Hello, Everyone.

Welcome to the website for the Western New Mexico University School of Nursing and Kinesiology (SONAK). We are very proud of our students and view each one as the reason for SONAK’s existence. Not surprisingly, we work together to facilitate student success now and in future careers as vital members of the ever-evolving professional healthcare team.

The word “team” effectively describes our faculty and professional staff within SONAK, especially because we work well together and possess the spirit of collaboration, collegiality, fairness, and open communication. These characteristics allow us to grow and to spur one another to beneficial actions, career goals, intellectual pursuits, and leadership in its many forms.

Exciting developments are taking place within SONAK, especially given New Mexico’s designation as  a rural/frontier state. For instance, our newly created and fully-online Master of Science in Nursing/MSN in Community & Rural/Frontier Health program began during the Fall 2019 with the first cohort of graduate nursing students; and, we plan to launch our Post-MSN Family Nurse Practitioner/FNP Certificate program during the Summer 2021.  As we prepare to expand our nursing education programs in the southwestern areas of New Mexico, we look forward to partnerships with our peers in colleges and universities across this beautiful and innovative state.

Innovation is key to the New Mexico Nursing Education Consortium (NMNEC) curriculum, as this offers pre-licensure nursing students the advantages of a statewide, standardized curriculum for participating colleges and universities. Likewise, we continue to adapt our fully-online RN-to-BSN program to current and evidence-based pedagogy; and, we hold in high regard our clinical and community partnerships along with the instrumental role that experiential learning contributes to nursing education.

In concert with our nursing programs and in recognition of the many benefits of physical activity, our Kinesiology program explores the multidimensional role of movement in the human body. We offer undergraduate and graduate courses that are up-to-date with the latest scientific research. We maintain an active research agenda through which we currently investigate the role of physical activity in the health of older adults. Any number of our courses are fully online, and we integrate the most recent research and other forms of scientific inquiry into our program. This is particularly relevant when applied to older adults and the function of exercise as contributing to health and independence.

The School of Nursing and Kinesiology is alive with activity and progress. We are indebted to students, faculty, and professional staff who came before us, who are with us now, and who someday will follow in our footsteps here in the Land of Enchantment.

Thank you for visiting our site.

Prosperidad!

Dr. Kimberly Petrovic, PhD MSN MA RN
Associate Dean for School of Nursing & Kinesiology (SONAK)
Western New Mexico University

Nursing has been offered at WNMU since the 1970s when classes were held as part of an extension program through other universities. In response to requests from health agencies and community members in Grant County, the university began to explore the possibility of establishing an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) program in 1988. In the early 1990s, WNMU began their own Associate Degree Nursing in program, graduating the first class in 1993.

In the 25 years since, we have grown steadily and today we’re proud to offer the capacity to admit 40 students to our pre-licensure program once per year every Fall semester. In 1998, the Grant County community requested that WNMU offer an RN to BSN program. The first semester of the RN to BSN program began in August of 2005 and has been in continuous operation since that time.

Addressing the need for articulation between nursing programs within New Mexico and to produce increasing numbers of BSN graduates in the state, the New Mexico Nursing Education Consortium (NMNEC) was formed in the Fall of 2009. As a fully-participating member of NMNEC, WNMU implemented the common statewide pre-licensure nursing curriculum in the Fall semester of 2015.

On August 9, 2010, the School officially moved into the new School of Nursing building. The 11,000 square foot building includes “Smart” classrooms, a computer testing center, a “Smart”-equipped conference room, and a nursing lab with a state-of-the-art simulation center. All full-time faculty and support staff have their own offices. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold “green” building is a welcome addition to the campus of WNMU, and is a source of pride for students, faculty, and administrators across the university.

As a further demonstration of our ongoing commitment to serving the health needs of southwestern New Mexico, the WNMU School of Nursing & Allied Health is extremely pleased to begin offering a new Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) in Community & Rural/Frontier Health. The fully-online MSN program is currently accepting applications for admission and will begin instruction for the new MSN program in the Summer semester of 2019.

Mission

The mission of the Western New Mexico University – School of Nursing is to promote health and improve the quality of life for diverse populations by providing nursing education which instills the values of community, nursing scholarship, practice and community service.

Vision

The School of Nursing prepares Registered Nurses as clinicians, educators, and nursing leaders to serve in the global community.