COLLEEN NIEVES, MSN '98
Assistant Professor of Nursing 

Dominican College

Colleen Nieves, who was born wanting to be a nurse, describes her career with gratitude and a contagious spirit of celebration. After 29 years, she continues the path she first selected as a young candy striper at Mary Immaculate Hospital in Queens. Colleen pursued nursing despite her parents' opposition to the education of young women. She worked hard to pay her own way, and earned her RN degree at Credmoor State School of Nursing in 1972. She's been pursuing her goals, strategically improving health care for others, and continuing to seek educational excellence ever since.

A pediatric and adult care nurse at New York University Hospital in New York City, she worked while earning her B.S. in Nursing from New York University. At the Manhattan Eye, Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital, she was promoted and began her work in staff education as Assistant Director of Nursing. Always committed to excellence and passionate about patient care, Colleen served New York City's Visiting Nurse Service Home Care for ten years, first in direct patient care and, later as Assistant Director of Quality Management for the Center for Excellence. As Vice President of Corporate Development for A&T Healthcare, she directed educational programs for staff, collaborated with families on patient care, and supervised the nursing department.

Promotions, increased responsibility, and recognition by her peers were satisfying, but Col leen came to feel she needed a Master's degree in Nursing to enhance her knowledge in research, critical analysis, and development of educational programs. “I wanted to attend a school that had the clinical nurse specialty track, offered small classes, and had brilliant professors.” She selected Mercy College. Here this career health care professional, found "excellent educators as well as mentors.” She describes faculty whose energy and enthusiasm inspired her; faculty who encouraged her to pursue a new career in teaching.

Today, as Assistant Professor of Nursing at Dominican College, Colleen continues to integrate a lifetime of training, sharing her leadership gifts while challenging her students to passion for serving others. “Family also plays a major role in my life” in Stony Point, New York, where she lives with her husband Richard and her stepson.