Celebrating the 2022 CU Nursing Alumni Association DAISY Awardees

Join us in celebrating Taylor Santangelo and Michelle Jhong, the CU Nursing Alumni Association DAISY Awardees for 2022.

2022 Recipient of the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty: Michelle Jhong, MA, BSN Class of 2019

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty was established to demonstrate appreciation to faculty for their commitment and inspirational influence on their nursing students and to say thank you to nursing faculty everywhere. This DAISY Award is awarded to a CU College of Nursing faculty member (including preceptors, clinical faculty, and classroom faculty) that excels in the following criteria:

1. Serves as a role model and mentor for professional nursing.

2. Demonstrates enthusiasm for teaching, learning, and nursing that inspires and motivates students. Demonstrates interest in and respect for learners.

3. Is fair and unbiased in her/his/their treatment of individual students.

4. Practices cultural awareness in teachings and is dedicated to equity in healthcare.

5. Possesses excellent interpersonal skills. Develops collaborative working relationships with students and colleagues.

Nomination by Maanasa Srinivasan, BSN Class of 2021

“Michelle serves as a role model and mentor to many people. She keeps us all engaged and entertained, even when she could tell we were burned out or struggling. Michelle is always encouraging and keeps work interesting!

She is always practicing cultural awareness while teaching. Michelle taught a portion in Health Assessment in a beautiful and in-depth way. She stresses the importance of providing culturally sensitive and unbiased care for all patients.

Finally, Michelle works tirelessly to meet students halfway and does everything she can to help them, especially if they are finding themselves in a difficult situation.”

2022 Recipient of the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Students: Taylor Santangelo, BSN Class of 2023

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Students was created to recognize and celebrate nursing students for the above-and-beyond care and compassion shown to patients and their families. Students with a true calling to nursing never lose sight of the fact that they are treating a human being who needs all the sensitivity and compassion they can bring to them while they are the most vulnerable. This DAISY Award is awarded to a current CU Nursing student (graduate, undergraduate, or doctoral) who excels in the clinical setting and meets the following criteria:

1. Advocates strongly for and demonstrates a commitment to compassionate care of patients and families. Makes a connection with patients, families, and peers by building trust and respect.

2. Has a passion for learning in the profession of nursing.

3. Demonstrates future leadership potential.

Nomination by Alex Morgan, BSN Class of 2023

“Taylor is a pioneer for all CU Anschutz Nursing students by setting an exemplary example of professional and responsible nursing care. She began her healthcare journey working with adults and adolescents at the Eating Disorder Unit at Denver Health making strong connections and empowering patients. Now, she has transitioned into a Nurse Extern role on the Multi-Trauma Unit working with a wide variety of patients and demonstrating her commitment to compassionate care.

Several of the patients she works with have lifelong disabilities, some of which are relatively new diagnoses. These require an extra level of care for patients and loved ones, so she is typically the CNA assigned to these cases.

From the moment she entered the floor as a student during clinical (and later as an employee), she has inspired and gotten involved as a leader in initiatives to further the growth of the unit. During her clinical experiences, she has gained the respect of her peers as a prominent voice.

She excels in one-on-one interactions where she demonstrates humility and encouragement around her peers and supervisors. In working closely with Taylor, she advocates for patient rights the same as she supports all her classmates in achieving their fullest potential.

Taylor excels academically. She ranks as one of the tops of her cohort consistently throughout every class and does so with her immense passion for learning. She is always looking to pursue additional learning opportunities, whether that is in clinical settings, didactic, or going outside of the curriculum to learn through her employment. The nursing profession is characterized by lifelong learning and collaboration, and Taylor embodies these principles even as a student. While she focuses diligently on her own learning, she checks in on her peers periodically to support them through this process, as she finds success when her entire group performs well.

Taylor is currently serving several leadership positions in clubs within the program, such as being the president of the CU Nursing Student Council, being on the board of CUSNA, and volunteering in the DAWN program. Her goals in these programs are centered around student life improvement, as well as being involved in the community. Serving predominant roles in these organizations gives her a voice to elicit change. In clinical settings, she advocates for every person to get learning opportunities, and has received the highest praise from all her preceptors.

Outside of this, she empowers every person she meets with her charisma and kindness. She has taken her personal time to set up one-on-one meetings with students in the class below her to ease their stress regarding entering the nursing program and answer all of their questions. Her enthusiasm for nursing has inspired many students to join these same organizations to form meaningful connections.”

Congratulations to the 2022 CU Nursing Alumni Association DAISY Awardees!