Empathy

Anja Deitmer, second from left, a pediatric nurse, draws on her natural empathy to guide children and their families through some of their most difficult healthcare experiences.

Anja Deitmer – Pediatric Nurse

“From a young age, I was drawn to comforting others, whether it was a classmate who was upset or a friend who was injured on the playground. What I didn’t recognize back then was that this natural sense of empathy and steady reassurance would become one of my most valuable strengths as a pediatric nurse, especially when supporting children and families through challenging moments.”

Communication

Sarah Kelly, right, debriefs with 4-year BSN students following a simulation exercise in Montclair’s immersive Simulation Center.

Sarah Kelly – Nurse Educator

“Growing up, my mom always said, ‘since I learned to talk, I have not stopped talking.’ I was good at talking to and with people I knew, as well as those I didn’t know. Communication is key to being an effective nurse. Talking with patients in the hospital who are lonely and want someone to listen to them can make all the difference.”

Curiosity

Elizabeth Fitzgerald – Emergency Room/Trauma Nurse

“As a child I was always asking ‘why’. I wanted to know how things worked and why things were happening. This has translated into a strong desire to understand what is going on with my patients and how the human body works.”

I Don’t Have These Traits. Can I Still Become A Nurse?

Yes! Empathy, communication and curiosity aren’t just personality traits — they’re skills you can build. Even if you’re naturally shy or introverted, you can absolutely become a great nurse.

If you feel the calling to become a nurse, ÌÇĐÄvlog’s 4-Year BSN Program can help you grow into the nurse you’ve always wanted to be.

Montclair’s curriculum is a blend of theory and practice — giving you both the hard and soft skills you’ll need to become an effective nurse.

Humanities coursework will help you strengthen your empathy and communication skills, allowing you to care for patients from all walks of life.

Hands-on training — including practice with intelligent simulators and regular clinical practicums — will give you the technological skills and confidence needed to thrive in any healthcare setting.

4-year BSN students use a bag-valve-mask device to perform CPR on a simulation manikin during a training exercise inside Montclair’s skills training laboratory.

Why Montclair’s 4-Year BSN Program:

• Experiential Learning: Learn how to use emerging technology to care for patients in complex scenarios through simulation in Montclair’s immersive Simulation Center. Get clinical experience by caring for real patients in the community.
• Get Certification Ready: Upon graduation, you will be ready to sit for the NCLEX-RN exam — 92% of Montclair’s 4-year BSN graduates passed the NCLEX-RN in 2024.
• Comprehensive Nursing Curriculum: Develop your critical thinking and data analysis skills with a robust curriculum grounded in science, mathematics, the humanities and nursing theory.
• Affordable Tuition: As a public institution, Montclair offers one of the most affordable degrees in New Jersey. With plenty of options for financial aid — including scholarships and need-based grants — a nursing degree does not need to break the bank.

4-year BSN students work with an intelligent simulator inside one of Montclair’s five high-fidelity simulation rooms.

Ready To Take Your First Step Towards Your Future Nursing Career?

Prospective Students: The application for fall 2026 opens August 1. Get ready to apply by reviewing our admission requirements and scheduling a campus visit.
Journalists: Contact our Media Relations team to request assets or schedule an interview.

Story by Staff Content Producer Jayda Brown.

If you’re an RN with an ADN, you may wonder if it’s really worth it to go back to school for a BSN. You’ve already passed the NCLEX-RN and have years of experience under your belt. Shouldn’t that be enough?

In 2022, 2 million nurses entered the workforce with a BSN, making it . So experience alone might not be enough to keep you competitive in this job market. But beyond staying competitive, evidence shows that having a BSN can enhance your nursing practice.

From increased critical thinking skills to improved patient outcomes, the results don’t lie — more education creates better nurses. And better nurses can demand higher pay and more opportunities.

Building On Your ADN: What More Do You Learn With a BSN?

Your ADN program focused on teaching you basic clinical skills to prepare you for direct patient care. A BSN is a little different — it builds on the practical foundation of an ADN with coursework in critical thinking, leadership, communication, informational technology, and public health.

