Undergraduate Nursing Student

Receives Overall Excellence Award

from the MU Sinclair School of Nursing

Contact: Pam Roe
S218 School of Nursing
(573) 884-2690

April 23 , 2007

COLUMBIA , Mo. – Dawn Rupp's interest in nursing began innocently enough at a dance marathon. Although happy working in a lab, she realized she wanted to interact with patients more after becoming involved with Pennsylvania State University's 48-Hour Dance Marathon, a philanthropic activity that benefits children diagnosed with pediatric cancer.

With a bachelor's in biochemistry and molecular biology from Penn State , Rupp's education and volunteer activities made her a perfect candidate for the School's accelerated program.

With her passion for science, aspirations to enter the health-care profession and her strong desire to provide medical care to patients were the deciding factors in Rupp receiving the Accelerated BSN Student Award for Overall Excellence at the MU Sinclair School of Nursing's annual spring banquet on April 13. She is the daughter of Cheryl Rupp and the late Robert Rupp of Gladstone , Missouri .

“Dawn is an innovative, self starter who is a critical thinker, excellent communicator and is genuinely empathetic with her patients,” said Maggie Ackerman, clinical instructor at the School. “She clearly has both the passion and intelligence to succeed in any future nursing education she pursues.”

Rupp plans on becoming a neonatal nurse practitioner. She foresees herself as having the primary role of using her critical and analytical skills to assess, diagnose and deliver care to premature and full-term neonates with life-threatening conditions.

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