Holding on to the Star: Celebrating 100 Years of the Frontier Nursing Service is a three-part series covering the history of Frontier Nursing University. In this series, we explore the Frontier Nursing Service’s history from 1925 to 2025 through a chronological journey, highlighting the enduring themes that capture both the core mission that FNS stakeholders have consistently embraced, and the many ways that the service has changed. Read about the "Pressing Need for an Innovative Educationa...| Frontier Nursing University
Holding on to the Star: Celebrating 100 Years of the Frontier Nursing Service is a three-part series covering the history of Frontier Nursing University. In this series, we explore the Frontier Nursing Service’s history from 1925 to 2025 through a chronological journey, highlighting the enduring themes that capture both the core mission that FNS stakeholders have consistently embraced, and the many ways that the service has changed. Read about The War Years, Major Changes for the FNS Commun...| Frontier Nursing University
In this article, we explore the Frontier Nursing Service’s history from 1925 to 2025 through a chronological journey, highlighting the enduring themes that capture both the core mission that FNS stakeholders have consistently embraced, and the many ways that the service has changed. Indeed, whether we examine FNS leaders’ and staff members’ goals and accomplishments in the early years or recent years, we see throughlines of a focus on rural health, a dedication to primary care of the fa...| Frontier Nursing University
For Auriel Ciccarelli, CNM, WHNP, her journey in midwifery and women's healthcare began with a passion for service and a deep understanding of the value of community, both of which were rooted in her upbringing. Ciccarelli’s professional journey has taken her from working as an RN in her home state of Pennsylvania to working as a CNM and ultimately as a WHNP. Along the way, she’s carried with her the spirit of connection and support she found at FNU.| Frontier Nursing University
FNU graduate Lauren Brannon has dedicated her career to championing accessible, affirming healthcare for underserved communities, particularly those in the LGBTQ+ community. Brannon obtained a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) with a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) specialty from FNU. Brannon practices at Atrium Health Primary Care Northcross Family Medicine in Huntersville, North Carolina. Patients seek her out due to her expertise in gender-affirming care.| Frontier Nursing University
FNU graduate Brandi Milton, NP-C, has always been drawn to helping others. Inspired by her grandmother who was a nurse, she knew from a young age that she wanted to work in healthcare. Today, that passion has led her to establish her own wellness practice: Conqr Aesthetics & Wellness in Atlanta.| Frontier Nursing University
Maggie Wilk is a two-time graduate of FNU, obtaining both her DNP and PMHNP-BC. She is a U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officer stationed at Perry Point (Md.) VA Medical Center working as a PMHNP. Wilk has earned much recognition, including being named an American Psychiatric Nurses Association 2022 Board of Directors Student Scholar and receiving the 2021 NIH Director’s Award. Wilk works in a fast-paced outpatient setting providing much-needed mental health care.| Frontier Nursing University
Growing up in her hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Dr. Sandi Mellor, DNP (Class 30), APRN, FNP-BC, knew at a young age that she wanted to pursue a career in healthcare so she could “help people get healthy and stay healthy.” Determined to do just that, she took a medical-surgical nursing class while still in high school. After high school, she worked towards her associate degree in nursing and worked as a nurse for three years for the National Health Authority in Bedford, England, where her h...| Frontier Nursing University
Susan VanZandt, APRN, FNP-C, AG-ACNP, earned her MSN in FNU’s Family Nurse Practitioner program in 2018. VanZandt is a gastrointestinal (G.I.) hospitalist in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has worked in both clinical and hospital settings and various urgent care facilities. VanZandt encounters patients with a spectrum of healthcare needs. From managing cardiovascular patients on anticoagulation with gastrointestinal bleeds to caring for those with alcoholic cirrhosis in need of urgent liver transplan...| Frontier Nursing University
FNU graduate Dr. Cheyenne Allen, DNP, PMHNP-BC, serves as a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) in private practice while also lending her expertise as undergraduate nursing faculty at Pennsylvania Western University. Her dual role allows her to not only provide direct care, but also to mold the next generation of mental health nursing professionals.| Frontier Nursing University
Since graduating from FNU in 2009, Tammie McDonald-Brouwer, CNM, WHNP, has spent the last 15 years compassionately serving the healthcare needs of women in her community. McDonald-Brouwer earned her MSN in Nurse-Midwifery and her Women's Health Care Nurse Practitioner Post-Graduate Certificate from FNU. Balancing her studies with raising four children, she said she appreciated the flexibility FNU offered, allowing her to complete her coursework from home.| Frontier Nursing University