According to Courtney Reinisch, Family Nurse Practitioner and Professor at ÌÇĐÄvlog’s School of Nursing, a BSN helps nurses develop a global perspective, allowing them to understand the cultural, social, political and economic factors that affect their patients.

“They’re not just considering individuals, but entire populations and communities,” says Dr. Reinisch. “They’re thinking of families, communities, and social determinants of health.”

That isn’t just feel-good fluff, it results in better patient outcomes. had 24% greater odds of surviving an in-hospital cardiac arrest, 24.6% lower odds of mortality, and a 7.8% decrease in length of stay.

A BSN Makes Nurses More Marketable

Critical thinking and leadership skills along with improved patient outcomes have made BSN-prepared nurses highly desirable in the job market.

• The Institute of Medicine has called for to hold at least a bachelor’s degree by 2020.
• 28% of hospitals require new hires to have a bachelor’s degree and 72% of employers “” BSN-holding nurses.
• As of 2022, held a BSN or higher.

In order to stay ahead of the curve in the rapidly changing healthcare job market, it really helps to have a bachelor’s degree.

A BSN Unlocks Future Opportunities

If you desire to move beyond bedside care, a BSN unlocks opportunities in administration, research, and leadership. You could even use it for non-clinical careers, like pharmaceutical or medical device sales, legal nurse consulting, and more.

A BSN is also a stepping stone to higher-level nursing professions such as a Clinical Nurse Specialist, Nurse Practitioner, Nurse Anesthetist, or Nurse Midwife, which require at least a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).

Choosing an RN-to-BSN Program

As a working nurse, it’s important to choose an accredited RN-to-BSN program that allows flexibility for working students, as well as opportunities for hands-on experience and career development.

The RN-to-BSN program at ÌÇĐÄvlog is designed with your schedule as a working nurse in mind. Classes are 100% online and asynchronous, allowing you to complete your coursework on your own time.

Through a partnership with the West Orange Health Department, students also gain hands-on experience while serving people in need.

Founded in 2016, Montclair’s RN-to-BSN program is small and tight knit. “The students get to know each other and build their own community,” says Reinisch. “We include opportunities for students to build connections that result in networking opportunities. We’ve had students recruit each other for job opportunities they think classmates would be a great fit for.”

Professor Courtney Reinisch (right) prepares COVID-19 vaccinations for homebound residents in West Orange with Mark Rodrigues (left) and Theresa Migliaccio (middle), two graduates of Montclair’s RN-to-BSN program.

Affording a BSN Degree

Due to the increased demand for BSN-qualified nurses, some employers may pay for RNs to earn their bachelor’s degree.

As a public institution, ÌÇĐÄvlog is one of the most affordable options in New Jersey.

Pursuing higher education doesn’t have to break the bank, and there are plenty of options to help you pay for college.

Are You A


Prospective Student?

or take the first step in applying to become a Red Hawk.

Story by Staff Content Producer Jayda Brown.

As part of the pilot initiative, School of Nursing faculty and students have held 28 screenings serving more than 250 community members. The communities being served are those where the most prominent health disparities exist, and in which residents have high morbidity or mortality risk from heart disease. Taking place in community spaces as well as on the University campus, the most recent screening was held on April 28 at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in West Orange.

“Our goal is to reduce and prevent cardiac disease by offering free screenings at local events to identify persons at risk, provide preventive education and refer at-risk individuals to affordable, appropriate follow-up care,” says School of Nursing Dean Janice Smolowitz. “We are grateful for this opportunity to address health inequities, while preparing our student nurses with crucial experiential learning in local communities.”

Associate Nursing Professor Mary Elizabeth Duffy manages the screenings and sees the benefit of being directly in the community. “The screenings provide hands-on, community-based training to our nursing students 
 It is wonderful to see our School of Nursing faculty and students working together to provide this service to educate community members about their risk for heart disease and the measures they can take to prevent it.”

