Alumni Spotlight
Maria Ortiz-Chen
B.S.N. '08, Nursing · Chief Nursing Officer, a regional hospital system
Maria Ortiz-Chen graduated from UW–Porter Falls' Nursing program in 2008 and spent twelve years in bedside and charge-nurse roles before moving into hospital administration. She now serves as chief nursing officer for a three-hospital regional system covering much of western Wesconsin.
She returns to campus most falls to guest-lecture in the senior capstone course and sits on the Nursing program's community advisory board. “The clinical rotations starting in year one are the reason I hire from here first,” she says. “Porter nurses walk in already used to a real floor.”
Advice for current students
“Take every simulation lab seriously before you touch a real patient — the reps you get there are the reps that keep you calm on your first real shift.” — Maria Ortiz-Chen
Stay connected
Maria Ortiz-Chen is one of several hundred graduates listed in the alumni mentor network, where current students can request a short conversation with an alum working in their field. Mentors set their own availability — some take one student a term, some take several — through the network's opt-in matching form.
Take the next step.
Applications for fall are open. No fee, no essay, and a decision in about two weeks.