The College of Nursing and Public Health held its first Student-Alumni Advocacy Forum on November 12, 2024, billed as a way for students, alumni and faculty to “build lifelong connections through networking, mentoring, professional development and collaborative scholarly events.”
In her introduction, Dean Deborah Hunt, PhD ’12, said she has wanted to establish this organization “since day one” at Adelphi in 2022. “We have tons of alumni and we want to connect with every single one of them,” she added.
Addressing about 100 on-campus and virtual attendees on November 12 as the keynoter for the two-hour inaugural forum, Edmund J.Y. Pajarillo, PhD, professor of nursing, focused on the topic “The Essence of Connections for Lifelong Professional Success.”
Dr. Pajarillo—whom Dean Hunt lauded as “a visionary education leader and scholar” with 40 years’ experience—told of his journey from the Philippines to New York and of relying on key connections he made along the way. Seemingly making up for a lack of experience with considerable self-confidence, he began his career rise as a member of the Filipino Nurses Association in New York, transforming their magazine into a scholarly journal.
Later relationships “opened up doors for me” as well, Dr. Pajarillo continued.
One of Dr. Pajarillo’s recent successes is the National Consortium of Academic Nurse Educators (NC-ANE), formed last year with 25 members to research solutions to the nursing educator shortage. It has since grown to 150, he noted.
Besides knowledge gained from academic learning and experience, he told the nursing student contingent in his audience that “socialization” is important in the nursing profession, for instance, through networking, mentorships and developing social skills. Membership in nursing associations is paramount in achieving those aims, he said. “Being a member of professional organizations offers an array of options,” including “the large social network that one can nurture.” Belonging can lead to “lifetime relationships.”
“Every nurse needs a mentor”
Dean Hunt believes finding a mentor is a critical step to a successful nursing career. Networking is a first step in that direction, and to encourage it, the Forum included a panel of associations that connect nursing students to practicing nurses. The panel include:
- Matthew Zender, vice president of the National Student Nurses Association, which hosts three yearly conferences, is great for networking, and awards scholarships.
- Kattiria Rosario-Gonzalez, PhD, president of Sigma Theta Tau International’s Alpha Omega Chapter at Adelphi, an honor society helps develop nursing leaders and offers networking and scholarship opportunities. Because it is international, Sigma offers global networking opportunities.
- Dan Suarez, president-elect of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses, who said, “We love to mentor and advocate for nurses” and that NAHN has done so for two decades. Despite its name, he emphasized “anyone can join [NAHN].” He observed, “That’s the mosaic of nursing.” NAHN presented six scholarships in November alone, he said.
- Donna Willenbrock ’82, ’01, DNP, past president of the Nurse Practitioners Association of Long Island, who said that group is “all about supporting NPs for education, advocacy and networking” and offering NP and DNP student scholarships. She and fellow panelist Brenda Janotha, EdD, president-elect, said they are just starting an NP mentorship program.
- Kimberly Velez, secretary of the American Nurses Association – New York and a past president of the Nurses Association of the Counties of Long Island (NACLI), said ANA promotes nurses’ education advancement, and NACLI is “there to help you and welcome you into the profession, and then give you mentorships.” Student scholarships also are available.
CNPH students, alumni and faculty are invited to join the Advocacy Forum. For more information, email cnphsaaf@gmail.com.