As a way to show its appreciation, Kent State’s College of Nursing has introduced a free program for nearly 400 registered nurses who volunteer their time and expertise to mentor nursing students.

The online program, PreceptED™ includes a continuing education activities library, created specifically for KSU nurse preceptors.

Nursing volunteers, known as nurse preceptors, work individually with students in a clinical setting to share real-life experiences in the nursing field.

“The preceptor’s role falls between educator and mentor,” said Sharon Cunningham, College of Nursing communications and marketing manager. “This helps bridge the gap between the classroom and real-life nursing care.”

Preceptors have a variety of duties including providing learning opportunities, which meet course objectives, serving as a resource person for students and ultimately serving as positive role model for students in clinical expertise in a professional setting.

Every two years, nurse preceptors are required to obtain a certain number of continuing education hours, or CEs, for licensure renewal. Cunningham said the CE activities “help nurses stay current on new technology, nursing practice and current nursing topics.” 

The online library can save nurse preceptors the cost of up to 12 CE’s each year. Preceptors also benefit from the online setting.

“Nurses work all hours of the day and night, so offering them online is convenient for them,” Cunningham said. “We also wanted to find a way to thank our preceptors’ employers for making it possible for their nursing professionals to be available to precept our students.

The program, which took about six months to launch, will be an ongoing effort to build and maintain for the College of Nursing.

The College of Nursing provides more than 2,000 nursing students courses, and is one of the largest and most comprehensive programs in the nation.

Ashleigh Metzinger is the health reporter, contact her at [email protected].