The Nursing Alumni Society Reunion recognized several individuals for their professional contributions to the nursing profession, these outstanding individuals were nominated by their peers for their contributions to the profession. The College of Health is very proud of our Alumni and the contributions they make to better patient care in a variety of clinical settings.

 

Emerging Professional Nurse Award 2024

Josh Young, BSN, RN
He graduated in the summer of 2018 Cum Laude from BSU Nursing. One of the faculty stated in clinical class 340, he was the leader of the clinical group. He nurtured his classmates while caring for his patients at IU Health BMH. He understood critical thinking and knowing his patient. The most impressive thing about Josh is how he shows empathy to those whom he serves.

He is actively volunteering in wellness screenings in his community, as well as COVID-19 vaccine clinics and truck pulls for charity events. He has been a Daisy Award Nominee three times and won the award in 2022. He also volunteers with the city of Anderson for their fruit markets serving this community. In 2024, he was nominated for the best nurse in Madison County. He is certified in Trauma care and CCRN. He is engaged as an alumnus, maintaining contact with several classmates.

The Outstanding Nurse Alumni Award 2024

 

Christina Schemenaur, MSN,RN

She is a Jay County native who graduated from Jay County High School in 1996 and Ball State University in 2001, where she received a Bachelor of Science with a focus in Nursing. Upon graduation, she worked as a Registered Nurse in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at Ball Memorial Hospital (now IU Health Ball) in Muncie, Indiana. While at Ball, Christina served in several leadership positions, including dayshift charge nurse, Unit Based Counsel chair, and interim manager for both the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and Intensive Care Unit.  Christina served in the role of manager of the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit from 2012-2019. While serving as manager, Christina assisted in the development and implementation of the Rapid Response Nurse and Clinical Advisor roles.  She is also a past president of the White River Chapter of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses. Christina has been a presenter on critical care, leadership, and research topics at the annual NTI and AONL conferences for several years. In 2019 Christina transitioned to the role of the Director of Clinical Operations at IU Health Jay in Portland, Indiana. During her time at IU Health Jay, she completed her master’s degree in nursing-Leadership and Management from WGU in 2020. Also, in 2020 she was named the Chief Nursing Officer of IU Health Jay Hospital. In 2021, Christina was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in addition to her role as Chief Nursing Officer.  In her current role Christina led her team to obtain the Pathway to Excellence designation in 2023.  She is a site coordinator on a system-wide research study on care model redesign. She recently assisted in the development and implementation of a Leader Transition to Practice Program.

 

Renee Twibell, PhD, RN,CNE
She graduated from Olivet Nazarene University in 1975 in Nursing.  She pursued her M.A in Nursing Education from Ball State University in 1984.  She received her PhD in Nursing research from Indiana University in 1992.

She is the Nurse Scientist at Indiana University Health in the East Central Region and Associate Professor Emerita in the School of Nursing at Ball State University. She leads the integration of research into nursing practice at IU Health, while continuing to teach in the graduate and undergraduate nursing programs at Ball State. In her regional directorship role, she participates in many statewide committees for nursing through Indiana University Health. She serves as principal investigator and co-investigator on many research projects and publishes and presents research on quality and safety issues. She was President of the White River Chapter of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses and has served on national committees for critical care nursing for two decades, including the national Beacon Award Committee. Dr. Twibell was selected as a Mentor in the inaugural Geriatric Nursing Leadership Academy, sponsored by the John A. Hartford Foundation and Sigma Theta Tau, International. She was honored as Indiana Nurse Educator of the Year in 2014. She supports accreditation processes in clinical and educational settings and consults nationally on the topic of family-centered care during critical illness. Dr. Twibell was recently selected as a representative of Indiana University Health to participate in the prestigious Implementation Science Program through Ohio State University. She is frequently invited to speak at community, regional, national and international conferences.

In her spare time, Dr. Twibell has 45 refereed publications, 121 published abstract in conference proceedings and journals and has done 282 professional presentations. She has completed 46 research/evidence-based practice projects and secured several internal and external funded grants.

 Dr. Twibell has received many honors and awards which include:

• Research Publication of the Year 2023, MEDSURG Journal of Nursing
• Certified Nurse Educator, 2007-present, National League for Nursing
• Advancement of Nursing Award, State of Indiana, Salute to Nurses
• Outstanding Nursing Faculty Award, Ball State University (three times)
• Values Leadership Award, Indiana University Health
• Values Leadership Award for Nursing, East Central Region, Indiana University Health

Lifetime Achievement Award 2024

Susan K. Newbold, PhD, RN, NI-BC, FAAN, FHIMSS, FAMIA

She is the first recipient of this award.  She is a Consultant in Nursing and Healthcare Informatics and Director of the Nursing Informatics Boot Camp, Franklin, TN.
She received her BSN from Ball State in 1976.  Moving to Maryland for her husband’s job with the US Government, she completed her masters and PhD at the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
She has experience in the hospital, vendor, consulting, and academic worlds.  Her hospital experiences progressed from staff nurse, to Assistant Health Nurse to Head Nurse to Nursing Supervisor and EMR Coordinator.  She worked for Healthcare Technology Vendors in Virginia, Maryland, and Melbourne, Australia.  She worked for a major consulting firm in Washington, DC.

Among her positions in Academia, she was an Adjunct Faculty Member at Excelsior College while completing her master’s and PhD degrees.  Upon graduation from her PhD program, Susan and her husband moved to Nashville, TN. where she worked as an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing.
She now works primarily conducting a two-day continuing education course in Nursing Informatics at various locations in the US.  Dr. Newbold is ANCC Board Certified in Nursing Informatics and initiated the first review course in nursing informatics in 1995.  Dr. Newbold is a long-term donor to the BSU School of Nursing and currently serves on the College of Health Sciences Advisory Board.
Among her accomplishments, Susan is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, HIMSS, and AMIA.  Identified as a pioneer in nursing informatics, Susan co-edited five books and has written numerous articles on informatics topics.  Susan was a keynote speaker in the first nursing informatics conferences held in Taiwan and Singapore and has consulted in informatics in the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Qatar, Singapore, Slovenia, and Taiwan.

Among her many honors, Susan is the recipient of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing 2019 Virginia K. Saba Nursing Informatics Leadership Award presented by Dr. Saba in Maryland.  She was bestowed the 2023 AMIA Virginia K. Saba Informatics Signature Award, presented at the AMIA Annual Symposium in New Orleans, LA.  Dr. Newbold was selected for the Ball State University, School of Nursing, Muncie, IN., Outstanding Nursing Alumni Award in 1995.  She was selected for the School of Nursing Lifetime Achievement Award in 2024.  She is the first to receive this award.

Dr. Newbold is an active member of the American Academy of Nursing, American Medical Informatics Association, American Nurses Association, American Nursing Informatics Association, HIMSS, NLN and Sigma.

She lives with her husband and two Shetland sheepdogs in Franklin, TN.