(Above) July nursing graduates (from left) Abbie Young, Jenna Bunting and Olivia Stout discuss sleeping well at a recent brain health fair. (Middle) Micah Larson, Cade Rivers and Preston Scott check health fair participants’ blood pressure and heart rate, teach them to use monitors and provide cardiac health tips. (Below) Emma Gass, along with Laura Polo, help people learn about managing diabetes using a “myth or fact” game. (Photos by Russell Bailey)
August 26, 2025
SIU nursing students make big impact sharing knowhow with community
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Did you know that a 15-ounce bottle of apple juice contains as much sugar (49 grams) as 10 Oreos?
That’s just one of the sometimes-surprising nutritional and brain health facts a group of students in Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program recently shared with visitors at the Healthy Brain, Healthy Life: 10 Ways to Love Your Brain Health and Wellness Fair.
“The brain health fair is just one example of the service-learning our students do,” said Debra Penrod, assistant professor of nursing. “As seniors, they use the information they’ve learned in class to positively impact the community. Throughout their education, they participate in a diverse array of projects and experiences that enable them to put their education into practice and help others, while they are still in school.”
Providing insights
Penrod divided her nursing students into small groups and tasked each group with creating a station to represent one of the Alzheimer Association’s “Ten Tips for a Healthy Brain” for the event co-sponsored by the nursing program and the association, in cooperation with SIU’s Recreational Sports and Services. At the maintaining a healthy weight booth, Natalie Taylor, of Paducah, Kentucky; Morgan Smith, of Johnston City, Illinois; and Josephine Killman, of Crab Orchard, Illinois, provided a wealth of information about how eating right can help stop hypertension and strokes and improve brain health.
Becky Doiron, program and regional data manager for the Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter, said she was impressed with the informative, creative stations the students crafted, their thorough research and their fun, memorable presentations.
A lot of time and effort goes into preparing for events like the brain fair, according to Jenna Bunting, a July nursing graduate from Metropolis, Illinois.
“For our sleeping well booth, we researched ways we can help community members get more and better sleep – strategies they can actually take and apply to their everyday lives,” Bunting said. “Our research even revealed that bad sleep habits can negatively influence other people in the household. Some of us were so busy during clinicals, we cut our sleep short, and it took a toll on us. So we decided to share what we learned about how vital sleep is.”
People often think they are getting sufficient sleep when they really aren’t, noted Olivia Stout, a senior from Johnston City, Illinois. “It’s important to develop a good sleep routine early in life. As we get older, those habits dictate your future.”
Nearby, July nursing graduates Micah Larson of Buncombe, Cade Rivers of Edwards County, and Preston Scott, of Murphysboro, all in Illinois, checked people’s blood pressures and heart rates, demonstrated how to use a home blood pressure cuff, taught cardiac health highlights and more. They said people can delay or prevent dementia by keeping blood pressure, a silent killer, under control.
Brain fair participants also got to participate in an assortment of other interactive activities. Plans call for repeating the successful event annually, Penrod said.
Impact extends much further
The inaugural brain health fair is just one of the many ways SIU’s nursing students positively impact community members, Penrod and the students say.
“We do a lot of clinicals, and many of them involve being able to reach out to community members, including elementary students in Cobden,” said Abbie Young, a senior accelerated nursing student from Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Bunting said she and her classmates enjoyed teaching sun safety to the children in Cobden.
“It reinforces the knowledge we get in the classroom by allowing us to take it to others and put it into practical use,” Bunting said. “It also helps us improve our teaching and leadership skills.”
Penrod noted that in addition to classroom learning, research for the myriad special outreach projects, obtaining hands-on experience, SIU’s nursing students also learn to collaborate with other people and units both on and off campus.
On campus, in conjunction with their community outreach, the nursing students led a summer nursing career camp, co-sponsored by Southern Illinois Healthcare (SIH). The 18 high school campers enjoyed a variety of special activities and learning experiences created specifically for them by the nursing students. With assistance from faculty, they led campers on a tour of the cadaver lab and other facilities and taught them basic nursing skills, including how to take vital signs, provide patient care and administer medications (in a simulated environment).
The accelerated BSN students were pinned July 31 at the Student Center, but current students are continuing the tradition of putting their classroom learning into practice. SIU offers three pathways for students to complete their Bachelor of Science in Nursing:
- The traditional 4-year program with a minor in health care management.
- The accelerated BSN in as little as 12 months for students who already have a bachelor’s degree or 70 credit hours toward a degree.
- RN (registered nurse) to BSN, a completely online program, with a health care management minor, aimed at working professionals.
More coming soon
Nursing students are again partnering with SIH, along with the Prairie Heart Institute and Recreational Sports and Services, to sponsor the benefit Hearts in Motion Awareness Walk. Set for Sept. 27 at Becker Pavilion/Campus Lake, the third annual event will feature screenings for participants and activities for children with proceeds going to the SIH Foundation and the Prairie Heart Foundation.
“This project, as well as all of the others our students do, is service-learning that serves the greater community while also helping our students enhance their learning and their research, communication, leadership and practical skills,” Penrod said. “Nurses need to think outside the box, and at SIU, we give them diverse, comprehensive learning experiences to help them do that.”