This month, 102 WGU Night Owls who completed their capstones in 2015 are being recognized for their outstanding work.
To celebrate student excellence in the completion of this important endeavor, WGU grants Capstone Excellence Awards. On an on-going basis, capstone faculty nominate deserving individuals with whom they have worked on capstones. The finalists’ work is then reviewed and selected by the evaluation capstone supervisor and evaluation manager in each college.
Often, students’ capstones are chosen because they provide an excellent example of one of the following:
- Expressing ingenuity (creativity, originality, initiative, or resourcefulness).
- Exhibiting mastery (higher competency, true craftsmanship, or proficiency).
- 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, making them available to other students, graduates, mentors, and accreditors to view. See below for the list of WGU students (now graduates) who received the Capstone Excellence Award for their work during 2015. Links to their nomination statements, capstone work, and the Capstone Excellence Archive (which contains the work of former students) are accessible through WGU authentication.
This recognition is noted on the recipients’ WGU transcripts, 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, capstone facilitator, or capstone course mentor to guide your capstone efforts.
College of Business
Aspen White
MBA Information Technology
Strengthening the Autism Center [Not Archived]
Emily Wadman
MBA Management and Strategy
Nursing Retention [Not Archived]
Juan Posada
MBA Management and Strategy
Electro-Engineering Process Improvements [Not Archived]
Joseph Schaefer
MBA Management and Strategy
Central University Bookstore, Improving the Student Experience [Not Archived]
David Williams
MBA Healthcare Management
University Medical Center: Managing Labor Cost [Not Archived]
Matthew Loughmiller
B.S. Accounting
LEM Accounting, LLC [Not Archived]
Nicole Knodt
MBA Healthcare Management
Creating an Effective Antimicrobial Stewardship Team [Not Archived]
College of Health Professions
Betty Macdonald
MSN–Leadership and Management
Streamlining Documentation A Strategy to Enhance Staff Nurse Retention
Christie McVay
MSN–Leadership and Management
Timely Follow-Up Visits Is Key In Reducing High Risk 30-Day CHF Readmission Rates
Felicia Grant
MSN–Leadership and Management
How Does A Nurse Mentorship Program Impact Nurse Retention Rates?
James Minnick
MSN–Education
The Early Identification and Treatment of Sepsis [Not Archived]
Janice Trump
MSN–Leadership and Management
Developing, Mentoring, and Empowering Clinical Supervisors to Build and Sustain a Culture of Teamwork and Quality Nursing Practice [Not Archived]
Katherine Stierwalt
MSN–Leadership and Management
Post-Insertion Protocol for Enteral Tubes Placed in Radiology
Kristie Earnhart
MSN–Leadership and Management
Skin to Skin Care Increases Breastfeeding [Not Archived]
Laura Blesi
MSN–Education
Introducing Audience Response Systems to Nursing Faculty at Rasmussen College [Not Archived]
Margaret Smith
MSN–Education
Sepsis Alert: Rapidly Identifying and Treating Sepsis in the Emergency Department
Michelle Reigard
MSN–Education
Pre-warming Surgical Patients to Prevent Inadvertent Perioperative Hypothermia
Miriam Laffoon-Goings
MSN–Education
Acquire ECGs Timelier to Improve ED Door-to-Balloon on STEMI Patients [Not Archived]
Passapong Sangkhasuwarn
MSN–Education
Registered Nurses' Barriers to Academic Progress: A Descriptive Quantitative Study
Rebecca Cogburn
MSN–Leadership and Management
Sandra Salmon
MSN–Leadership and Management
Shannon Rider
MSN–Leadership and Management
Implementing a Women's Health Screening Tool to Improve Female Veteran Outcomes
Stephanie DeSpain
MSN–Education
Simulation Based Education for Obstetrical Emergencies [Not Archived]
Susan Schubert
MSN–Leadership and Management
Reduction of Hospital Acquired Pressure Ulcers in Surgical Patients: A Perioperative Focus
Ammini Cherian
MSN–Education
Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection Prevention [Not Archived]
Anna Zemble
MSN–Education
Educating Nurses on Diabetes Management in Primary Care [Not Archived]
Athena Johnson
MSN–Education
Teach Us How to Breastfeed [Not Archived]
Bambie Fontana
MSN–Leadership and Management
School Nurse-Led Skills Workshop for Unlicensed Assistive Personnel
Brenda Lee
MSN–Leadership and Management
Improving Patient Handoff Using a Standardized SBAR Reporting Tool
Cheryl Douglas
MSN–Leadership and Management
Come on In: Maximizing Patient Access to Clinic Appointments through Open Access Scheduling
Clinton Gibson
MSN–Leadership and Management
Grant Andres
MSN–Education
Acute Infusion Reaction Management - Case-based Simulation Learning Experience
Joy Lewis
MSN–Leadership and Management
Implementing a Nurse Navigator Program; Providing Guidance in a Changing Healthcare System
Kathryn Callanan
MSN–Leadership and Management
Management of Latent Phase Labor to Facilitate Normal Physiologic Birth
LaShawn Outlaw
MSN–Leadership and Management
Capstone: An Examination of Job Satisfaction in Nurses Employed in the Managed Care Setting
Lauren Wisdom
MSN–Education
Comprehensive End-Of-Life Care in the SICU [Not Archived]
Lisa Garvey
MSN–Leadership and Management
Creation of Bone Marrow Biopsy and Aspiration Policy [Not Archived]
Megan Jensen
MSN–Leadership and Management
Michelle Minor
MSN–Leadership and Management
Development and Implementation of Patient Bedside Shift Report
Michelle Pavano
MSN–Leadership and Management
From Orientation to On-boarding: Engagement, Satisfaction and Retention in a PACU [Not Archived]
Patricia Bautista
MSN–Leadership and Management
Rachel Ricchio
MSN–Leadership and Management
The Implementation of a Readmission Risk Assessment Tool for the Care Transition Nurse
Sangyoung Yu-Choi
MSN–Education
Susan Bourgeois
MSN–Leadership and Management
Susan Rainey
MSN–Leadership and Management
Implementation of a Rapid Treatment Service to Improve Emergency Department Patient Flow
Tina Robins
MSN–Leadership and Management
The Golden Minute: Delayed Cord Clamping for the Preterm Neonate
Teachers College
Edward Chapman
M.Ed. Learning and Technology
Establishing Pitch Awareness in the Sixth Grade Performance Class
Matthew Foster
M.S. Curriculum and Instruction
Stephanie Schmitz
M.S. Curriculum and Instruction
Will Additional Technology Close The Gap For Students on an Individual Education Plan?
Tracy Tanwar
M.S. Curriculum and Instruction
The Effects of Differentiated Tutoring on Assessment Results
Amber Billman
M.Ed. Learning and Technology
The Effects of Advanced Teaching Strategies on Vocabulary Retention and Understandings [Not Archived]
Dianne Parry
M.A. Mathematics Education (5–12)
Teacher Work Sample Portfolio [Not Archived]
Sherrie Burgoyne
M.Ed. Learning and Technology
Learning Multiplication Facts and the Frustration Students Feel [Not Archived]
College of Information Technology
Glen Gerber
B.S. Information Technology
Extract and Purge of Client History
John Smith
B.S. Information Technology
Website Redesign with SEO
Russell Thorup
B.S. Information Technology
Tech Widgets, Inc. Pilot for Desktop Virtualization
