Licensure Requirements
Are you called to be a nurse? Applicants should have a character of integrity - worthy of the public's trust. Additionally, applicants should have a teachable spirit, positive communication skills, compassion valuing all people, effective critical thinking skills, work well with others, and be responsible and detail-oriented in their work. Nurses need emotional stability and spiritual resilience to cope with human suffering, emergencies, and other stresses. The faculty desire to produce nurses with Christ-like character and wisdom to lead in their ministry of healing. If you are interested in attending a Christian college with an excellent reputation for whole-person education, College of the Ozarks nursing program may be for you!
The baccalaureate degree program in nursing at College of the Ozarks is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (since April 2010), and holds Full Approval Status from the Missouri State Board of Nursing (MSBN). The charter class began nursing courses in August, 2007, after Initial Approval Status was granted from the MSBN. The charter class graduated in May 2010.
College of the Ozarks, in its long tradition of excellence, offers a pre-licensure, four-year professional Bachelors of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree program. After acceptance to the College and completion of at least one year of Nursing program prerequisites, the student may apply to the Nursing major. Prior to acceptance to the BSN degree program, a series of assessments and an interview are required, including a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.75 and a preferred ACT composite score of 21.
Nursing courses are offered in sequence over a six-semester plan. Clinical courses include instruction by expert nursing educators in the areas of maternity, pediatrics, adult health, geriatrics, simulation, mental health, community health, and leadership.
Clinical settings in the beautiful Ozark Mountains range from rural to metropolitan. During the last semester of the program, students engage in a preceptorship course where they work one-on-one with a Registered Nurse (RN) caring for a typical patient caseload. Additionally, through our Christian nursing school, students are well prepared for success on the National Council Licensing Exam for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN®) and for graduate study. Job placement in nursing remains excellent.
Title: Nursing Program Director, Associate Professor of Nursing and Don & Marie Garner Endowed Chair of Nursing
Email: rhamon@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Leadership, Maternal/child, Holistic Assessment, Fundamentals, and Preceptorship
Education: A.A., Sinclair Community College, 2005; A.S.N., St. John's College of Nursing, 2008; B.S.N., Southwest Baptist University, 2010; M.S.N., Cox College, 2014
Mrs. Rebecca Hamon is the Armstrong McDonald School of Nursing Program Director, Associate Professor of Nursing and Don and Marie Garner Endowed Chair of Nursing. Her professional career includes maternal-child nursing, nursing management, leadership, and education. Mrs. Hamons’ research interests include the role of mentorship among the nursing profession. She is a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) by the National League of Nursing.
Title: Associate Professor of Nursing
Email: lherchenroeder@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Character of Nursing; Psych-mental health; Fundamentals
Education: Diploma, Burge School of Nursing, 1993; B.S.N., University of Virginia, 1999; M.S.N., University of Virginia, 2000; PMHNP, University of Virginia, 2020
Ms. Lisa Herchenroeder received her undergraduate nursing degree from Burge School of Nursing and her BSN, MSN and Post-Masters Psych Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certificate from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville (UVA). She is also a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE).
Title: Associate Professor of Nursing & Simulation Coordinator and The Shirley Davis Chair of Nursing Education
Email: kshepherd@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Simulation learning
Education: Diploma, St. John's School of Nursing, 1992; B.S.N,, Southwest Baptist University, 1996; M.S.N., Missouri State University, 2007; D.N.P. Arkansas State University, 2025
Dr. Shepherd's educational focus is best practice standardized patients and simulated de-escalation training for nursing students. She teaches at all levels of the program. She is a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator (CHSE) by the Society for Simulation in Healthcare.
Email: dtlustos@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Gerontology; Health Promotion; Leadership; Population Health
Education: B.S.N., University of Missouri-Columbia, 1995; M.A., Covenant Theological Seminary, 2001; M.S.N., Southwest Baptist University, 2018; D.N.P, Colorado Christian University, 2025
Dr. Denise Tlustos is an Associate Professor of Nursing at College of the Ozarks. Her professional career includes nursing education, leadership in long term care, and clinical positions in cardiac and medical-surgical nursing. Dr. Tlustos' research interests focus on the use of an interprofessional simulation to impact students' perceptions of patients living in poverty. Her national certifications include: C.N.E., National League of Nursing and GERO-BC, American Nurses Credentialing Center.
Title: Assistant Professor of Nursing
Email: msanders@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Adult Med/Surg, Nursing Research, and Maternal/Child.
Education: B.S.N., College of the Ozarks, 2015; M.S.N., Southwest Baptist University, 2020; D.N.P., Colorado Christian University, 2025
Dr. Melissa Sanders is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at College of the Ozarks. Her professional career includes clinical education, medical-surgical, family practice nursing, and maternal child nursing. Dr. Sanders’ research interests are reducing burnout and increasing resiliency in nursing students. Her national certifications include: C.N.E., National League of Nursing; MEDSURG-BC, American Nurses Credentialing Center; and RNC-OB, National Certification Corporation.
Email: lpaul@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Adult Medical-Surgical/Fundamentals
Education: B.S.N., College of the Ozarks, 2015; M.S.N., Western Governors University, 2017; D.N.P., Arkansas State University, 2025
Dr. Laura Paul is an Assistant Professor of Nursing. Her professional career includes critical care, medical-surgical, and leadership/management in nursing . Dr. Paul’s research interests include early mobility in the critical care setting and peer mentoring to increase student success. National certifications include: C.N.E., National League of Nursing and C.C.R.N., American Association of Critical Care Nurses.
Email: kmsmith@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Medical-Surgical Nursing, Pharmacology
Education: B.S.N., Missouri Southern State University, 2008; M.S.N., Cox College, 2016
Mrs. Kimberly Smith is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at College of the Ozarks. Her professional career includes medical-surgical nursing with emphasis on cardiac care. Prior to coming to College of the Ozarks, she served as a nursing coordinator/instructor for seven years at a local community college. Her clinical focus is in adult medical-surgical nursing.
Email: rprather@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Pharmacology, Pathophysiology, Assessment, Adult Med/Surg
Education: B.S.N., College of the Ozarks, 2018; M.S.N., Palm Beach Atlantic University, 2022; D.N.P., Palm Beach Atlantic University, 2024
Dr. Raine Prather is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at College of the Ozarks. His professional career includes maternal child health nursing, pediatric oncology, leadership, accreditation, and education. Dr. Prather's research focuses primarily on improving self-care behaviors in practicing clinicians to decrease burnout.
Email: kmiller@cofo.edu
Teaching Focus: Pathophysiology, Assessment, Adult Med/Surg
Education: B.S. Microbiology, Univ of Arkansas 1994; A.S.N., Univ of Arkansas—Little Rock, 1996; B.S.N, University of Arkansas, 2016; M.S.N, Liberty University, 2022; D.N.P, Liberty University (In progress)
Mrs. Kathy Miller is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at College of the Ozarks. Her professional career includes critical care, emergency room, post-anesthesia recovery, ambulatory care, case management, leadership, and nursing education. Prior to coming to College of the Ozarks, she taught at a community college in North Carolina.