Lyndsey Couch ’14

Alumna has three nursing degrees from Gardner-Webb Hunt School of Nursing

“Gardner-Webb has caring, tough and highly motivated professors to help you be the best you can be.”

Since earning her Associate of Science in Nursing from Gardner-Webb University in 2014, Lyndsey Couch, of Kings Mountain, N.C., has been honored every year with an award or recognition for the care she provides to patients. Couch also has bachelor’s (2015) and master’s (2017) degrees in nursing from GWU.

She began her career at Carolinas Healthcare System in Lincoln County, N.C., where she is now a critical care charge nurse. Couch also works as an oncology nurse at the infusion center. Her honors include Notable Nurse, Peoples Award for Research Project, Pinnacle Award nomination, Great 100 Nurses nomination, Great Catch Awards, Values in Actions and Daisy Award. She has earned Clinical Nurse II and Oncology certification. She’s working to obtain her certification in Critical Care and is completing a new project for Clinical Nurse IV. Couch also has served as a preceptor (instructor) for new nursing graduates and students since 2016.

Couch always felt a need to care for others and decided the best way to do that was to follow her grandmother’s footsteps in nursing. When she began her college search, Gardner-Webb was high on the list, because it was her grandmother’s alma mater. “I felt like I was at home when I visited the campus the first time,” Couch reflected. “I wanted to attend a Christian school and not just be a number in a classroom.”

She appreciated how closely the professors worked with her as an undergraduate and graduate student to help develop her skills as a nurse. “Dr. Tracy Arnold was such a huge asset in helping me complete my thesis for my master’s degree through many emails and phone calls since it was not a traditional class environment,” Couch shared. “Linda Wines, her wisdom and being so tough on students has made me much appreciate her great efforts and helped make me a better nurse. Dr. Kathy Williams, the real experience that she had shared with our class was quite beneficial for learning and understanding not only the material, but how on-the-floor nursing could be for us. And, I will always remember Dr. Nicole Waters, her Assessment Skills class benefits me daily on each patient I assess.”

A highlight of her education was being able to go on a mission trip to Hawaii with other nursing students and staff. They presented the gospel, and 19 children accepted Jesus as their savior. She was also grateful to be in a college where the nursing professors prayed for their students on exam days and prayed with students individually when asked.

“Gardner-Webb has caring, tough and highly motivated professors to help you be the best you can be,” she observed. “If you desire to be in a positive environment where students can easily reach out to professors for guidance, this University will prepare you for your adventure in becoming the nurse you would like to become.”