As a high school student, Estelle Cloete applied to Lander University because it was a small school with a good nursing program. When she found out it offered a minor in therapeutic horsemanship, she said, "it sold me on coming here immediately."
Cloete, who will graduate in May, has no regrets about the choice she made.
"I have definitely enjoyed my time at Lander," she said.
One of the things that has made Cloete's experience at Lander enjoyable is the tutoring she has done for Lander's Academic Success Center. She has tutored a wide variety of nursing courses, and also hosts a weekly drop-in session for organic and biochemistry students.
Anissa Lawrence, coordinator of tutoring for the ASC, called Cloete "an extraordinary tutor," and predicted that she will be "a caring and compassionate nurse."
Cloete's immediate goal is to pass the National Council Licensure Examination For Nurses, then start her residency on a cardiac floor, but she has other goals beyond that. The area of nursing that she would most like to work in is mother/baby nursing, specifically neonatal intensive care.
"I also plan on getting a master's in nursing with the goal of teaching eventually, as my tutoring and my professors both instilled a love of teaching in me," she said.
Associate Professor of Nursing Ashley Lee, whom Cloete identified as having been inspirational to her, said that Cloete "makes patients feel like they can talk to her - she easily establishes a therapeutic relationship with them."
Assistant Professor of Nursing Dr. Dori Dahlberg, another Lander faculty member singled out for praise, said that Cloete "pursues excellence in all she does."
Dahlberg noted Cloete's extensive tutoring background, calling particular attention to her tutoring in pharmacology in conjunction with Lander's Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS) program.
According to Dahlberg, Cloete's volunteerism with Lander's therapeutic horseback riding program is another good example of her commitment to helping others.
"Estelle truly epitomizes the Lander nurse!" she said.