Jane Beard (RN, MSN), nursing faculty at Front Range Community College’s Larimer campus, is the college’s faculty of the year.
She was honored at a meeting of the State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education.
When Beard was in nursing school, a charismatic instructor told her, “You are going to make a great nurse.” She believed it—and now her goal is to be that instructor for FRCC’s students.
She thinks a lot about her responsibility to the patients that her students will eventually care for—which motivates her to graduate excellent nurses. She reminds her students that, “Patients live because of us.”
Beard came to FRCC after working as the nurse manager of intensive care at Creighton University, and subsequently teaching at the medical school there. (Creighton is also where she completed her bachelor’s degree in nursing. She then went on for a master’s degree in nursing education from Walden University.)
Now at FRCC since 2008, she is constantly learning, keeping abreast of new research and protocols for hospitals. Colleagues describe her as invested in the success of each and every student. Her students call Beard “compassionate, intelligent, gentle and funny”—and a teacher who really knows how to pick a student up when they’re struggling.
“Our nursing graduates will be part of many everyday miracles,” said Jean Runyon, vice president of the Larimer campus. “Because of Jane, successful lives and strong futures will be possible for our students, their patients and their families.”
Runyon added that FRCC is committed to meeting the health care needs of our communities. A new 61,000 square-foot Health Care Careers Center is under construction on the Larimer campus, which will open in summer 2020. “The building—coupled with faculty like Jane Beard who are dedicated to teaching and learning excellence—will contribute to FRCC’s commitment to be the ‘community’s college,’” she said.
About Front Range Community College
FRCC offers nearly 100 degree and certificate programs from locations in Boulder County, Larimer County, Westminster, and Brighton, and online. FRCC is a member of the Colorado Community College System.
About the Colorado Community College System
The Colorado Community College System (CCCS) is the state’s largest system of higher education, serving 137,000 students annually at 13 colleges and 39 locations across Colorado. Our open access mission ensures all Coloradans who aspire to enrich their lives have access to quality higher education opportunities. The System Office provides leadership, advocacy and support to the colleges under the direction of the State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education (SBCCOE).
