Scholarship and hospital experience strengthen her preparation for advanced practice
and leadership
FRANKFORT, Ky. — For Aleena Mongerie, nursing has always been about showing up for
people on their hardest days — and building the clinical expertise to do that work
well. Raised in Munster, Indiana, she brought that purpose to Kentucky State University
and has continued moving forward, step by step, through a demanding academic pathway
and into doctoral-level preparation.
Mongerie enrolled at Kentucky State in the Associate Degree in Nursing program in
Fall 2022 and graduated in May 2024. She then progressed directly into the RN-to-BSN
program, completing her degree in May 2025.
Today, she is building professional experience at Saint Joseph Hospital in Lexington
while continuing her studies at the University. Mongerie is a recipient of the CHI
Saint Joseph Health Scholarship and is working within CHI Saint Joseph Health, part
of CommonSpirit Health.
Administered through the Kentucky State University Foundation, the CHI Saint Joseph
Health Scholarship supports students enrolled in the University’s Associate of Applied
Science in Nursing and Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree programs. After graduation,
recipients begin a 30-month employment period with CHI Saint Joseph Health, reinforcing
a direct pipeline from nursing education to Kentucky’s healthcare workforce.
Mongerie is also part of the University’s 72-credit-hour Doctor of Nursing Practice
program, an ACEN-accredited doctoral pathway designed to prepare baccalaureate-prepared
registered nurses for advanced clinical practice and leadership. The program is fully
approved by the Kentucky Board of Nursing and is structured as a three-year, nine-semester
plan of study.
Courses are delivered asynchronously through distance education with limited face-to-face
assemblies, allowing students to balance professional responsibilities with academic
progress. Clinical and residency hours are completed within the student’s region of
residence under the guidance of an approved preceptor, keeping advanced preparation
rooted in real communities and real patient needs.
At Kentucky State, future nurse leaders like Mongerie are advancing practice, scholarship,
and compassionate care — one patient and one community at a time.
Meet Aleena Mongerie in this video profile:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MH1Zdgnsr1c
To learn more about nursing at Kentucky State University’s School of Nursing and Health
Sciences, visit:
https://www.kysu.edu/academics/college-ahnr/school-of-nursing-hs/index.php
To learn more about nursing scholarships, visit:
https://www.kysu.edu/academics/college-ahnr/school-of-nursing-hs/nursing-scholarships.php