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Online Degrees

Part of Western Governors University

August 18, 2016

Student Success

Graduates receive “capstone excellence award."

WGU commencement ceremony

This month 167 students who completed their capstones in the first half of 2016 are being recognized for their outstanding work. 

To celebrate student excellence in the completion of this important endeavor Western Governors University (WGU) grants “Capstone Excellence Awards.”  

Since November 2015 the Awards have been presented through a continuous nomination/selection process.  Capstone Faculty Evaluators nominate deserving capstone projects.  The finalists’ work is then reviewed and approved by the Evaluation Management in each College. 

Often students’ capstones were chosen because they provided an excellent example of (1) expressing ingenuity (creativity, originality, initiative, or resourcefulness), (2) exhibiting mastery (higher competency, true craftsmanship, or proficiency), or (3) enabling synergy (creating greater value by serving individuals, an organization, or their community).

Besides the nominating statement and examination of the completed capstone project, the reviewers consider:

  • Did the candidate earn highest scores on most aspects of the final capstone rubric?
  • Was the candidate nominated for an Excellence Award for a prior capstone task?
  • Did the candidate average two submissions or less on all capstone tasks?
  • Were appropriate Originality scores obtained?
  • Was the capstone completed within a reasonable amount of time?

Note: the importance and relevance of these criteria differ somewhat by degree program.

The capstone is the culminating degree project where WGU students integrate all of their program competencies.  It represents our candidates’ best work, and most of their projects are archived with student permission, thereby available to other students, graduates, mentors, and accreditors to view.  See below the list of WGU students (now graduates) who received the Capstone Excellence Award for their work during the first half of 2016.  You can also link from there directly to these students’ nomination statement and archived work in the Capstone Excellence Archive, accessible through WGU authentication.

This recognition is noted on the recipients’ WGU transcript, and they receive a Capstone Excellence Award certificate.  This achievement is also recognized in various University publications.  For aspiring students seeking future “Capstone Excellence Award” recognition, please review the submissions in the Capstone Excellence Archive and discuss criteria with your Student Mentor and Capstone Course Mentor to guide your capstone efforts.

 

College of Business

Vicky Ashlock

BS Business - Accounting

[Entity Name] Business Plan

Richard Logsdon

BS Business - IT Management

[Entity Name] Business Plan

Don Flitton

Master of Business Administration

Regional Manager Succession Program

Catherine Richmond

Master of Business Administration - Healthcare Management

Strategies to Improve the Patient Experience of Care on a Critical Care Unit

Kimberly Chapman

Master of Business Administration - Information Technology

Supply Utilization and Revenue Capture Process Improvement (not archived)

William Gardner

Master of Business Administration - Management and Strategy

Hospital-ity

Lola Hall

Master of Business Administration - Management and Strategy

[Entity Name]: Improvements in Technology, Marketing, and Customer Service

Jehil Trivedi

Master of Business Administration - Management and Strategy

Strategy to Improve Profit Margins and Revenue for Company A (not archived)

Mark Huffman

MS - Management and Leadership

Site Leadership Effectiveness

Lindsay Smith

MS - Management and Leadership

Skills Based Volunteering At [Entity Name]

Victoria Kogan

BS Business - Accounting

[Entity Name] Business Plan (not archived)

Werner Mueller

BS Business - Sales Management

[Entity Name] Executive Management Sales Report

Donna Harkreader

Master of Business Administration - Healthcare Management

Primary Stroke Certification at [Hospital Name]

Eric Bennick

Master of Business Administration - Information Technology

Improving the use of IT in Medical Simulation (not archived)

Brian Dyck

Master of Business Administration - Management and Strategy

Inventory Management

David Georger

Master of Business Administration - Management and Strategy 

[Entity Name]: Increasing Efficiency through Automation

Danielle MacLean

Master of Business Administration - Management and Strategy

[Entity Name] Credit Union (not archived)

David Cook

MS - Management and Leadership

No Title

College of Health Professions

Stacy Black

MS Nursing - Education

Skin-to-Skin Care After Cesarean Delivery

Judith Clark

MS Nursing - Education

Perfecting the Art and Science of Patient Handoffs

Kayla Cross

MS Nursing - Education

Suicide Risk Assessment Competency

Jessica Ellis

MS Nursing - Education

Detection and Management of the Alcohol Withdrawal Patient

Robin Infinger

MS Nursing - Education

Metabolic Monitoring in Patients Receiving Second Generation Antipsychotic Medications (not archived)

Shanna Krausz

MS Nursing - Education

Transforming Care at the Bedside

Jaeca Malacara

MS Nursing - Education

Using Teach-Back in Triage (not archived)

