Our team
Ella Palmieri
Founder
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Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Chocolate or mint chocolate chip
Go to Karaoke Song: Mr. Brightside
A Little Bit More About Me: Aside from The Art of Nursing, Ella loves being involved in THON, Harmony and Phi Chi Theta, a business fraternity. She enjoys spending time with her friends and family, running, biking, and going on adventures. She is so excited to embark on this next year and hopes that The Art of Nursing is able to grow as an organization!
Why I Created The Art of Nursing: I hope to bring joy and happiness to the elderly and sick through song. I also love the way that music connects others and brings people together.
Caty Sanchez
President
Year: Third
Hometown: Manassas, VA
Major: Nursing
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Mint Chocolate Chip
Go to Karaoke Song: Vortex-Lizzie Mcalpine
More About Me: Outside of the Art of NurSING, I am in Penn State's only all-female acapella group Savoir Faire. Singing has always been a huge part of my life and I am a firm believer that it is a healer of the body and mind. I have a cat named Leonardo DiCatrio and he for sure is tired of my singing!
Ronnie Spoto
Musical Director
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Year: Fourth
Major: Musical Theatre BFA
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Ben and Jerry's Milk and Cookies
Go to Karaoke Song: Any Adele ballad
A Little Bit More About Me: I come from an extensive background in musical theatre and musical direction. During my high school years, I won numerous regional awards for both of my passions including being 1 of 72 people in the United States selected to attend the 2021 National High School Musical Theatre "Jimmy" Awards. Besides music, I love burning myself on Florida beaches, taking naps, and continuing my lifelong addiction of Cheez-its. I am very excited to continue leading this amazing choir of nurses!
Zoe Ahlmark
Fundraiser​
Year: Third
Major: Nursing
Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: Graham Slam
Go to Karaoke Song: Dancing Queen-ABBA
A Little More About Me: I want to be a pediatric nurse because I love working with kids!! I like to crochet, go on hikes and bake. I also love cheese, specifically asiago. I joined the Art of NurSING because I like to sing and I'm a nursing student!
Leah Edgar​​
Year: First
Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA
Major: Nursing
Favorite ice cream flavor: cookies and cream
Go to Karaoke song: You belong with me- Taylor Swift
More about me: I have been involved with music and the arts for as long as I can remember. I can’t imagine my life without it and I love the power it has to spread joy to others! I also love to read, travel, and spend time with my friends and family!
Our Advisors
Erin Kitt-Lewis
Advisor
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My name is Erin Kitt-Lewis and I am Associate Professor in the Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing. I was accepted into the Penn State nursing program in 1994 and have never left. I earned by Bachelors, Masters and Doctorate from this college. I am a nurse scientist and educator. In preparing the next generation of nurse leaders, I believe we must not only develop nurses who are prepared to advance the science and practice of nursing, but to appreciate the “art” of nursing. The American Nurses Association describes nursing as art and science. The “Art” of nursing refers to care, compassion, and communication. This club infuses care, compassion and communication by sharing their talents in the arts, whether it be playing an instrument, singing, storytelling, or drawing. Integrating arts in nursing practice is one way to address social and practice challenges our patients, our communities and our profession face. I am grateful to serve as the faculty of record for The Art in Nursing Club. It is with great pride that the next generation of nurse leaders, our very own students, recognize the importance of the arts and are inspired to provide this invaluable service to the patient and community we serve.
Maggie Layman
Co-Advisor
I am Maggie Layman, an Adjunct Instructor at the Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing. Originally from Ohio, I became a faculty member at PSU in 2016. I received my Master’s in Nursing from the University of Cincinnati with a specialization in nursing education and earned my Adult-Gero Clinical Nurse Specialist and Advanced Practice (APRN) Certification from ANCC. From the time I began my nursing career, I knew I wanted to have a role in the education of future nurses and my opportunities to teach BSN students both in and out of the classroom, has brought me an immense amount of joy. When I started working in the SICU at The Ohio State University Medical Center, I began to realize firsthand the relationship between the quality of nursing care provided and positive patient outcomes. The experienced nurses I tried to emulate (the ones I admired the most) were not only intelligent, organized, good communicators, and knowledgeable, but also possessed the qualities of compassion, and empathy. The care they provided required so many talents and skills, but these “standout” nurses had something that turned the science of nursing into an art form! The concepts of compassion and empathy have been a priority component and focus in every class or clinical I have taught as a nurse educator.
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The Art of Nursing club is an idea introduced to me by Ella Palmieri in Fall 2021. She was a student in my Health Assessment Lab, and I realized that she possessed a compassionate spirit that would allow her to someday be one of those “standout” nurses I admired so much as a new nurse. Whether students move forward to become bedside nurses, nurse practitioners, nurse scientists, nurse researchers, or nurse educator’s, the concept of nursing as an art form is relevant. How wonderful, I thought, to have a club that would provide nursing students an opportunity to express themselves through various art forms while interacting with patients and our community. The idea of art serving as inspiration for human connection is certainly not new, but The Art of Nursing club provides an opportunity for students to express themselves while building essential qualities of empathy and compassion. It is because of this connection that I am very excited to serve as a co-advisor for The Art of Nursing Club.