For lifelong Galveston County resident Amber High, DNP, APRN, CRNA, NC-BC, lecturing in the same classrooms where she took her first nursing courses decades ago brings a sense of nostalgia.
After joining the nursing faculty at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), she occasionally crossed paths with a professor who had taught her nearly 25 years earlier. In another full-circle connection, that professor’s daughter is now a fellow faculty member.
While those connections are meaningful, it was the transformation of UTMB that ultimately brought High back to her alma mater to continue her career and education.
“When I first came here 25 years ago as a nursing student, things were very different, and the campus had a much smaller feel,” said High, now an assistant professor in the School of Nursing Department of Graduate Studies.
The League City, Clear Lake, and Angleton campuses didn’t exist then, either. Beyond Galveston, many people were unfamiliar with UTMB.
Professional growth
After returning to UTMB 10 years ago and working across the Galveston, League City, and Clear Lake campuses as a certified registered nurse anesthetist, High began thinking about continuing her nursing education.
“One of the best parts about coming back to work at UTMB was the support I received to go back to school,” High said. “I’d already earned my master's degree in anesthesia, but UTMB has a wonderful tuition reimbursement program. My department was very supportive of my decision to earn a doctorate. That was one of the most impactful things I’ve done for my professional development, and it was a great example of how UTMB values growth and lifelong learning.”
Now teaching the next generation of nurses, High values the way the School of Nursing continues to evolve, giving students the richest possible learning experiences.
“The facilities at the Health Education Center are amazing, with simulation labs and a full-scale operating room,” High said. “Those are things we never even dreamed of having when I was a student. I meet people from nurse anesthesia programs across the country, and they would love to have the resources we have here at UTMB.
“The operating rooms have the same anesthesia machines used in clinical practice, and the mannequin, named Stan, can do all kinds of things. Students can administer simulated medications, and Stan responds in real time with the hemodynamic changes you would see in an actual surgical patient.”
An institution fulfilling its potential
High said those instructional innovations echo those in other parts of the institution.
“I love UTMB,” High said. “What I like most about working here is the spirit and collaboration across all five schools and throughout the health system. We’re one big team, and I really like that. The people here are very passionate about what they do. We pay attention to detail, and we want to put our best foot forward.”
For High, returning to UTMB has been both a professional milestone and a homecoming.
“I always wanted to come back to UTMB, it just took me a while to get here,” she said.