The History of the Biola University Department of Nursing (1966-2016)
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Biola University Digital Commons @ Biola History of the School of Nursing School of Nursing 9-2018 50 Years of God’s Faithfulness: The History of the Biola University Department of Nursing (1966-2016) Anne Gewe Biola University Rebekah Fleeger Biola University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.biola.edu/nurse-hist-pub Part of the Nursing Commons Recommended Citation Gewe, Anne and Fleeger, Rebekah, "50 Years of God’s Faithfulness: The History of the Biola University Department of Nursing (1966-2016)" (2018). History of the School of Nursing. 1. https://digitalcommons.biola.edu/nurse-hist-pub/1 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Nursing at Digital Commons @ Biola. It has been accepted for inclusion in History of the School of Nursing by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Biola. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 1 50 Years of God’s Faithfulness: The History of the Biola University Department of Nursing (1966-2016) Anne Gewe, PhD, RN, and Becky Fleeger, PhD, RN, Faculty Emeriti, Biola University Department of Nursing September, 2018 2 Acknowledgements An undertaking such as reviewing 50 years of history requires the help of so many. Thanks is given to: Those who were willing to be interviewed, answer questions, write their stories and send them to the authors: Janet Adams, Colleen Balius, Joanne Beckwith, Rick Bee, Janelle Ching, Martha Corrick, Susan Elliott, Esther Enas, Mary Ewert, Yessenia Garcia, Kelsey Gaskins, Paula Hammond, Dave Johnson, Doris Johnson, Barbara Kartsman, Leta Kilander, Pat Kissell, Glenda Lord, Rosemary Mwangi, Linda Dean Peters, Donna Phillips, Colleen Sanchez, Annette Siemens, Sharon Soper, Paul Tiamzon, Rachel Van Niekerk, and Karen Wetther. Those who took their precious time to read and give feedback on portions of the manuscript: Rogerlin Charbonneau, Cheryl Cole, Robert Crawford, Ruth Ebeling, Gwen Johnson, April Morrow and Martha Stephenson. 3 Table of Contents 50 Years of God’s Faithfulness: The History of the Biola University Department of Nursing (1966-2016) .. 1 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................... 2 Introduction .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Part 1: God’s Faithfulness with Leaders: ................................................................................................... 5 Chapter 1: Dr. Leonie V. Soubirou (Director 1966-1975) ...................................................................... 6 Chapter 2: Dr. Pat Kissell (Director 1976-1979) .................................................................................. 19 Chapter 3: Dr. Rebekah “Becky” Fleeger (Director 1979-2007, Acting Dean 1993-1997) .................. 31 Chapter 4: Dr. Susan Elliott (Director 2008-2014) .............................................................................. 43 Chapter 5: Dr. Rachel Van Niekerk (Director 2016 - ........................................................................... 50 Part 2: God’s Faithfulness with Faculty ................................................................................................... 52 Chapter 6: Miss Leta Kilander (1953-1989) ........................................................................................ 53 Chapter 7: Cindy Westcott (1977-2005) ............................................................................................. 58 Chapter 8: Cheryl “Chery” Zukerberg, also known as Caltabiano & Crear (1982-2010) .................... 63 Chapter 9: Anne Gewe (1979-2018), also known as Dr. Anne ........................................................... 69 Part 3: God’s Faithfulness in Crises ......................................................................................................... 75 Chapter 10: Accreditation ................................................................................................................... 76 Chapter 11: Affirmative Action ........................................................................................................... 86 Chapter 12: The Duffy Act (AB 2878) ............................................................................................... 101 Chapter 13: Decreased Enrollments ................................................................................................. 108 Part 4: God’s Faithfulness in Other Ways ............................................................................................. 120 Chapter 14: Students ........................................................................................................................ 121 Chapter 15: Cross-cultural Experiences ............................................................................................ 134 Chapter 16: Provision of Resources .................................................................................................. 150 Chapter 17: Current and Future Concerns ........................................................................................ 162 Appendix ............................................................................................................................................... 171 Evolution of the Conceptual Framework .......................................................................................... 172 4 Introduction Unlike many written histories, this account is not composed of a chronology of events. It is an attempt to see the history of the Biola Department of Nursing through the eyes of those who were there, and experienced events first-hand. God’s faithfulness is shown through the leaders who had vision and drive, the faculty who taught, the students who attended, and the resources provided. God has been faithful to bring the department through several crises, which could have caused its demise. He has been faithful in the many opportunities given through the ministry of nursing to reach beyond the Biola campus, and to impact the world for Christ. Between the two authors, Anne Gewe and Becky Fleeger, the full 50 years from 1966 to 2016 were experienced. They lived the history and interacted with the individuals whose stories are told. Many interviews have been done, in addition to mining accreditation reports, faculty minutes, articles from the student newspaper, the Chimes, and other Biola documents to substantiate the memories. When all was completed, the authors found the story to be very similar to a quotation by Florence Nightingale, which can be seen on the wall outside of the nursing skills lab in the Alton and Lydia Lim Center for Science, Technology, and Health. If I could give you information of my life, it would be to show how a woman of very ordinary ability has been led by God in strange and unaccustomed paths to do in His service what He has done in her. And if I could tell you all, you would see how God has done all and I nothing. It is hoped that the reader will be able to see real people, ordinary people, people who have been led by God to accomplish his work. God has been faithful through these 50 years, and he will continue to be faithful to the nursing program in the future. Great is his faithfulness! 5 Part 1: God’s Faithfulness with Leaders: Timeline of Directors 1966-1975: Dr. Leonie V. Soubirou 1975-1976: Joyce Roberts, Interim Director 1976-1979: Dr. Pat Kissell 1979-2007: Dr. Rebekah Fleeger 2007-2008: Dr. Cheryl Zukerberg, Interim Director 2008-2014: Dr. Susan Elliott 2014-2016: Dr. Anne Gewe, Interim Director Appointed 2016: Dr. Rachel Van Niekerk 6 Chapter 1: Dr. Leonie V. Soubirou (Director 1966-1975) Leonie V. Soubirou wanted to be a missionary to China. The story is told that in 1937 she was actually at the dock in San Francisco with her bicycle when she got the news. Due to wartime conditions (the Sino-Japanese war had broken out) and because her French Catholic family disapproved of her going, she would not be allowed to sail. Details of the story may be exaggerated, but the fact that she wanted to be a missionary is undisputable. She had been preparing for several years, starting with attending the Bible Institute of Los Angeles (BIOLA). As her diploma of (1928) stated, she had “completed the two years course of study of the Bible Institute of Los Angeles, passed satisfactory examinations, shown commendable zeal in Christian Work, and lived a consistent Christian life….” The verse she selected to accompany her picture in the Biolan (yearbook) of 1928 was II Sam 22:33, “God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect” (King James Version). God was obviously working in her life even before she attended Biola. The Biola newspaper Chimes tells the story of her spiritual journey. In an interview, Dr. Soubirou said her French father was studying to be a priest, but ran away from the monastery, came to America and married her mother. She was raised as a devout Catholic (Kramer, 1975, p. 6). In addition, she was a descendent of Saint Bernadette Soubirous of Lourdes, France (Fleeger, 1991, p. 4). The Virgin Mary is said to have appeared numerous times to 14-year-old Bernadette Soubirous and in one vision, Bernadette was instructed to dig a hole in the ground. From the hole, a spring of water emerged. In 1858, Catherine Latapie is recorded to have had a paralyzed arm. When she soaked it in the spring water, she was able to move it, the first recorded