“With the tremendous dearth of skilled nurses, ÌÇĐÄvlog is taking concrete steps to accomplish two important goals: providing care for patients today, and training the future nursing workforce in New Jersey,” says Michael Schmidt, executive director and chief executive officer of The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey. “The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey is proud to partner with ÌÇĐÄvlog to support this innovative pilot initiative.”

Montclair collaborated with the West Orange Health Department to inform constituents of the screenings. Individuals were able to have their blood pressure, cholesterol and other risk
factors tested and have confidential healthcare conversations. They also received referrals to healthcare providers, along with follow-up after the event.

Building community

For Arielle Falcone ’23, who completed the pre-licensure Master of Science in Nursing in January, the screening event provided another opportunity to help others. “I am always grateful for volunteer opportunities, especially when it is directly beneficial and we can connect individuals with critical health resources.”

Falcone, who started her career working in research, neurology and computational psychiatry, enrolled in Montclair’s Nursing program because she wanted to have a direct impact on patient care. “During the pandemic, I felt I could do much more for the health of others and knew it was time for me to pursue nursing.” She is now licensed as a registered nurse in New Jersey and New York and works on an inpatient oncology unit, bone marrow transplant, at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Emily Woznick ’23, another recent graduate of the pre-licensure Master of Science in Nursing program, said the experience helped prepare her to be efficient in managing a large volume of patients and to navigate how to communicate and take care of a patient who doesn’t speak the same language. “It was terrific to be able to get the community experience,” she says. “This added practice to serve those in the community, especially those who may rely on it as their only check-up, was very rewarding.”

For students and faculty, the opportunity to serve is paramount.

“With joy and humility, we partner with our communities to educate and give access to healthcare,” shares Associate Nursing Professor Yanick Joseph. “As nurse educators, we pass on the legacy to our students by building community and doing selflessly the work required to maintain the social contract we inspire to enforce in all we do – to infuse active hope and collective healing.”

Associate Nursing Professor Mary Elizabeth Duffy (right) prepares for the screening at Holy Trinity Church in West Orange with Professor Courtney Reinisch.

Arielle Falcone ’23 MSN shares information on cardiovascular health and community resources with a screening participant.

Emily Woznick ’23 MSN (left) and Associate Professor Yanick Joseph (right) take a fingerstick sample to test for cholesterol and blood sugar levels.

Assistant Professor Patty McGaughey (standing) talks with School of Nursing students before a cardiac risk screening held on the Montclair campus.

Story by Director of Development Communications Laura Iandiorio. Photos by Mike Peters and John J. LaRosa.

As part of the School of Nursing’s observation of National Nurses Week and National Nurses Month, the University held a traditional pinning ceremony, a rite of passage held on May 5 that marks the transition from student nurse to professional nurse. The graduates celebrated with family, friends and faculty, a formal event that paid tribute to their journey.

“You have seen us grow, from being scared to wake a patient up for morning vitals, to administering meds with confidence,” DeRienzo, who served as student speaker, told the gathering.

The School of Nursing recognized the Class of 2023 with a formal pinning ceremony, a traditional rite of passage for graduating nurses. Celebrating their achievements, from left, are Aisha Shabbir, Aleida Smack, Jenna Khansa and Madison Lawton.

The American Nurses Association chose for 2023 the theme “You Make a Difference.” Faculty speaker Elsie Alabi-Gonzalez, herself a graduate of Montclair’s nursing programs, tweaked the phrase, telling the nursing graduates, “You make the difference.”

“We encounter people at all stages of life. At any given time, there is a nurse watching as one individual takes their first breath, while another nurse watches someone take their last breath. In both instances and everything in between, our impact is felt,” Gonzalez said.

Last year, the School of Nursing held its pinning ceremony live on ±·”ț°ä’s The Today Show as part of the program’s Nurses Week. While this year’s ceremony wasn’t seen by millions, it was memorable for the family and friends of the 53 graduates of the Master of Science in Nursing, RN to BSN and Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs.

“Some of you have had your blood pressure taken more times than you would like to admit, or remember, and others have had to sit through physical assessments and patient education. You complain of a headache and now you have to play 20 questions with your student nurse,” Gonzalez joked.

