Rochelle Woman to Join Army Nurse Corps After Mizzou Training

COLUMBIA, MO – Schuyler Podolski is preparing to commission into the Army Nurse Corps after completing her studies at the University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing, where she balanced clinical training, leadership in Army ROTC and work at MU Health Care. Podolski gained hands on experience in the neonatal intensive care unit, at University Hospital and through rotations in surgical and recovery units, and she said those opportunities helped build her confidence entering health care. The Rochelle native said she was drawn to Mizzou after a campus tour and expanded her experience through a summer internship at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, where she treated active duty soldiers and their families and saw cases of heat related illness and physical injuries, and she later trained at the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital, where she said working with veterans strengthened her focus on communication and patient care. In addition to her clinical work, she served as Army ROTC social media manager, documenting cadet training and events, and earned the Hero of the Battle award from the Black Hawk Brigade for leadership and performance, while also leading a service dog training program called Retrieving Freedom that helped train dogs for veterans and children with autism. After graduation she will attend the Basic Officer Leadership Course at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, before beginning active duty service, and she said nursing taught her empathy while ROTC taught her leadership.