Southwestern College has announced the selection of Shona Turner as the program director for the college’s nursing program. Turner will lead the return of a bachelor-level nursing program to Southwestern College, Cowley County, and South-Central Kansas. Her early work will include working on accreditation, developing curriculum and courses, securing partnerships with area healthcare providers, and hiring faculty to teach in the division. She will also work to support and advise students presently enrolled as pre-nursing majors. Her work will officially begin for the college on January 2 as the spring semester begins. 

Turner comes to the college with broad experience in the healthcare industry, from direct patient care to administration to training and consulting. “Shona’s experience and passion stood out among an incredible group of finalists for the position,” shared President Liz Frombgen. “She is uniquely positioned to build a program that attracts and trains young people who are empowered to offer outstanding care and leadership to the vocation of nursing and to the communities that they will serve.” 

Turner’s hire is the next step in Southwestern College’s effort to relaunch a nursing program that was previously discontinued in 2011. Then, the college cited several factors leading to the decision to discontinue the clinical nursing program — notably, stiff competition for students from public institutions in Kansas. 

"While I certainly am understanding of the challenges that existed in 2011 and the need at that time to make a difficult decision – the reality now is that our community, region, and country has a critical need of highly-trained and caring nurses," Frombgen said. “Southwestern stands out for our ability to attract service-minded, high-character young people who are driven to make a difference in the communities where they live – and to that end, Shona will build a program that offers outstanding clinical preparation with a clear focus on service and leadership.” 

Turner earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Southwestern College. Additionally, she holds a Master of Science in Nursing and a Master of Business Administration, with an emphasis in health/healthcare/administration and management from the University of Phoenix. 

“We are fortunate to add Shona to our academic team at Southwestern; as we confront the very real need for nurses in our community and beyond, Shona is driven to build a program that offers responsive and comprehensive preparation and sets our graduates up for success in all ways,” said J.K. Campbell, vice president for academic affairs and academic dean of the college. Most recently, Turner has served as Chief Operating Officer for SCK Health in Arkansas City, Kan. She is experienced in managing hospital corporate compliance and quality improvement initiatives. Before that, as a consultant with Studer Group, she traveled to hospitals of varying sizes and designations across the country to develop and operationalize multi-faceted quality improvement initiatives, focused on the delivery of excellent care. Before consulting, she worked in several capacities at William Newton Hospital including Chief Operating Officer, Corporate Compliance Officer, Quality Improvement Manager, and Emergency Preparedness Coordinator. Turner was also pivotal in developing and leading the William Newton Healthcare Foundation as the Foundation’s first director, a position she served the hospital and community in for four years before focusing on hospital administration. 

“I am excited to get to work building a program that highlights nursing as not just a critically important profession, but as the admirable and highly-valued vocation that it is – we will prepare nurses who will stand out for the excellent care and leadership they offer,” said Turner.