From students to professors: Something keeps drawing Bronco nurses back

For the last 70 years, Boise State has been equipping nurses for a range of careers after graduation. Yet of all the roles a nurse can take on, former students consistently choose to return to teach.

"That is a sign of quality," said Marian Graham, a staff member in the school from 1989-2022. "You've done something, the faculty have done something, over and above average when people say, 'I want to go back there.'"

Currently, 30% of the school's full-time faculty are also alumni. Read some of their stories and find out what makes Boise State worth returning to.

A relationship-driven community

Veronica McDuffee graduated in 2018 from Boise State's on-campus Bachelor in Nursing program. When she was a student, she remembers there being a much smaller cohort - the program expanded to 100-student cohorts in 2025 - but the same supportive faculty and staff, excellent clinical experiences and top-notch curriculum.

Her most fond memories are of the relationships she built with her cohort, faculty and staff.

Veronica McDuffee when she was a student.

"It was through those relationships that I began to truly believe in myself and believe that I earned a seat at the table, and that I was capable of so much more than I ever thought," she said.

One of those relationships would later inform her of an open position at Boise State.

"I honestly never imagined I'd land the job, but I'm so grateful I did," McDuffee said. She returned to teach because she finds deep joy in supporting and encouraging new nurses.

"Becoming a nurse was transformative for me, and I wanted to be part of that journey for others - to help them see the deeper purpose behind the work and become the kind of thoughtful, competent nurses our profession needs," she said. "Coming back to Boise State made it even more special because I could do this work at the place that shaped my own nursing education, with colleagues who had once been my mentors."

Veronica McDuffee (right) returned to teach at Boise State in 2021.

Strong relationships have shaped clinical assistant professor Tracee Chapman's career, too. Before she was colleagues with professor Kelley Connor, Connor's daughters babysat her children.

Chapman also credits associate professor Max Veltman for launching her now-speciality practice as a forensic nurse, since he helped her secure an internship during nursing school.

"They were really supportive professors," she said. "The relationship with them is really what I remember. And when one of those two says, 'Do you want to come back?' Heck yeah, I do."

An inspiring mentor

Assistant professor Ryoko Kausler experienced her first taste of nursing research when Dr. Jane Grassley asked her to be her undergraduate research assistant.

Grassley, the Joann "Jody" DeMeyer Endowed Chair at the time, had spotted Kausler studying in the Student Union Building a few times during what she called her "Diet Coke break." One day she struck up a conversation, and before long, they had a working relationship that sharpened both their skills.

"I'm a very big picture kind of person, but she is really good at the details, and she was so helpful for me with that," Grassley said. "She and I had a good relationship because we were different enough that we complemented each other in our strengths. The other thing was that she was just like a sponge."

Dr. Jane Grassley and Ryoko Kausler in 2017.

Kausler is a double Bronco in nursing, earning both her bachelor's ('13) and master's ('16) from Boise State. She studies postpartum depression and credits Grassley for her interest in the subject. "She sparked the idea," Kausler said.

Kausler went on to earn her Ph.D in 2022. But why did she choose to return to teach and research at Boise State?

Part of it was the culture. Kausler recalls experiencing two major family crises while a student, and both times, faculty demonstrated genuine care for her as an individual. In one instance, her parents experienced a huge earthquake and she couldn't get ahold of them; yet her instructors checked in with her to make sure she was okay and donated to the disaster relief fund.

"That was like 'Wow, they really care,'" Kausler said. She decided she wanted to contribute to a supportive environment like the one she had experienced. And now as faculty, Kausler still loves the School of Nursing's culture. "I don't think it's changed," she said.

Kausler and one of her research assistants at the 2025 Western Institute of Nursing conference.

Another reason is Kaulser's memories of working alongside Grassley. She recalls each time she would thank Grassley for her help: "She'd always say, 'In the future, you do the same.'"

So in the spirit of passing it on, Kausler takes on undergraduate research assistants, too.

"I hope I can make the same difference to the future students, that's what I really want to see," Kausler said. "Pay it forward."