Photo Gallery

Every graduate was presented with a stole adorned with the nursing pin. Yaakov Diner, who earned his Master of Science in Nursing, receives his pin from his wife, Tamara Leah Diner.

Sisters Melanie, left, and Jazmin Carvajal are overcome with emotions as they pinned each other. They earned Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees.

David Mansaray, who earned his Master of Science in Nursing, is honored at the pinning ceremony by his daughter and cousin.

Clinical Specialist Elsie Alabi-Gonzalez delivers faculty remarks. She is a graduate of Montclair’s nursing programs, earning degrees in the Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Nursing programs. “We have watched you all blossom from people who were hesitant to enter a patient’s room to nurses in training who create and implement a plan of care,” she told this year’s graduates.

Gianna DeRienzo, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree and served as president of the Student Nurses Association, received the “Clinical Excellence Award” from Pre-licensure Nursing Director Elizabeth Zweighaft. Awards also went to Catherine Munkittrick and Helena Van Vliet for “Academic Excellence in Nursing.” Layan Rhazi and Aisha Shabbir for “Spirit of Nursing” and Melissa Fede for “Clinical Excellence.”

Graduates recite the International Council of Nurses Pledge, committing to uphold the ethical and professional standards of nursing.

Family, faculty and friends celebrated the graduates’ achievements. Yasmeen Salman, who earned the Bachelor of Science in Nursing, is photographed after the ceremony.

From L to R: Nursing faculty members Elsie Alabi-Gonzalez, Nastassia Davis, Harriet Sarkodie, Marnie Weiss, Courtney Reinisch, Sarah Kelly, Yanick Joseph, Rachel Lyons, Marybeth Duffy and Deb Brouwer.

A festival ending with balloons.

Watch the video below and hear about Dr. Joseph’s strategies for teaching nursing students the art of caring for others while stressing the importance of ethics, diversity, equity and inclusion.

This year’s graduates of ÌÇĐÄvlog’s four-year bachelor’s in nursing program experienced a once-in-a-lifetime graduation moment on Wednesday, May 11: a special, live Pinning Ceremony on ±·”ț°ä’s as part of the program’s Nurses Week coverage.

The program’s 22 graduates, nursing faculty and Montclair President Jonathan Koppell appeared on the national broadcast, which is seen by more than three million people each morning.

Set against the backdrop of The Today Show Plaza in Rockefeller Center, the Red Hawks received their nursing pins in a ceremony befitting an extraordinary college experience – one that included them participating in the vaccine initiative – that took place amid a global pandemic.

But that wasn’t all the program had in store. As part of the event, students received special gifts including espresso machines and sneakers to wear on the job; and, to cap the unforgettable morning, event sponsor Johnson & Johnson honored the School of Nursing and its students with a $15,000 donation.

“Today was truly a special moment for our students, the School of Nursing, and for Montclair,” said Koppell. “This ceremony was a testament to all they have accomplished, and all they will continue to achieve as they enter the healthcare industry. We also want to thank Johnson & Johnson for their donation, and look forward to building a relationship that gives future nurses the opportunity to learn and thrive at our University.”

Graduating students from the BSN program at ÌÇĐÄvlog during the pinning ceremony at Rockefeller Plaza. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

“This is a dream come true”

As part of the broadcast, three members of the Class of 2022 – Aminata Coundoul, Carin Adler and Alexander Ng – were featured in a pre-ceremony story, shot on campus in the weeks leading up to the event.

In the piece, the trio shared why they wanted to pursue nursing, their chosen specialties after graduation and how the pandemic has brought them closer together as a class and only strengthened their determination to become nurses.

“To be part of something like this was incredible,” said Ng. “We have come so far as a class and been through so much together, we have become like a family. To share our story and show the world who we are and how far we have come, and do it on live TV in New York City, is a dream come true and an amazing experience I will never forget.”

“I could not be happier for our students, faculty and staff to have this moment on a national stage,” said School of Nursing Dean Janice Smolowitz. “What they have accomplished these past four years has been nothing short of remarkable. They deserve all of the accolades and attention they receive, and I have no doubt they will make an impact in the field from the minute they begin their careers.”