Antoinette (Toni) McCormick

MS Nursing - Education

Promoting Awareness for Evidence Based Practice LGBT Education

Jessica Monaghan

MS Nursing - Education

Quantifying Blood Loss after Vaginal Deliveries: A Practice Change Proposal (not archived)

Alicia Rains

MS Nursing - Education

Implement Bedside Reporting for Staff Nurses

Lori Smit

MS Nursing - Education

Culture of Safety (not archived)

Kateri Spinella

MS Nursing - Education

Medication Reconciliation in Hospice Patients (not archived)

Leslie Stephenson

MS Nursing - Education

Pregnancy Education for the ICU Nurse

Marie Gladys Villariza

MS Nursing - Education

The Importance of Staff Education on Fall Prevention (not archived)

Cheryl Armijo

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Improving Fall Prevention in a Two Hospital System

Jason Blevins

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Standardization of the Urgent Care Centers (not archived)

Jenny Borje

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Sleep Deprivation: Patient and Night Shift Nurses Safety

Barry Boyce

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Development of an Emergency Department Case Management Program Standard

Angela Cantwell

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Decisions for Interventions in Behavioral Health: Restraints as a Last Resort

Rebecca Collins-Squibb

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Staff Retention Program

Melinda DeHoyos

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Implementation of Early Skin-to-Skin Contact after Cesarean Delivery

Robin Donaldson

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Patient Education for Management of Home Medications (not archived)

John Floyd

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Pressure Ulcer Prevention

Dawn Galloway

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Development of a Bedside Report Tool (not archived)

Chris Greenwood

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Reducing Patient Falls Through the Use of Centralized Video Monitoring (not archived)

Amber Hoover

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Decreasing Post Angiography Bed Rest

LaTonya Johnson

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Triage to Treatment: Improving Communication in the Emergency Department

Kimberly Judd

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Reducing Catheter Associated Urinary Tract Infections in an Acute Care Setting

Kacey Larsen

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Anaphylaxis Education in Schools

Elvia Llanas-Lopez

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Bedside Handoff Report: A Scripted Approach

Dwight McCalla

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Employee Recognition Program: A QI Initiative

Nicole McCaughin

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Implementation of Bedside Reporting

Kasey Mullins

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Building a Culture of Shared Governance Through the Use of a Nurse Practice Council (not archived)

Jean Ripley

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Improving Patient Satisfaction with decreased nurse to patient ratios

Andrew Screnchuk

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Re-implementation of the "M" in the Box Medication Education Method for Registered Nurses (not archived)

Anna Steffe

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Patient Hand Hygiene

Molly Tillgren

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Development of a Policy for Prone Positioning of ARDS Patients in the ICU

Maria Angelie Velasco

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Patient Experience Program: Improving Safety and Satisfaction Scores

Renee Walton

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Prevention of Inadvertent Intraoperative Fires: A Patient Safety Issue

Kean Zhang

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Enhance Hourly Rounding by Nurse Leader Rounds (not archived)

Susan Roeser

BS - Health Informatics

Bar Code Medication Administration: A Nursing Perspective

Roxanne Bowers

MS Nursing - Education

Early Detection of Sepsis

Margaret Chege

MS Nursing - Education

Improving Post Open Heart Surgery Patient Education

Earlene Cooper

MS Nursing - Education

Student Support and Advising Online (not archived)

Joanne (Jo) Falsetta

MS Nursing - Education

The use of Palliative Care Triggers in Trauma/SICU

Lindsey Gearllach

MS Nursing - Education

Cardiac Medication Competence for Medical-Surgical Nurses

Barbara Harvey

MS Nursing - Education

Tuning In On Alarm Fatigue (not archived)

Mika Hollingsworth

MS Nursing - Education

Education on Fall Risk & Prevention

Lisa Houston

MS Nursing - Education

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Education Module

Katherine Hutchison

MS Nursing - Education

Combating Nurse Alarm Fatigue (not archived)

JoDean Kile

MS Nursing - Education

Simulation Training for Nursing Students in Obstetrics (not archived)

Chipiko Malekano

MS Nursing - Education

Sepsis Education is the Key to Reducing Mortality

Kasey Nestor

MS Nursing - Education

Discharge Instructions for Skin Tear Management

Carol Powell

MS Nursing - Education

Obstetric Hemorrhagic Event Plan

Tara Saulter

MS Nursing - Education

Hazards of Surgical Plume (not archived)

Melaney Stricklin

MS Nursing - Education

Educating Nurses About CMQCC's Preeclampsia Toolkit

Erin Allen

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Appropriate Vascular Access Selection for Hospital Inpatients

