School of Nursing Faculty Highlight: Jaclyn Reyes, M.S.N., R.N.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated 2020 as the Year of the Nurse for the vital role they play in providing health services. TTUHSC El Paso joins the WHO in a year-long effort to celebrate the work of nurses and highlight the challenging conditions they often face in the workforce. In celebration, we invite you to get to know some of our Hunt School of Nursing faculty who are shaping the future of health care for the Borderland. They are dedicated to excellence and committed to care.
This month’s highlight features Jaclyn Reyes, M.S.N., R.N., instructor for the Hunt School of Nursing.
The proverb “it takes a village to raise a child” can be applied to the training of a nurse. To educate a nurse, the community – in this case El Paso – must come together to support and nurture budding students in the Borderland. Part of this community at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso is Jaclyn Reyes, M.S.N., R.N., instructor for the Hunt School of Nursing.
A native El Pasoan, Reyes attended Riverside High School and graduated from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. She matured her skills as a nurse in a rural hospital in the Texas Panhandle, where she saw and treated “every ailment that walked through the door.”
She joined the faculty at TTUHSC El Paso as a clinical instructor in 2016 and became a full-time faculty member two years ago this September. Prior to that, she was a faculty member of Vista College. Coming to TTUHSC El Paso to teach was natural for Reyes, as she is a Red Raider and wanted to teach in the community that raised her.
The El Paso community is important to Reyes, as is nurturing relationships with future health care professionals. She is always ready with words of encouragement or positive thoughts during classes. Prior to exams, Reyes likes to lead students through a pre-test ritual to calm nerves and set their minds toward success.
“We are aiming to get into ‘test mode.’ Everyone makes eye contact. We slow down our heart rates through breathing exercises. They know the material, they just demonstrate it to me,” she said.
Engaging her students in meaningful ways helps them complete their classes and eventually graduate.
“I try to engage in individual relationships with all of my students and help them push through when the program and life get tough,” said Reyes of her teaching methodology.
To date, the Hunt School of Nursing has graduated more than 600 students, with 90% of those graduates staying in the region. Reyes hopes to grow the Hunt School of Nursing’s graduate programs, offering more robust educational leadership opportunities.
“Being a faculty member at TTUHSC El Paso means being a nurse and an educator in a tightly coiled community. I’m dedicated to my students and am here to help them gain knowledge.”