For more information on Montclair’s School of Nursing, visit montclair.edu/nursing.

Hosts from The Today Show joined President Koppell and Dean Smolowitz on stage for the special Pinning Ceremony. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Carin Adler, one of the students graduating from the BSN program, shakes hands with The Today Show host Hoda Kotb. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Hoda Kotb joined her Today Show co-hosts and the University in congratulating the graduating students. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Al Roker (in the hat) interviews a team from Johnson & Johnson about the donation they gave to the School of Nursing. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Dean Janice Smolowitz led the students in reciting the International Council of Nurses’ Pledge. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

President Koppell commended the graduating nursing students for persevering through extraordinary circumstances to get their degrees. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

After reciting the International Council of Nurses’ Pledge, graduating students from the BSN program accepted pins from the School of Nursing faculty. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Alexander Ng was one of three students profiled for the special segment that aired on The Today Show. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Twenty-two students from the School of Nursing, including Aminata Coundoul, took part in the live pinning ceremony. Photo: Nathan Congleton.

Associate Professor Courtney Reinisch is coordinating the School of Nursing’s response, adding COVID-19 hours into the senior practicum. “In order to return to our lives, we need to get the global population inoculated,” Reinisch says. “I thought this was a great opportunity for students and faculty to respond locally and give back to the community.”

Mark Rodrigues, left, sets up an Essex County vaccination station, while Theresa Migliaccio prepares to administer the Moderna vaccine.

Among the nursing students is Theresa Migliaccio, a mother of five who balances family life with her classwork and weekend hours as a registered nurse at Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston. Juggling it all during the pandemic has been difficult, she admits. “You definitely learn your resilience and your limitations.”

But taking on even more at the vaccination clinic has actually eased her stress. “It’s made the pandemic not as devastating because at least I feel I’m doing something to help.”

RN to BSN students Jinwon Woo and Danica Arcena at the Essex County site.

On a recent shift at the Essex County immunization center in West Orange, New Jersey, Migliaccio was teamed with Mark Rodrigues – both are RNs set to graduate this spring from Montclair State’s RN to BSN program. As they prepared their vaccination room, they precisely readied syringes, making sure not to waste a single drop of the vaccine.

Throughout the country, inoculating people has been hampered by vaccine shortages and a complicated registration process, but Essex County’s response has been a bright spot in the rollout. Inside the former Kmart store in West Orange, any thoughts of the challenges people may have had getting their appointment are forgotten as they receive their shots of hope, Migliaccio says. “They cry, they’re overwhelmed and they’re so thankful.”

RN to BSN student Valentina Valencia at the Essex County site.

Rodrigues, who worked as an electrician before a career change to nursing, says this process has taken him out of his pandemic comfort zone. “Occasionally you go out for your shopping, but everything is so methodical about how you spend your time outside,” he says.

At the vaccination center, Rodrigues has a system for the way he sets up equipment, organizing Band-Aids and alcohol wipes in groups of 10 to match the number of doses in each vial. “We want to be prepared so we can more fluidly deal with patients,” he says. Rodrigues has a gentle rapport to ease any anxiety people may be feeling. Often, they haven’t even realized they’ve been given the injection.

The coordinated efforts pay off as the classmates inoculated more than 100 people on their shift, about 10% of all the Moderna doses given that day. “It’s exceptionally rewarding,” Rodrigues says, “knowing we are putting people on track for getting back some sort of normalcy.”

Associate Professors Marybeth Duffy, left, and Courtney Reinisch.

Their experience illustrates how Montclair State’s nursing faculty and students are engaged in the campaign to inoculate against the virus. Essex County has five vaccination sites spread across the county and the School of Nursing is joining in the effort to vaccinate citizens by participating in a variety of roles.

Faculty members and students are also assisting senior citizens with vaccination registration at a senior apartment setting. When the on-site clinic opened, undergraduates assisted with temperature checks, social distancing and monitoring. Associate Professor Marybeth Duffy, who participated in this outreach, helped register community members for appointments and answered questions about the safety of the vaccines. “They need reassurance that taking the shot would be better than not,” she says.

