CELEBRATING 40 YEARS: NURSING PROGRAM MAKES CHANGES

Forty years ago, Southeast Missouri State University responded to a nursing shortage in the region by developing the state's first associate degree program.

At the end of this semester, again responding to needs in the region, the university will eliminate the associate degree and focus on advanced academic degrees for nurses.

"The associate degree in nursing laid the foundation for the other programs we now have," explained Dr. A. Louise Hart, nursing department chairwoman. "If not for the associate program and the people who started it, we would not be where we are today, a department of over 400 students."

In recognition of the department's 40th anniversary this year and the end of the associate degree program, a ceremony is planned from 4 to 7 p.m. Dec. 4 in the Rosemary Berkel Crisp Hall of Nursing.

Recently, a group of former students and teachers from the nursing department got together to reminisce.

Some memories made them laugh, like rules about hairstyles and nurses' caps and the length of uniform skirts.

They remembered how tough the classes were. The nursing program had a reputation as the toughest on campus, and the dropout rate was high. Of some 30 or more students entering only about 15 or so would finish.

They also remembered the woman who started the program, Dr. Helen Kinney. She was chairman of the program from 1958 to 1971 and was the first nurse in Missouri to earn a doctorate.

Sometimes Kinney was tough, the nurses said, but the program prepared them for a career in nursing.

"She dedicated her life to nursing," said Vicki Frank, who graduated with an associate degree in 1971 and a bachelor's degree in 1976. "She said any nurse who was a graduate of her program, she was confident to take care of her."

Frank remembers weekly personal evaluations that nursing students were required to complete. Students hated the chore and didn't see the purpose.

"But later I found out that was how Dr. Kinney got to know each of us," Frank said. "Once I had an error and had a conference with Dr. Kinney. I expected to get bawled out. But she was kind and sweet. She knew from reading those evaluations that I had more than punished myself."

The self-evaluations continue in today's programs.

Carol Sparkman, who earned her associate degree in 1968 and her bachelor's degree in 1980, said the curriculum was tough.

"You had to develop backbone and stamina to get it done," she said. "I can remember telling myself, `I want to be a nurse. I will be a nurse.' I knew I had to keep on track if I was going to complete the program."

The nursing program at Southeast was expanded in 1973 to include a four-year bachelor of science degree in nursing. The master's program began in 1993, and the family nurse practitioner track of the master's program was launched in 1995.

Sue Evitts taught in the program from 1963 through 1989. In the early years, nursing students attending a university-based program faced some obstacles. Most nurses trained since World War II had been trained in hospitals.

But an academic setting gave instructors more control over what students learned, Evitts said.

"It was a very protective programs," she explained, "and when we did clinicals, we took care that our students learned the objectives we had set out to learn. They weren't there just to be free help for the hospitals."

Evitts added that Kinney was unconcerned about the nursing program's high dropout rates. "She cared about quality not quantity," Evitts said.

Betty Ross, who earned her associate degree in 1961 and her bachelor's degree in 1967, said the change was the norm during the early years of the program.

"It seemed like the whole program was almost constantly changing," Ross said. "Dr. Kinney would find a better way or a different way. I don't think anyone else could have made this program what it is today."

Change continues today as the associate program closes.

Hart explained that Southeast Missouri has a shortage of nurses with advanced degree training.

In the region, 11 programs offer associate degrees, but the university offers the only bachelor's and master's degree programs.

"We also see a need for higher level training," Hart said. For example, the 11 nurses' training programs all need trained instructors.

"We feel we are moving to the next level," Hart said.

The Dec. 4 celebration will include a selection of pictures from the past, and at 5 p.m., Dr. Helen Miner, former assistant professor of nursing, will give a presentation on the history of the department.

The reception also will honor Kinney with a memorial scholarship and recognize Dr. Mark Scully, both of whom helped start the department.

Scully, Southeast president from 1956 to 1975, was instrumental in bringing the associate degree program in nursing to the university. His late wife, Pearl, was a nurse.

A silent auction will be held to raise money for the scholarship. Cash donations may be made by sending a check earmarked for the Kinney Scholarship to Southeast Missouri State University Foundation, One University Plaza, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701.