Alumni Profile - Dr. Rosa Cooper '04
January 2016
A new year brings a new story to share. We encourage all alumni to consider sending us an update on where you are, what you are doing professionally or if you have an interesting item to share. You can follow the example of this month’s profile, Dr. Rosa Cooper ’04, who let us know of all she has accomplished since graduating from the College. We congratulate Dr. Cooper on all her success to date and hope others will stay in touch using our Class Notes form.
What year did you graduate from Delaware County Community College and with what degree?
“I graduated from Delaware County Community College in 2004 with a degree in Applied Science in Nursing. I then returned to school after working as a Licensed Practical Nurse for 10 years.”
Did you pursue further academic goals?
“I continued my education and achieved my Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2007, Master of Science in Nursing in 2009 and finally completed my Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) last August. Though the DNP degree is the highest degree you can achieve in nursing, my interest for learning does not stop there. Since achieving my DNP, I have become Board Certified as a rehabilitation registered nurse, passing my CRRN exam in December.”
Where are you now?
“I now live in Macungie, a quaint little town located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The town is nestled in the midst of dairy farms and corn fields and sits between Allentown and Reading. I’m currently working at Good Shepherd Pediatric Rehabilitation Hospital as part of their management team.”
What is next for you professionally?
“I have been asked by a physician and a colleague to join their research team and be the lead investigator. Without giving too much of the research information away, we will be investigating the quality of transitional care between various levels of the care settings and implementing tools to improve the quality of this segment of healthcare. Also, I belong to the American Nurses Association, Pennsylvania State Nurses Association, as well as the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses. For the ANA, my role is as a mentor for several new nurses throughout the United States, and have been selected for the Ethics Revision Professional Issues Panel Advisory Committee. For the PSNA, I served two terms as a continuing education reviewer, and currently serve on the Nominating Committee for the Board of Directors and the workplace bullying and violence task force.”
What is your favorite memory of your time on campus, outside of the classroom?
“My memories of my time on campus outside the classroom, is the area in the main building where there were computer stations and soft comfy chairs. I used to get there early after work to wait for my class to start; it gave me the opportunity to mentally relax and clear my head from work and prepare my thoughts for class.”
Did you have a favorite professor or class during your studies?
“Professor Marc Henley was my favorite because he helped me to laugh at myself and not take things so literal, learn to assess for all or the majority of clinical manifestations before determining a real problem exists. The class was abnormal psychology, I would be up in the middle of the night reading my text book, and by the time I got to class, I was so upset because I had diagnosed my entire family as abnormal.”
What advice would you give to current students and Alumni to capitalize on the education they received from the College?
“My advice to current students is to soak in as much knowledge that is being shared with you from your professors as possible. I found professors at the College to be dedicated and committed to educating their students. Not only sharing their academic experience but also some of their life’s experience to help the students put it all together. My advice to my fellow alumni: as you continue to build on your future endeavors in life and move forward, don’t forget to reflect back to where it started. I am sure you will experience something down the road that you will think back and say ‘ooh, that’s what my professor meant by that!’
