Katherine St. Amand, a fourth-year Trent-Fleming School of Nursing student, is the recipient of a Nursing Leadership Network Student Nurse Education Award. A prestigious honour bestowed in March, 2011, at the annual Nursing Leadership Network (NLN) of Ontario conference, Ms. St. Amand  was recognized for being a leader within the nursing-student community and for her high academic standing. Ms. St. Amand’s award is a testament to the high quality of the Trent-Fleming School of Nursing.

“Kate is very deserving of this award,” said Dr. Janet Rush, associate professor with the Trent-Fleming School of Nursing. “She demonstrates leadership in the undergraduate program and has a strong vision for rigorous, evidence-informed professional nursing practice.” Only six educational scholarships were awarded in Ontario at the NLN conference.

A stipulation of the award is to submit an abstract to the 2012 NLN of Ontario conference and an article to the NLN newsletter. Ms. St. Amand said receiving the award amongst nursing leaders who advocate the importance of nursing leadership and evidence-informed nursing practice was inspiring. “The conference was a great opportunity to meet nurses from a variety of organizations and to network,” she said. “It was very beneficial as I am preparing to transition into employment as a nurse.”

Ms. St. Amand came to Trent from Toronto, Ontario, to study in an intimate setting. “The students in the nursing program are actively involved, competent and driven,” she said. “The faculty is comprised of motivated nursing leaders who inspire us to seek excellence.” Ms. St. Amand commented that the nursing faculty is very supportive of students who choose to apply for external scholarships. “The School of Nursing is active in communicating external awards available to us,” she said. “If you ask for help, you will find it. Never question whether you are deserving of recognition for the work you do as a student,” she advises. “We are all leaders – writing a letter of application is a matter of communicating leadership skills effectively and is excellent preparation for our future career searching.”

Posted on Friday, April 8, 2011.