Dr. Rutkowski is one of those faculty who changes students’ lives. She is also a role model for teaching excellence. She incorporates real life examples that help students master and remember content. Incorporating health-promotion, a key concept in the School of Nursing philosophy, into classes she challenges students to personally adopt healthier lifestyles. Some students have lost (and kept off) fifty pounds, others have stopped smoking. This activity provides a lesson in the difficulties in changing habits and “walking in the patient’s shoes” and the lesson significantly strengthens the student’s ability when facilitating patient’s coping with disease. Knowing first-hand the difficulties in modifying lifestyle habits creates empathy and more effective teaching and intervention as a nurse. Students note how Dr. Rutkowski engages them in the material frequently citing her as “the best instructor I ever had”, “I enjoyed the class, not so much the material but the way she presented it”. Her student uniformly give her high ratings and praise her teaching, citing her passion for the topic, her wide range of teaching methods, and her ability to engage all students respectfully. Some students refer to her courses as life changing events. I have taught students several semesters after they had Dr. Rutkowski as their faculty. In spontaneous comments in class discussions, these students have named her as influential in their lives to help them commit to excellence in their nursing careers. She links growth as a professional nurse to issues that surround students every day, from their work environments to home to the political and policy aspects of health that occur regularly in the news. Not only does she encourage students “to think like a nurse” but she encourages them to serve as healthy role models and advocates for their families, their patients and their communities. She serves as that type of role model herself—so not only does she teach principles by the evidence available, she also exemplifies professional nursing through her personal actions and commitment.