Shelby Creamer gained the clinical experience, faculty support, good grades and passion that made her shine, helping the nursing student land a coveted "externship" with Mayo Clinic.

Originally planning to become a doctor, when Wendy Sanchez received the Tsongas Scholarship to UMass Lowell as a high school senior, she decided to pursue nursing instead. The high achiever who turned hardship into success has no regrets.

Beth Rosenberg '95 developed a "network of stellar people" during her time in the Work Environment department. Today she's an assistant prof. in Public Health and a board member of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board.

As a young nursing student on hospital duty, May Futrell was struck by the neglect of elderly patients, which ultimately defined her career and helped implement the first graduate program in the U.S. to educate primary-care gerontological nurse practitioners.