An Alabama Nurse's Story

Alabama Nurse,  Jun-Aug 2006  by Walden, Gayle

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

Faulk chose as her committee chair Dr. Tom Wilson in AUM's Department of Political Science and Public Administration.

"The very first class I took was Dr. Wilson's, and I sat there in awe because he was so knowledgeable." She asked him if he though she could succeed in the program. "It was the poor self-esteem thing again," she says. "But at the end of the course, he wrote on my paper, 'You can do this.'And I never looked back." Faulk loved every class: "I couldn't get enough. I was learning so much."

Wilson encouraged her and would send her notes saying "Persevere." With this support, she finished the dissertation process, the written comprehensive exams, and the oral exam.

In May 2003, when Faulk walked across the dais to receive her second AUM degree, her friend and mentor Tom Wilson was there to present her with the doctoral hood.

By that time, she already had an impressive record of research, published articles and presentations.

Two months later, Faulk joined Dr. Mona Ternus, a former colleague in the School of Nursing, in presenting "Health Policy: Local to Global Perspectives," based on their individual doctoral research, at the prestigious International Nursing Research Congress in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.

"With my PhD, I've become the political expert here in the School of Nursing," says Faulk. Her goal is to teach students that political astuteness is a skill as important as any other they will learn.

As proof of their regard for Faulk, her AUM nursing students selected her for the Irma B. Moore Faculty Excellence Award in 2005. It's the second time she has received this honor.

I can't end this story without telling you what Faulk has embarked upon now: learning to play the fiddle. Her father, whom she never had the chance to know, played the fiddle in a band. Just before his death, he'd been selected to play with Hank Williams-an opportunity he didn't live to enjoy.

Faulk uses his 80-year-old fiddle. She says she wants to learn enough to be able to play for her family-her husband, three children, and two grandbabies.

But I think she will also be playing for her dad.

Adapted from a story in AUM Today by GayIe Walden. Reprinted with permission from Gayle Walden and Debbie Faulk.

Copyright Alabama State Nurses' Association Jun-Aug 2006
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved