Chelsea Wollman: Becoming a Well-Rounded Nurse

From the classroom to field work in hospitals, senior nursing major Chelsea Wollman is preparing to dedicate her life to helping others. Since age 7, Chelsea has known that she wanted to be a nurse and Adelphi has given her the ability to pursue that dream.

Despite the demanding course load that comes with the nursing program, Chelsea has become highly involved on campus in an effort to give back to her fellow students and the nursing program.

Currently, she is president of Student Nurses Acting for Progress (SNAP), where she started the peer mentor program to pair upperclassmen nursing majors with the younger students.

“Chelsea epitomizes all that is good for the future of nursing,” said Diane Petrouskie, coordinator of the College of Nursing and Public Health’s Nursing Resource Center. “She has a curiosity to learn—to learn what’s best for herself and for her future patients.,” lecturer Ulrich Rosa added.

To further her skills, Chelsea has taken advantage of valuable opportunities to be exposed to experiences in the nursing and public health fields. This year alone, she took part in two community service trips to underprivileged areas—one in January to an orphanage in Peru and another in May to a Navajo reservation in Arizona.

“[The trips] made me realize there are so many different aspects of nursing that I can go into,” she said. “I want to be the type of nurse who can adapt to my environment, whether or not I have the right tools.”

In addition, Chelsea was one of four college students—out of 480 applicants—chosen to intern at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, during the summer. That opportunity gave her a week’s worth of experience in every specialty area of the hospital. “I owe [getting the internship] to Adelphi for preparing me to ace an interview and for my clinical experience,” she said.

Despite the fact that it’s difficult to participate in athletics as a nursing major, Chelsea has played for the women’s soccer team during all four years of her Adelphi career. In fact, she is one of the few nursing students at Adelphi to make it through an NCAA Division II sport. “I’ve set a good example for younger students who want to be athletes in the nursing program,” she said.

Even with busy nursing and soccer schedules, Chelsea has found time to be involved in still other campus activities. She is secretary of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, where she coordinates the Cans for Cancer program; is a senior admissions ambassador giving campus tours; and is a resident assistant in Earle Hall.

Upon graduation in May 2014 with a B.S. in Nursing, the Connecticut native plans to stay in the New York area to consider job offers from local hospitals. For now, she is keeping her options open and focusing on studying for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).

“I chose nursing because I have a strong passion to care for others and I believe the profession makes me a stronger person,” Chelsea said. “Now that I’ve gone through Adelphi’s rigorous program, I wouldn’t change it for the world.”