Orientation to Decker School of Nursing Graduate Programs

1. Orientation to Decker School of NursingGraduate Programs Spring 2012

2. Welcome Welcome to the beginning of your graduate education at the Decker School of Nursing. We hope that you will find this power point to be informative. Please know that we are here in the Graduate Program office to assist you in navigating through your program. There are some key people that you should know in the school and I will begin by introducing you to them.

3. Joyce Ferrario Joyce Ferrario is the Dean of the School of Nursing and Director of Graduate Programs. She is available by appointment to assist with program planning, approves all program changes, and is here to help you with any issues that occur during your program. Her office is in the Dean�s Suite, Academic Building B, Room 108A. Students can make an appointment to meet with the Dean through her secretary, Sharon Stiner (sstiner@binghamton.edu). Dean Ferrario is a clinical nurse specialist with interests is in Gerontology and Psychiatric Nursing.

4. Cindy Altmansberger Cindy Altmansberger is the Assistant Dean. She is the person you go to with questions about funding or to request funding. Her office is in the Dean�s Suite, Academic Building B, Room 108.

5. Rebecca Christophersen Rebecca (Becky) Christophersen is the Clinical Site Coordinator. She is the person you will work with to complete all Decker School Health requirements as well as to secure your clinical placements for any course that has a clinical component. Her office is Academic Building B, Room 116.

6. Scott Pionteck Scott is the Decker School of Nursing�s computer guru. He can assist with computer issues in the computer pod and help secure your sign on to the Decker Pod. His office is Academic Building B, Room 118.

7. Jennie Orton Jennie Orton is the new assistant to the Graduate Program Director. She helps students with program planning, registration issues, general advisement, questions about correspondence student�s receive from Binghamton University, and to explain or facilitate compliance with policies and procedures of the University and the School. In short, she is often your first stop in problem solving. Her office is in Academic Building B, Room 112A.

8. Program Overview

9. Name and/or Address Change Please make sure that any changes to your personal data get changed through the Registrar�s web site. Forms for changes are available online at: http://www2.binghamton.edu/registrar/students/manage-contact-info.html.

10. Student �Mailboxes� You will be assigned a �mailbox� (also known as a file folder) in the mailbox file cabinet in the Student Services Office (AB114) Graduate folders are in the bottom drawer. Faculty use this to return papers to you. Other staff may use this to give you any important information that cannot be sent through Email.

11. Student Handbook As a Graduate Student at BU, you are responsible for the policies found in the Graduate School handbook. The link to the handbook can be found here: Graduate School Manual (Link should open in a separate window) As a Decker School of Nursing student, you are responsible for the policies specific to our school. Our handbook is also on the web in two sections. Graduate Nursing Handbook (Link should open in a separate window) Decker Shared Policy Handbook (Link should open in a separate window) Review these manuals for answers to questions or clarification on policies and procedures you may have throughout your program.

12. Health Forms The Decker School of Nursing has more stringent health requirements than the general student body of the University. Our health forms and information regarding the requirements are available by clicking here. (Link should open in a separate window) University Health Services accepts the Decker School�s health form. We cannot accept theirs as it is does not meet the DSON requirements. Please fill out this form, send a copy to Health Services, give a copy to Becky Christophersen, and keep a copy for yourself.

13. Criminal Background check Beginning in Fall 2009 and in order to comply with agency regulations, all students are required to complete a criminal background check. Specifics on how to complete the background check are found here. To read the complete policy, click here. (Link will open in a separate window)

14. Advisement You will be assigned an advisor based on your Specialization area (Adult/Gerontological, Community Health, Family, Family Psych/Mental Health) along with your Clinical Role preparation (Administration, Educator, NP). Please make sure that the Graduate Program Assistant knows your area of specialization so you can be properly assigned an advisor. Additionally, you will want to verify that the Graduate School also properly registers your major code so that when you graduate, the proper degree and certification appear on your transcript. Look on BU Brain to verify that what is on record is an accurate reflection of your clinical specialization and role.

