in the pediatric intensive care unit at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. She also aspires to continue her education in the future, with an advanced nursing degree.
2021 Kim Gedney Guzik Award
Awarded to a graduating undergraduate nursing student from any campus who has been inducted into Beta Sigma and has the highest GPA of the new Beta Sigma members.
Recipient: Maddison Gutshall
Gutshall was selected for this award because of her desire and determination to offer the highest level of individualized person-centered care to all of her patients. Her exceptional from-the-heart sense of advocacy for those in need is truly one of a kind. Gutshall is known for being a team player who will step forward and lead to get the job done.
Congratulations to all the award winners!