Hello! I’m Sara Turpel, the Dean and Nursing Administrator for Nursing at Broward College. I have been a Registered Nurse since 1984, earning RN licensure after graduating with a diploma in nursing from Bishop Clarkson College of Nursing in Omaha, Nebraska. I started my career as a Peds nurse in Southern California, and after a few years there began taking assignments across the country as a travel nurse and ended up in South Florida. I focused on Pediatrics for several years and then moved to adult critical care to broaden my clinical experience.
With the understanding that I would need to add a baccalaureate degree to advance in my profession, I earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Florida International University in 1996. When the hospital I was working for started down the path to Magnet status, I went back to school to earn a Master of Science in Nursing degree from the University of Phoenix in 2005. Prior to earning a Master’s degree, I also earned the Pediatric CCRN credential. When I switched to adult critical care nursing, I took and passed the adult CCRN exam. I am an advocate of specialty certification for nurses and these two credentials are the ones of which I am most proud.
After earning a Master’s degree, I became interested in teaching in online nursing courses and was able to find a position as an online educator. I’ve been teaching online since 2008 and don’t plan to ever give that up. A casual conversation with a nurse leader led to my decision to pursue a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing degree and I earned the PhD credential in 2017. Earning a PhD created a desire in me that I never would have thought I’d have – the desire to influence nursing education from a leadership role. I’ve been fortunate to serve as the Dean for Broward College’s Associate of Science in Nursing and Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees and the Health Sciences Simulation Center since January 2019.
Welcome to my blog – I’m happy to have you here!