15. Funding Request for funding forms are sent in February. Full-time graduate students may request funding support for the next academic year through teaching and research assistantships, fellowships or a federal traineeship. Funding is limited and is considered on a first come basis. The Graduate School mainly supports PhD and DNP students. Funding for masters students is quite limited. All students requesting funding must complete a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid).� Part-time students may apply for scholarships. There is a separate scholarship form to complete as well as a FAFSA.� All funded graduate students must advance register for the next semester since the graduate school will not provide tuition aid to students who are not registered for a full-time course load. No funded graduate students may have an �Incomplete� grade at the start of a new term. This will also result in termination of funding. � If you have funding questions please contact Cindy Altmansberger. Further funding information can be found at http://www2.binghamton.edu/dson/financial-aid-opportunities.html. (link should open a separate window)

16. Jose Reichel Fund Jose was a staff member who worked in the Research Center at DSON. When she passed away, she left money to fund students who had to use their own money to complete research. If in the course of your thesis writing or dissertation writing, you incur small expenses such as mailing, mileage, cost of a survey, etc. you can apply for reimbursement for these costs. (Typical awards are around $200 - $300)

17. Graduate School Orientation Please be sure you have completed the Graduate School Orientation which can be found here. Note that it provides comprehensive information on how to register for courses using BU Brain, getting an ID card, a parking permit, etc. Make sure you complete all modules including the Registration module (found in the Virtual Orientation), Professional Ethics, and Graduate Level Writing which can be accessed from the site above.

18. Non-Degree Students Non-degree (non-matriculated) students are not able to register themselves and must see Jennie Orton to register.

19. BlackBoard Many of your courses will utilize the computer program Blackboard to post important information about your classes. You can access this program here. (Link should open in a new window) There is information available on the site to help you sign in the first time.

20. SNOW or INCLEMENT Weather The University Emergency number is 607-777-SNOW. Campus emergency information will be updated on there such as University closings, etc. Individual faculty may �postpone/ reschedule� classes due to weather. They will post this information on Blackboard, and Jennie Orton will send a notice through the graduate listserv as she is available and informed to do so.

21. Registration Advance registration started on Wednesday, November 2, 2011, for all current graduate students. New students are given access to register the week before classes begin in January 2012. Please e-mail Jennie Orton if you have any specific questions about registration after you have viewed the module on the Virtual Orientation. After you complete your registration, keep checking BU Brain for your bill. As part of paying your bill, you will need to confirm your enrollment though BU Brain when you pay your bill. If you skip this step, you will be de-registered for courses in that particular semester by the University.

22. Classes to register for� Students beginning in a spring semester will need to meet with an assigned academic adviser to determine which courses to take. Jennie Orton will assign a faculty adviser to a student based on specialization but is also available by appointment to discuss program planning for spring admits. (Contact e-mail address for Jennie is: jorton@binghamton.edu.)

23. Classes Classes begin on Monday, January 30, 2012. You may view the Schedule of Classes by logging into BU Brain.

24. Program Specific Information Please review if you are not sure which path you want to take!!!

25. Adult/Gerontology This program is designed to provide care for the population of young adults through the end of life. Specific areas covered are healthy aging, chronic illness, frail elders, and dealing with co-morbidity. Program plans for this program are available by clicking here.

26. Community Health The Community Health program is designed to look at the expanding and contracting family as well as examining the community as a whole. Students look at epidemics, community interventions, and population based care. Program plans for this program are available by clicking here.

27. Family This program is designed to prepare advanced practice nurses to provide health care to the expanding and contracting family. They provide comprehensive, age-appropriate, age-specific quality primary health care that addresses the multiple needs of individuals across the life span and their families. They focus on health promotion, disease prevention, health education and counseling. Program plans for this program are available by clicking here comprehensive, age-appropriate, age-specific quality primary health care that addresses the multiple needs of individuals across the lifespan. comprehensive, age-appropriate, age-specific quality primary health care that addresses the multiple needs of individuals across the lifespan.

28. Psych Mental Health This program is designed to prepare advanced practice nurses for providing mental health care to families and groups. Family Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners are prepared to provide assessment and intervention for patients of all ages within the mental health system. Click here to view program plans and information.

29. Thank you for choosing Decker School of Nursing! We hope you will enjoy your brief time with us. Please feel free to contact us anytime to touch base or to ask questions. Remember, we are here for you!