Joyce Bennett

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Improve Communication Through Change of Shift Tool

Jennifer Bowerman

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Improving Patient Communication (not archived)

Brenda Brooks

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Impacting Hospital Discharge of the High-risk Neonate through Effective Transprofessional Care Coordination (not archived)

Michael Burdick

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Compassion Fatigue in the Emergency Department: Changing a Culture

Nikita Cobb

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Retention of Emergency Room Novice Nurses (not archived)

Sharon Crawford

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

An Evidence-Based Practice Change in the Surgical Department

Jamie Deckman

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Post Operative Management of Patient's at Risk for OSA

Amber Dillon

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Cardiovascular Fall Risk Identification

Ann Ealy

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

More Than The Phone (not archived)

April Farris

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Unit-Based Council: A Shared Governance Improvement Plan to Retain Nurses (not archived)

Cherie Frame

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Nurse Driven Foley Removal

Lindsay Garcia

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Skin-to-Skin Contact after Cesarean Birth (not archived)

Frances (Frankie) Hoffler

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Targeting Sepsis in the Emergency Department: Evidence Based Care for Improved Patient Care (not archived)

Kristen Ilaban
MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Burnout in Psychiatric Nursing: "Regain the Flame" (not archived)

Shannon Johnson

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

The Journey to Nursing Excellence Through Shared Governance

Darcie Koffer

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Outcomes-Based Education

Christina Lundberg

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Reducing Burnout Among Med/Surg Nurses

Andrea McCarron

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Oral Intake in Labor and Delivery

Wynema McElveen

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Evidence for Best Practice: Optimizing Heart Failure Reduction Strategies through a Nurse-Led Heart Failure Program (not archived)

Brandon Nance

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

OR/PACU Handoff Project

Michele Rivera

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Fire Risk Assessment during Procedural "Time Out" (not archived)

Bobbi Solarski

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Leader Toolkit to Address Compassion Fatigue

Kristen Stevens

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Keeping Patients Safe through a Just Culture

Victoria Vandenberg

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Control of Off-Label Use of Medical Devices: A Process Improvement Project

Gloria Victorino

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Updating the Rapid Response Team Policy (not archived)

Starla Wilkes

MS Nursing - Leadership and Management

Standardized Preoperative Patient Hand-off

Teachers College

Lynda Seneff

M.Ed. - Instructional Design

MED, Instructional Design Capstone Written Project (not archived)

Jesse Kinkead

MA - Science Education (5-12), Biology

No Title

Tanisha Sommerville-Knight

MS - Curriculum and Instruction

Use of Shared Reading to Improve Reading Performance

Lori Lynch

MS - Educational Leadership

Increase Student Achievement in Math

Luke Anderson

M.Ed. - Learning and Technology

Using Technology to Impact Students in Science Inquiry (not archived)

Johanna Kirkegaard-Blue

M.Ed. - Learning and Technology

Child Pedestrian Safety Education (not archived)

Juan Recinos

M.Ed. - Learning and Technology

Spanish Verb Conjugation

Tracey Mikos

MS - Educational Leadership Creating a

Blended Learning Environment using OneNote Class Notebooks

College of Information Technology

Jeff Arthur

BS - Information Technology

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure for Application Delivery

Robert Lake

BS - Information Technology

[Entity Name] Infrastructure Upgrade 2016

Anthony Orling

BS - Information Technology

Branch Office Secure Network

Joshua Rumphol

BS - Information Technology

Improving SQL server backups

Timothy Stallings

BS - IT Security

Secure Network Solution

Shea Nemeth

BS - IT Software

[Software Name] - A 2D Platformer

Adam Hooper

MS - Information Security and Assurance (MS-ISA)

Implementation of Risk Management Framework under Federally Compliant Standards

John Lovell

MS - Information Security and Assurance (MS-ISA)

Advanced Analytics and Big Data in the Financial Sector

Joseph Whittington

MS - IT Network Management

A CMS Implementation

Nathan Keeter

BS - Information Technology

Next Generation Network Security

Robert Lamb

BS - Information Technology

Information Technology Web Solutions for Small Business

Dominic Ratcliff

BS - Information Technology

Windows 7 and Legacy Application Upgrade

Russell Halfar

BS - IT Network Management

Deploying Windows 7 Images at XYZ Communications

Jedidiah (Jed) Tanner

BS - IT Security

Mitigating Accreditation Risks with ACAS (not archived)

Joshua Jordan

MS - Information Security and Assurance (MS-ISA)

Security Policy for a Public Library District

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