On behalf of the Georgia Baptist Association of Nursing Students (GBANS), I would like to welcome you to our school nursing association website! At Georgia Baptist College of Nursing of Mercer University, we take pride in our student nursing association. While you are a member of GBANS due to Total School Enrollment, we hope that you go a step further to take advantage of all the opportunities that GBANS has to offer. Throughout the school year, GBANS members participate in various activities at the local, state, and national level. In the past year, we have participated in several Community Service and Breakthrough to Nursing events such as Welcome House, AIDS Gwinnett, a blood pressure and blood glucose screening, Team 65 Roses Hydration Station supporting Cystic Fibrosis, a Georgia health fair, a Mentor/Mentee Program, and a Girl Scouts of America First Aid Workshop. Furthermore, our involvement with legislative events has enabled students to partake in Lobby Day, an event where students attend the state capitol to lobby for healthcare and nursing issues that are of concern to them. GBANS members have also attended state and national conventions, participated in the House of Delegates, and presented resolutions at the state and national level. As you can see, GBANS gives you several opportunities to get involved with the school, allows you to network with others from around the nation, provides leadership opportunities, and most of all, enables you to directly impact nursing! We hold monthly member meetings where we invite nursing speakers from the community to discuss issues that interest you. I hope to see you all at a meeting soon! Please let me know if you have any questions about GBANS. Good luck with this semester, and we look forward to your involvement this year!



Crystal Webster GBANS President Bio: Hey everyone! My name is Crystal Webster, and I am the President of GBANS. I have really enjoyed my participation with GBANS and the opportunities this organization has provided me. My major projects include planning for the GANS and NSNA conventions and helping the other board members with their projects. I hope you all get involved this year by attending meetings, events, and the conventions in April and October! Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about GBANS or how to get involved. I look forward to working with everyone to make this an amazing year!
                                                                               
                                                                       Crystal Webster

  

 

 

                                                  

 

HISTORY

Georgia Baptist Association of Nursing Students (GBANS) was started in 1992 by a group of nursing students at GBCN. It is Georgia Baptist’s school chapter of the Georgia Association of Nursing Students (GANS), which is the state chapter of the National Association of Nursing Students (NSNA). Originally GBANS was run by an executive board of 5-8 people consisting of a President, 1st VP, 2nd VP, Secretary, Treasurer, etc. Currently GBANS has an executive board of 20 students!!! GBANS has expanded its positions and added many new ones so that we can effectively run the organization at its potential. GBANS is supervised by faculty advisors at the school who volunteer their time to help the organization. GBANS works at the local level to promote professional development of nursing students through involvement in community service, Break Through to Nursing opportunities (BTN), legislative issues and leadership activities. Georgia Baptist is currently the only school in the state with TOTAL school enrollment in all three organizations (GBANS, GANS, NSNA). Due to the total school enrollment we are allotted many seats in the House of Delegates at the state and national conventions every year. This past school year we had 55 delegates represented at the state convention in Columbus, GA and 10 delegates at the national convention in Nashville, TN. Not only is GBANS known for its outstanding involvement in local, state and national activities, GBANS has also received many awards for the hard work and involvement in the nursing profession.

                                                                                                                 ACHIEVEMENTS         

Awards Received 2007:

-6 students served on the GANS Board 2006-2007

 1st VP: Natalie Shelton

 Treasurer: James DeAngelo

 Legislative Director: Amy Carmichael

 West District Director: Keith Hood

 Nominations and Elections West District: Ashlei Perry

 Alternate Board Member: Lauren Dean

 -GBANS won the Georgia Association of Nursing Students Chapter of the Year Award

 

Awards 2008:

-5 students served on the GANS Board 2007-2008

 2nd VP: Layne Mankowski

 Treasurer: Michael Grossman

 Legislative Director: Kristin Borgia

 Nominations and Elections West District: Sabrina Thomas

 

-GBANS won the Georgia Association of Nursing Student Chapter of the Year Award

-GBANS won the Legislative Award for the Nationals (NSNA)

-GBANS passed a resolution at the GANS Convention on Sun Safety and Awareness for Skin Cancer Prevention in Adolescents written by Jessica Hand and Patricia Walker

 

Awards 2009:

-5 students served on the GANS Board 2008-2009

 1st VP: Kerri Kneece

 Treasurer: Kanika Stanford

 EKG Director: Karlee Baumann

 Legislative Director: Diana Carbone Peck

 BTN Director: Kathleen Kebe

 

-2 students elected to NSNA Office 2009-2010

 South District Director: Diana Carbone Peck

 Nominations and Elections Director South: Devon Ippolito

 

-GBANS won the Community Service Award at NSNA

-GBANS won the Break Through to Nursing Award at NSNA