Dr. Teresa Shellenbarger, a professor and doctoral program coordinator in the Department of Nursing and Allied Health Professions, has been elected to the position of governor-at-large for the National League for Nursing.
The National League for Nursing, based in New York City, includes more than 30,000 nurse educators and community members and 1,200 education and health care agencies. The association offers faculty development programs, networking opportunities, testing and assessment, nursing research grants, and public policy initiatives.
“The department is thrilled to hear of Dr. Shellenbarger's appointment,” Dr. Lisa Palmer, chair of the Department of Nursing and Allied Health Professions, said. “This recognition is another example of her commitment to excellence in nursing education. Having Dr. Shellenbarger on the board certainly brings recognition to her engagement with this organization and to the department.”
Shellenbarger, a member of the National League for Nursing since 1989, has served in several leadership positions within the organization, including on the Nurse Educator Certification Commission and as a manuscript reviewer for the organization's publication, Nursing Education Perspectives; a nursing research grant reviewer; a nursing ambassador at IUP; and an item writer and test development committee member for the Certified Nurse Educator Examination. She has been an invited presenter at the annual Education Summit of the organization for seven years.
In December, Shellenbarger was one of five nursing educators in the nation selected for a competitive mentorship program, the Faculty Leadership Mentoring Program of the National League for Nursing and the Johnson & Johnson Campaign for Nursing's Future. In this role, she also serves as a reviewer for the Leadership and Mentoring program proposals.
Shellenbarger came to IUP in 1994. She has a Ph.D. from Widener University, a master's degree in nursing from Southern Connecticut State University, and a bachelor's degree in nursing from Pennsylvania State University. She is a member of the National League for Nursing Academy of Nursing Education and is a certified nurse educator.
Master's and bachelor's degree programs in IUP's Department of Nursing and Allied Health Professions received unconditional ten-year accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education in 2009.
The department includes undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programs. Allied health professions programs include respiratory care, clinical laboratory service, nuclear medicine technology, and a gerontology certification program. There are two different tracks in the master's degree programs in nursing and seven bachelor's degree programs in nursing and allied health.
The Nursing and Allied Health Professions Department has about 850 students in undergraduate programs and almost eighty students in its graduate programs.
In January 2008, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education approved IUP's doctoral program in Nursing. The first cohort of the program began study during the Fall 2008 semester. A second cohort was admitted in Fall 2010.