Latasha Cooper is always on the go.
Working a full-time job and two PRN jobs, she drives from her home in St. James Parish to Baton Rouge or New Orleans daily.
When she鈥檚 off the clock, she鈥檚 busy taking care of and spending time with her three kids.
And for the last five years, she鈥檚 been advancing her nursing career, moving from LPN to RN and earning a B.S. in Nursing. That progression involved completing 麻豆夜市's RN to BSN online program, designed for working RNs with an associate degree or diploma.
From LPN to RN
Cooper spent 13 years working as an LPN before deciding to take the next step in her career.
While she enjoyed working as an LPN, her duties were limited, and leadership roles weren鈥檛 available. So, as her kids grew more independent, she decided to earn an associate degree and become an RN.
Cooper enrolled in the ADN program at Meridian Community College in Mississippi, a four-hour drive from home. Five days a week, she made the eight-hour trip drive to attend class and clinicals.
, but it paid off as Cooper earned her associate degree in Fall 2021.
From there, she kept pushing. Luckily, to earn her B.S. in Nursing, she could complete her coursework without attending classes in person.
鈥淚 have a friend in New Orleans who was in the process of getting her BSN,鈥 she says. 鈥淚 was looking at another school in Mississippi to earn my BSN there, but the application process just wasn鈥檛 working for me. She was like, 鈥榃hy don鈥檛 you look at 麻豆夜市? They have an RN to BSN program, too.鈥欌
Cooper applied, and within two weeks, she received her acceptance letter and was registered for classes.
From ADN to BSN
As Cooper adjusted to online learning in the RN to BSN program, she found a balance as a full-time nurse and parent. The program鈥檚 online coursework allowed Cooper to complete her assignments during the gaps in her busy schedule.
鈥淢y youngest daughter is 8, and she keeps me very busy,鈥 Cooper says. 鈥淪he has dance class, homework, and I鈥檓 taking care of her in the afternoons. I try to get everything done with her before it鈥檚 time to go back to work.鈥
Her favorite part of the program, she says, was getting to know the other nurses. Though the courses all took place asynchronously, she built strong connections with both her instructors and her classmates.
鈥淲hen I reached out to my professors, I would get a response within 24 hours and usually almost immediately,鈥 she says. 鈥淭hey would help out however they could. They were awesome.鈥
鈥淚 also really enjoyed getting to know my classmates and seeing what they were doing. We were required to respond to other students鈥 posts, which was great because I met so many different people. When graduation came, it was like, 鈥極h, hey, you鈥檙e the one I鈥檝e been talking to!鈥欌
The most engaging class for Cooper was NURS 406: Evidence-Based Practice. Evidence-based practice, as Cooper puts it, is using research to support the patient care decisions you make as a nurse.
鈥淚n nursing, if you can鈥檛 find evidence to support what you want to do, you can鈥檛 do it,鈥 she says. 鈥淲e had to use the for pretty much every assignment we had. The sources we used had to be specific to nursing, from the United States, published within the last five years.鈥
Beyond the BSN
Cooper鈥檚 ability to find and apply research to her practice will be useful for the rest of her career.
And just because she has her degree doesn鈥檛 mean she鈥檚 finished learning and growing.
鈥淚 do want to try another specialty,鈥 she says. 鈥淩ight now, I鈥檓 in bone marrow transplant and medical-surgical. Do I know what other specialty I want to try yet? No. But in the meantime, I鈥檓 enrolled in an M.S. in Nursing program to become a nurse practitioner. I should be finished in December 2025.鈥
Cooper's glad she took the leap of faith to earn her degree through the RN to BSN program. She encourages other RNs to do the same.
鈥淒on鈥檛 give up,鈥 she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of work and can get stressful but stay focused. When you finish, you鈥檒l realize how much it was worth it.鈥
Take the next step in your nursing career through 麻豆夜市鈥檚 100% online RN to BSN program.