A program that that shaped his life

Assistant professor Edy Zepeda graduated from Boise State's on-campus nursing program over ten years ago. He learned medical-surgical nursing under Eldon Walker and can still picture the very row and seat he occupied in the classroom.

"I just remember sitting back and saying, 'Eldon is so smart, I can't believe he just remembers this on the top of his head,'" Zepeda said. "I remember saying, 'I'm going to come back and teach this class. I'm going to have a nursing career that allows me to teach the way he's teaching us.'"

It was a full-circle moment for Zepeda when he did just that.

"I just knew that I was supposed to be back here," he said. "I'm just really grateful, really happy to be back here at my alma mater and teaching the class that pretty much made me into a nurse."

Edy Zepeda co-teaches the healthcare innovations with Sarah Llewellyn.

Zepeda absolutely loves teaching, and he's motivated to pass on the same quality education he received. But for him, teaching is about more than just passing on skills or knowledge.

"I think because Boise State is so embedded as part of this community, I guess you could say that we're also looking to make community members who are secret first responders, who are going to give back to our community somehow, who are going to be the ideal Idahoan," Zepeda said.

"There's just something special here, so we're trying to make fantastic alumni who are going to try to give back eventually."

His voice radiates pride and gratitude when he talks about the education he received.

"I feel like nursing has just made me a better person," Zepeda said, "and I owe that all to my alma mater. I feel like that's where I learned everything. And how can you not have immense gratitude over something that shaped the rest of your life, essentially?"

Unbeatable flexibility and student support

For Jen Mimish and April Howell, alumni of the RN-BS Online Completion program, choosing Boise State for their education was about flexibility. Choosing to return as faculty was all about culture.

Mimish first attended Boise State for respiratory care in 2004 - "I just love Boise State; it was a good experience when I was here," she said - and when her career shifted to nursing, she returned as an online student.

Christine Larsen (left) is a 2018 alum who also returned to teach in the School of Nursing.

The RN to BS completion program is ideal for associate degree nurses who want to earn their bachelor's. As an online student balancing a job and a growing family, Mimish considered the program workload "really doable."

Then in the midst of her studies, the unthinkable happened. Mimish experienced a family crisis, and what stood out to her was how caring and understanding the faculty and staff were.

"They were really supportive," she said. "I graduated on time, managed to get through that."

Mimish appreciated the program's flexibility and that students have the option to take a break from their studies or decrease their workload if they have responsibilities outside of school that need more of their attention.

"That really says a lot about how supportive they're trying to be for the non-traditional student," she said.

Mimish went on to become a nurse practitioner, midwife and an associate professor at the College of Western Idaho. She came back to Boise State in 2025.

"I loved my CWI family, I just felt like I needed to take the next step for me professionally," Mimish said. "It's been a great move."

A student-centered culture

Howell was another non-traditional student, a stay-at-home mom with no college experience until she was 40. She became a licensed practical nurse "just to see if I liked nursing," Howell said, and she "loved it."

Midway through earning an associate's degree, Howell ended up in Boise State's RN-BS completion program because she could "start right away" by dual enrolling. And while online students can sometimes feel isolated or secondary to in-person student programming, Howell said she "never felt that."

"I always felt like this was one of the best programs," Howell said. "I worked full time, I had a family, there's no way I could go to campus to get my bachelor's degree. So to me, it was just perfect."

Howell's return back to Boise State started while she was completing her Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP).

"I was really wishing I would have gone to Boise State and had the cohort model, the on-campus experiences, instead of the fast track I was on," she said.

April Howell returned to teach at Boise State because of the student-centered culture.

Howell talked with Pam Gehrke, the program director at the time, to see what she could do to transfer in. Gehrke made a student-centered recommendation.

"She encouraged me to stay at the program I was at, because I would have had to basically start over with Boise State's program," Howell said. "She was so kind and thoughtful, the most caring person."

Howell appreciated Gehrke's honesty, and after she graduated with her DNP, she reached back out to see if Boise State was hiring. "That was my first place to go looking for a job, just because I loved the culture that she represented," Howell said. She joined the School of Nursing in 2021.

"I'm really thankful that I chose Boise State for my next segment of my journey," Howell said. "And the sky's the limit."

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