For Morgan Ball ’22, Angel Harris ’22 and Teresa Moorleghen ’22, students in the Linfield University-Good Samaritan School of Nursing, receiving a Daisy Award wasn’t so much about the award itself as where it came from – their peers and community. Daisy Awards recognize extraordinary nursing students and faculty, with nominations coming from within participating institutions.
The School of Nursing held its annual awards ceremony Monday, May 9 on the Portland campus to honor this year’s student and faculty Daisy Award recipients, as well as Portland campus staff awards. Staff awards were recognized at the same ceremony.
Ball, a senior from southern Oregon completing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing, said Linfield’s small class sizes felt comfortable coming from a smaller town and that added to her ability to make an impact.
“The Daisy Award makes me feel like I am in the right place and making a difference at Linfield and in the workplace,” Ball said.
Harris, a Corvallis-based student in finishing her Master of Science in Nursing , returned to school after years as a bedside nurse. It was a difficult choice to make at the time, but it set her on a path to pursue issues of diversity, equity and inclusion in healing communities.
“It’s validation,” Harris said of the award. “It means I can still be a successful nurse even though I’m not at the bedside any longer.”
Moorleghen, a student in the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, decided on nursing as a second career. She chose Linfield because of its rich history as the oldest continuously running nursing school in the Pacific Northwest.
“Receiving this award is confirmation that by following my heart and my mind, I have arrived on the right path,” Moorleghen said. “It might sound funny, but this award makes me feel brave.”
Faculty winners of the Daisy Award were Paul Smith, Alexis Artuso and Kimberly Kintz ’87.
Smith, an associate professor and associate dean in the School of Nursing, has been at Linfield since 2014. He takes his new role as interim dean of the school June 6. He will be promoted to professor on July 1. One student nominator wrote of Smith, “He cares so deeply for students and continues to check in on Linfield alumni. He truly is passionate about the course content and teaches it in a way that makes it clear to understand and fun to learn.”
Artuso has served as an adjunct faculty member at Linfield since 2020. A nominating student described Artuso as “a true exemplar of a supportive, caring instructor.”
Kintz, an associate professor of nursing, has been at Linfield since 2011. She will be promoted to professor on July 1. One student nominator wrote, “I would have struggled tremendously if not for her support, reassurance and positive attitude.”
In addition, a series of School of Nursing staff awards were distributed at the event. Winners were:
- Diversity and Inclusion Award – Mackenzie Larson ’16, assistant director of student life. “[She] advocates for diversity and inclusion through an approach that balances firmness, kindness, and respect in a way that gets results,” wrote a nominator.
- Inspiration Award – Ian Redding, senior support specialist. “They care about the quality of work we all do and recognizes it would be hard to meet the standards we wish to achieve without their spirt of cooperation and concern for our students. It is an honor to work with them,” wrote a nominator.
- Leadership Award – Nina Tall, director of Portland Campus Operations. Tall was noted for her “boundless grace as a leader” and “effectively taking charge of situations around campus, and not being afraid to do the dirty work to solve the problem at hand.”
- Vision and Mission Award – Amanda Bergman, simulation operations specialist. She “consistently goes above and beyond their duties to create simulation tools,” one nominator wrote.
