IVCC nursing instructor wins local outstanding teacher honor from Shaw Local Radio

An Illinois Valley Community College nursing instructor has been recognized as one of the outstanding teachers in the area.

Amber Robertson learned that she was selected as the September nominee of Shaw Local Radio’s Teacher of the Year honor Thursday morning as students, nursing faculty and administrators gathered in the College Nursing Lab to hear the announcement. Shaw Local Radio promotions manager Summer Studstill presented a certificate, pizzas for the group and a $100 check, and let Robertson know she is now eligible for the top award at the end of the year. The sponsors of the award are Schweikert, Ganassin, Kzak, Rundio Injury Attorneys and Hy-Vee.

Robertson is the first college professional to be nominated, Studstill said. Most have been primary and secondary teachers.

Alex Hunt, a spring 2024 nursing program graduate who is an intensive care unit nurse, nominated Robertson after hearing a promotion for the contest. Robertson has influenced countless nursing careers, Hunt wrote in her nomination, adding: “She has a spark for nursing, and anyone who has her [as an instructor] thrives in what they do. She is a blessing to the IVCC program.”

After graduation, Hunt turned to her mentor again for help in choosing her next position.

“You really gain a good relationship with the instructors as you go through the program,” Hunt said, and she trusted Robertson to guide her in the first step of her career.

Robertson said she’s known for pushing students out of their comfort zones, even if the push isn’t always welcome.

“I love to see the light bulbs go on, see how they come in looking like deer in the headlights then graduate like rock stars,” Robertson said. “I watched [Hunt] grow from that first day through that first semester, then through that second semester, and how her confidence grew. To watch her walk across the stage at graduation was very emotional for me and made me so very, very proud.”

Hunt is grateful that Robertson convinced her to take the ICU position, noting that Robertson’s wisdom and lessons and the program’s on-site clinical experience have been valuable as she completes her nursing tasks.

Robertson had been a nurse before she joined the IVCC faculty eight years ago. Now, she’s teaching alongside the instructors who once guided her as a student.

“The whole IVCC program shaped me,” Robertson said. “That associate degree literally changes people’s lives, and it changed mine.”

While working in medical surgical units and in hospice care, she learned the influence she had on lives around her, and said the impact she can make as a teacher is equally powerful.

She delights in encountering so many former students in the course of her family’s medical care, and said it confirms her personal and professional mission: “I want to train the nurses to take care of me one day, and trust they will do the best they can.”

Hunt’s nomination is prized, as are all the letters and cards that Robertson saves from former students.

“Recognition like that is humbling,” Robertson said. “Students let me know I’m doing a good job when I see them thrive and do great things. You get a good education here at IVCC, and I make sure of that.”