Jo Ann M. Wever Named Nursing Director

LWC Vice President of Academic Affairs Bettie Starr (left) hired Jo Ann M. Wever to direct the college's bachelor of science program in nursing.

COLUMBIA, Ky. -- Veteran health care professional and educator Jo Ann M. Wever has been named chair of the Lindsey Wilson College nursing division. 

Wever comes to Lindsey Wilson with more than 40 years of experience in the medical profession. She will direct the new bachelor's of science program in nursing - which begins this fall with pre-nursing students -- and also teach several courses.

 "I'm excited Jo Ann has joined the Lindsey Wilson community because she brings a great deal of knowledge and expertise that will benefit our students," said LWC Vice President of Academic Affairs Bettie Starr. "We were very fortunate to find Jo Ann Wever, who has years of experience as a practicing nurse and teaching students how to be nurses. She will start what I think will be an outstanding nursing program."

Wever said she is excited to help start a four-year nursing program. This will be the second nursing program she has started in Kentucky. Earlier this decade, she helped Campbellsville (Ky.) University establish a two-year nursing degree.

"I think Lindsey Wilson's nursing program can be the best in the state," Wever said. "This program has a lot of potential because it is fresh and not tied to a certain way of doing things. It also has a very experienced person leading it."

Wever said she has been impressed with Lindsey Wilson's commitment to nursing education.

"There is a great sense of collegiality here at Lindsey Wilson, and the college has a top-notch science building for students," she said.

Students will enroll their freshman year as pre-nursing majors and be part of a special learning community in which they work with their professors and academic advisers. Students who meet the program's rigorous academic criteria will be admitted to the nursing program at the end of their freshman year and begin the nursing program in fall 2010.

During their final three years at LWC, nursing majors will take mix of classes and also several practicums at health-care centers and hospitals throughout the region.

"I've been very encouraged by the support we have received from the directors of nursing where we will have clinical sites," Starr said. "There are a lot of resources in the region for our students."

Wever said the ideal candidate for the Lindsey Wilson nursing program will be a "hard-working, dedicated, detail-oriented and compassionate person."

Prospective students should prepare for the program in high school by taking plenty of courses in mathematics, science and English.

"Nursing is not for the faint of heart," she said. "It's a very challenging major, but it offers students who succeed a very rewarding career."