Mentorship at La Salle propelled her career. Now, she’s flipping the script.

A registered nurse in her second year of La Salle’s Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program, pursuing the Clinical Nurse Leader track, Harris realized she needed to reevaluate the next step in her educational journey. She had just had two children and was navigating motherhood when a staffing change at work gave her the opportunity to take on the informal role of nurse manager at her hospital. 

“I was one of the most seasoned nurses on the unit, so I was asked to help out while we continued to pursue looking for a manager for our unit,” she said.  

After a few months, she realized she enjoyed the work more than she anticipated. Going with her gut, she decided to switch her focus at La Salle to the Nursing Administration degree track, embracing the prospect of continuing to work as a manager. “All the stars aligned,” she said, “and I was right at that junction.” 

Today, she is the clinical director of advanced medical nursing at the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), one of the nation’s top 20 hospitals, according to U.S. News & World Report. Harris’ duties are largely administrative and involve being a leader that helps to shape, guide and carry out the HUP’s nursing strategy and professional practice. She ultimately has oversight of approximately 500 world class nurses at HUP, leading them to deliver world-class care while also professionally developing themselves.   

She credits her accomplished career to the mentorship she received while pursuing her MSN at La Salle. And, she’s made it her mission to spread the wealth.  

“It takes a village to be successful,” she noted. In fact, she made mentorship the subject of her address at La Salle’s 2022 Commencement ceremony for graduate students: “I have experienced the value of mentorship,” she said, “which is why, with every ounce of success I get in life, I mentor someone else.” 

Today, Harris is the clinical director of advanced medical nursing at the Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania, one of the nation’s top 20 hospitals.
 

Now, Harris uses skills she learned from her mentors, and through her La Salle graduate program and work experience, to provide support to her colleagues at HUP. This was especially needed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when nurses faced the realities of a health care crisis.

Harris said she received mentorship from many sources. Academically, assistant professor of nursing Letty Piper, Ed.D., MSN, served as Harris’ adviser in the Nursing Administration degree track and was the person Harris always called when a sensitive question came up. “While my coursework was super important and it taught me about a lot of the technical pieces,” Harris noted, “my mentorship with Letty Piper was what I think set me apart from other people.” During the program, Harris trusted Piper to give her unbiased advice about skills like handling politics and being a good manager. That mentorship helped set Harris apart from other candidates when she was up for her job at HUP, she said.  

An additional source of mentorship and support was Harris’ grandmother, Thelma Arnold, an immigrant from Tobago who entered the U.S. seeking a more prosperous life for future generations. “[My grandmother] left there in order to create opportunities for her family to be able to thrive and grow,” Harris said. After Harris’ mother, Janice Philip, died from ovarian cancer, her grandmother made sure she pursued her educational goals. “She always pushed me. Education was first; nothing else came before it,” Harris said. 

Now, Harris uses skills she learned from her mentors, and through her La Salle graduate program and work experience, to provide support to her colleagues at HUP. This was especially needed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when nurses faced the realities of a health care crisis.  

“Nurses were the only people at the bedsides of these people who were dying,” she remembered. “It’s taken a real toll on the nursing force.” Being able to emotionally and administratively support them was valuable during such a demanding time.  

Harris is also a member of HUP’s Clinical Nurse Mentorship Program, through which she helps MSN students choose a track that meets their career goals. Being able to lead, support and guide the students’ nursing practice was valuable during such a demanding and unpredictable time. 

“Once a mentor, always a mentor,” she said.  

—Rebecca Docter