The School of Nursing is continuously looking for ways to serve the community and plans to help vaccinate homebound residents in partnership with the West Orange Health Department. This faculty-undergraduate effort will include students assisting with making calls to individuals, registering and scheduling them for appointments and going to their homes.

Story by Staff Writer Marilyn Joyce Lehran

Behind the scenes, academics and practitioners such as Nastassia Davis, an assistant professor in the School of Nursing; Kaitlin Mulcahy, associate director of the Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health (CAECMH); and Jill Wodnick, a doula who has been the cornerstone of much of Montclair State’s maternal health efforts through CAECMH, were among those interviewed to help craft the state’s strategic plan. And, through their work at the University, they will be among an army of health practitioners and educators across the state helping to see its goals to fruition.

According to statistics cited in Murphy’s plan, New Jersey is currently ranked 47th in the nation for maternal deaths and has one of the widest racial disparities for both maternal and infant mortality: “A Black mother in New Jersey is seven times more likely than a white mother to die from maternity-related complications, and a Black baby is over three times more likely than a white baby to die before his or her first birthday.”

The plan “aims to reduce maternal mortality by 50% over five years and eliminate racial disparities in birth outcomes.”

One year ago, educational leaders from Montclair State’s Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health, School of Nursing, and Department of Public Health discussed how the University’s cross-discipline approach is identifying, addressing and hopefully solving the myriad of complex problems that stand in the way of improved outcomes for mothers and infants.

“Our center through Jill’s advocacy has a seat at many discussions of what the strategic plan is talking about,” says Mulcahy. For example, CAECMH has been asked to be part of the , a federal grant awarded to multidisciplinary state departments. Wodnick is providing technical assistance to the New Jersey Department of Health on issues related to the Nurture NJ Strategic Plan, including childbirth education, reducing unnecessary caesarean sections, and increasing the childbirth education and doula care across the state.

Mulcahy adds, “We’ve also been asked to sit on other panels in the maternal health space,” such as , that “are looking to improve birth outcomes and developmental outcomes for low-income children and families in our state over the next three years.”

Mulcahy gives much credit to Wodnick in bringing the University to the table on the subject of maternal health.

“Jill is looked at as being the expert consultant, the expert technical assistant,” Mulcahy says. “She has influenced Mrs. Murphy’s thinking, and we spend a lot of time with Mrs. Murphy’s policy advisors as well on these issues.”

Wodnick is quick to share the limelight.

“There are many people in different multidisciplinary departments, and we find each other.” She cites Melanie Shefchik, instructional specialist, Department of Public Health: “She wrote the maternal infant plan for the City of Clifton – with a number of undergraduate and graduate Montclair State Public Health students – and that is a city-specific maternal infant health plan that focuses on increasing home visitation funding for doula care.”

In January 2020, New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy spoke at the third annual NJ Maternal Health Day at ÌÇĐÄvlog.

Meanwhile, Davis, in both her role as assistant professor in the School of Nursing and as founder of the , was invited to speak at the introduction of the strategic plan in January. Last year, Davis introduced a new maternal and child health class for School of Nursing students. She reports, “It’s a dynamic curriculum and we’re adjusting it to respond to current social and political dynamics in our local communities.” Davis has also invited Wodnick to provide Lamaze childbirth education for this coming semester when students perform a clinical rotation.

“Our curriculum blends clinical experiences in the community, a concept that is unique to our program,” says Davis. “Students get exposed to the lived experiences of the families they serve as well as the social determinants of health that impact them. In addition to the Lamaze class, students will visit a local WIC [] center, prenatal clinic, and maternal child health home visitation program to name a few. This year, students will write a perinatal disparities paper where they will take a deeper look at the disparities in maternal child health from a national and local perspective. It was important to me that the course was infused with reproductive justice and cultural humility so that our future nurses have the social awareness to impact change as they enter the field.”

Mulcahy notes that CAECMH’s work extends beyond maternal and infant health.

