College of Health Sciences

On college campuses in late spring, life experiences start coming full circle. Nadira Colbert, a valedictorian in the nursing program, closed one such loop during her pinning ceremony—the symbolic welcoming of soon-to-be-graduated student nurses into the nursing profession. During the ceremony, Colbert’s grandmother, Ingrid Perez, affixed the Georgia College & State University nursing pin upon her lapel signifying a new chapter to the life calling Perez had modeled for Colbert since...

Since the pandemic, many students have experienced increasing rates of depression and anxiety. But this can be doubly felt by nursing students, who encounter stressors in both classroom and clinical settings.   Priya Polanco understands these pressures all too well. She’s a graduating nursing student, a member of the Honors College, valedictorian and student speaker at her commencement ceremony.   When she thought about her own transition from high school to college and then the nursing...

Decorated basketball athlete Brandon Thomas spent his time at Georgia College & State University balancing athleticism, academics and community service.   Now, he’s graduating with the dream of becoming an infectious disease epidemiologist—and hoping to study emergent tropical diseases like malaria.   Thomas worked one and a half years at the Center for Health and Social Issues, assisting Dr. Damian Francis, assistant professor of public health. He’s also gone above and beyond to serve...

Nursing graduate Clara White of Murrayville is leaving Georgia College & State University having made an impact she never thought she’d achieve.   Under her leadership, the Georgia College Association of Nursing Students (GCANS) has become an award-winning organization with reach throughout the university.   GCANS is an opportunity for nursing students to come together and decompress away from school. Upperclassmen mingle with first-year nursing students and share advice for homework,...

Healthcare simulation centers are powerful tools for training healthcare professionals. Now, Georgia College & State University offers a new certificate program designed to make these centers more effective. The College of Health Sciences has developed a one-year, graduate healthcare simulation certificate program to equip educators with best practices for teaching aspirant healthcare providers. The new Healthcare Simulation Certificate is the first of its kind in Georgia. “Healthcare...

Story and photos developed by University Communications. At a meeting on what concerns residents—a gentleman from Oconee Heights, Milledgeville, once asked Dr. Damian Francis if he’d be like all the others—doing one thing to help the community, then disappearing. “I said, ‘No, we’re here for the long haul.’ That was 2½ years ago, and we’re still here. We’re showing some benefit now, and residents are really appreciative,” said Francis, an epidemiologist and director of Georgia College...

Story, video and photos developed by University Communications.   As the 15th-century historian Thomas Fuller once said: “Health is not valued till sickness comes.” That’s why students at Georgia College & State University’s Center for Health & Social Issues (CHSI) intertwine health screenings with other attractions like fun and food. Public health majors and student nurses gather wherever the populace is likely to be found. At monthly food drives, neighborhood meetings or holiday...

Story and Photos by University Communications. With their first five scholars in tow, the College of Health Science (COHS) School of Nursing (SON) has kicked off the Lettie Pate Whitehead (LPW) Nursing Scholars Program. With four-year-long funding, the cohort-based program for qualified nursing students at Georgia College & State University (GCSU) will provide a full scholarship to recipients; including tuition, fees, housing, meals, textbooks, nursing program fees and one funded,...

Corey Campbell, ’16, shifted his studies from biology to exercise science in graduate school at Georgia College & State University. And he’s glad he did. Campbell now lives his dream job as the assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Carolina Panthers.   Campbell played football at the University of Georgia. That’s also where he earned his bachelor’s degree in biology. But it was the transition to exercise science in graduate school that put him on track to work for the National...