ANGIE HARLAN wanted to quit. The physical, emotional, and mental toil ate at her like mosquitoes in a hot, humid Amazon rainforest. She had been pursuing a bachelor’s degree in nursing school for a couple of years and recently married her husband, Brad. Harlan did not think she could continue with one of the most challenging college majors anymore. Only another nursing major would understand the pain. But one decision defined the trajectory of her life and the lives of many others who now come through the doors of Southcentral Kentucky Community & Technical College (SKYCTC).
SKYCTC has six campuses in the Kentucky cities of Bowling Green, Franklin, and Glasgow. The community college was formed in 1939 and underwent about half a dozen name changes before acquiring its current name in 2012. Harlan, the dean of Allied Health and Nursing, heads the nursing program. Alongside a dedicated group of nursing professionals, she works to make the nursing program one of the college’s points of pride by molding students into highly capable health care heroes.
For Harlan, one of the most important and most challenging professions a person can select is nursing. The increased need for nurses since the COVID-19 pandemic is well documented. Although Harlan still sees an increased need, she acknowledges facilities are beginning to obtain some slight relief. She aims to help nurses flourish and meet those demands.
Harlan grew up in Tompkinsville, Kentucky, and still resides there. In this small town, she met Brad, who also hails from Tompkinsville. Together, they have two daughters, Hannah and Hollie.
Harlan initially failed to see a nursing career in her future. She enrolled at Western Kentucky University as an accounting major, later realizing her desire for a profession that would hold her lifelong interests and never stop short of job opportunities.
“I always just had that thing of wanting to help people, so nursing became what I turned to, [and] I started looking into the nursing program,” Harlan said.
She graduated from the bachelor’s program in 1996. She then worked at a hospital in Tompkinsville for five years before taking a job at SKYCTC as a nursing instructor in 2001. She climbed her way up through the roles of assistant professor, associate professor, and professor, obtaining her master’s degree in 2007 and her doctorate in 2016 — a tough road on its own, especially when raising children. People in these situations sometimes have to vacate their jobs entirely.
In fact, that’s exactly what Harlan did. She left SKYCTC to take a job closer to home in Monroe County.
“I had a baby and wanted to be closer to home, and a job came open there.
Not long after she resigned, she received a call from Dr. Jimmy Isenberg, SKYCTC’s nursing dean at the time and Harlan’s mentor, who personified the significance of education and leadership. Isenberg knew Harlan did not enjoy her other job and expressed that the college needed her. After about a year away, Harlan returned to the school.
Isenberg continued to mentor Harlan at SKYCTC until he retired, and she picked up where he left off as the new dean in 2019. Now, Harlan bestows wisdom to her own mentees in a place she considers unique due to a special program.
SKYCTC offers the Academic Career Mobility degree. After completing the first year, the four-semester program allows students to receive a diploma and apply to become a licensed practical nurse (LPN). Once they finish the second year, the students can apply to become a registered nurse (RN). This multi-entry, multi-exit type program allows students to obtain an LPN license, even if they fail to finish the last year of the program. Harlan said the plan serves as a safety net — a luxury not all other schools offer.
At a college with nearly 200 nursing students and typically 100% job placement after graduation, Harlan is dedicated to helping students persevere and race to the front lines for the injured and sick.
“This is going to be tough, but stick it out,” Harlan said. “I always tell them that happened to me in my nursing school career. I was halfway through, and I thought I was going to quit. I didn’t think I could do it anymore.”
But she looked ahead to the future, one in which RegisteredNursing.org ranked the RN programs at Glasgow and Bowling Green as the No. 1 and No. 2 2024 best RN programs in Kentucky, respectively.
“It’s tough, and it’s hard. But I’m so thankful now that I stuck it out and finished it because now I have a great career and am able to help train other people to be nurses.” GN