“When we look at maternal infant health, we’re also looking at maternal infant relational health and making sure that there are services and policies and legislation in place to also look at that emerging relationship that begins in pregnancy,” Mulcahy says. “Our center and our University are looked to as policy and service experts in the aspect of maternal infant health that is moving from biophysical to the relationship.”

“I think one of the strengths that Montclair State has is that there’s so much interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate student engagement from a clinical perspective, from the School of Nursing, to Public Health, to the Center for Autism and Early Childhood Mental Health,” says Wodnick. “People who are interested in improving maternity care can get policy, clinical and community internships and field work here at Montclair State – the interdisciplinary ability to do policy system legislative change concurrent with all of the other academic interdisciplinary partners.”

Wodnick’s role with the Center is publicly and privately funded. She notes the generosity of the DeTura family which bestowed another gift in December to the Montclair State Foundation, helping to extend free childbirth education through the University. “We’re now doing it online too, because of the COVID environment, and we’re actually able to touch hundreds of more people in terms of childbirth education than I was doing in person.”

Story by Staff Writer Mary Barr Mann.

It’s part of the ethos of the ÌÇĐÄvlog School of Nursing, and it was put into action by Associate Professor Andrew Scanlon, who rode his bike the length of New Jersey – 200 miles – on Saturday, September 14 to raise funds and awareness for the Red Hawk Food Pantry.

“Food insecurity is a global problem,” says Scanlon, “but if we want to see change, it’s so simple to do something locally. I see a great need with the students that ÌÇĐÄvlog serves. Food insecurity shouldn’t be an issue for someone pursuing higher education, but it is.”

ÌÇĐÄvlog became the first four-year university in New Jersey to open a student food pantry on campus when the Office of Student Development and Campus Life launched the Red Hawk Pantry in April 2016. At that time, 10 percent of about 200 Montclair State students surveyed expressed food insecurity on a daily basis, 15 percent expressed a weekly need, and 12 percent reported a monthly need. A 2019 campus survey pointed to a continuing need with 4 in 10 respondents reporting some level of food insecurity.

“This is something that we can do for our University community. It’s hard enough getting a university education; students shouldn’t have this problem to deal with,” says Scanlon.

Scanlon said he became interested in distance cycling as he approached age 40 and wanted to maintain his fitness. Three-mile daily commutes to work turned into longer and longer rides until he began participating in “fondos” – distance road cycling rides – around New Jersey and New York and throughout the world, including Italy, France, Switzerland and his native country of Australia.

In preparing for his fundraising ride, Scanlon drew the connection between nursing, cycling and food security: health. “Nursing is about helping people live healthy lives. Access to food is a basic need that must be addressed.”

Scanlon was supported in his journey by the entire School of Nursing, including Dean Janice Smolowitz, who followed him in cars from the New York border to New Jersey’s southernmost point in Cape May.

“We all followed and supported him!” says Dean Smolowitz, who notes that faculty and staff brought their bikes and helmets – “We’re nurses. We do the right thing.” – to perform a circuit around Montclair State with Scanlon when he arrived on campus early in his trek.

Scanlon’s grueling 200-mile odyssey took about 13.5 hours – including that stop at Montclair State – on a course of back roads that he mapped out using a bike-friendly navigation app. Scanlon wore a ÌÇĐÄvlog-branded jersey and received cheers and honks along the route from his Red Hawk team and others.

The Red Hawk Pantry Ride fundraising page established by Scanlon on the University’s crowdfund platform has elicited well beyond its goal of $1,500; the page remains open for one more week for those who wish to contribute.

“It was a beautiful day and although I would’ve liked to finish earlier, I feel great that I’ve been able to raise money and awareness for the Red Hawk Pantry,” says Scanlon. He effusively thanked his team from the School of Nursing: “My team was great and made sure I had what I needed when I got to each stop.”

“This is what nursing is about,” says Smolowitz. “Helping people live healthy lives. Food is a basic need. Food insecurity needs to be addressed. Andrew’s ride is very much what we believe in as nurses.”

For more information on the Red Hawk Pantry, including hours of operation, visit /student-services/red-hawk-pantry.