Keri Sadley Named Top College of Nursing and Health Sciences Graduate at VSU

Keri Helen Sadley of Colorado Springs, Colorado, is the recipient of the Spring 2021 President's Award for Academic Excellence for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Valdosta State University. She is active-duty military at Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, Georgia, and graduates magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a LEADership Education and Development Certificate on May 8.

VALDOSTA — Keri Helen Sadley of Colorado Springs, Colorado, is the recipient of the Spring 2021 President’s Award for Academic Excellence for the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Valdosta State University.

The President’s Award for Academic Excellence is presented to the graduating student with the highest grade point average in each of VSU’s six colleges — Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, College of the Arts, James L. and Dorothy H. Dewar College of Education and Human Services, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and College of Science and Mathematics.

Sadley will be recognized during VSU’s 231^st Commencement at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 8, at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium. She will graduate magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a LEADership Education and Development Certificate.

“When I first received notification that I was the recipient of the Spring 2021 President’s Award for Academic Excellence, an overwhelming sense of accomplishment came over me,” she said. “I could not help but feel honored, as I have always prided myself on academic excellence.

“Starting my educational journey at VSU, I knew that nursing school was going to be unlike any other program I had ever confronted. However, from day one, I knew that each instructor’s goal was to see us succeed. They conquered the unforeseen challenges that COVID brought, allowing us to graduate on time. I also became close to my cohort, learning their individual strengths and working together with them to get through this rigorous program. My instructors and cohort have aided me in attaining this achievement, and I am so grateful for them and this recognition.”

Sadley came to VSU through the United States Air Force Nurse Enlisted Commissioning Program. She said being in the medical field, especially nursing, has always been her calling.

“When I entered into the Air Force in January 2016, I was unable to choose my job and ended up training to be an electrical and environmental specialist on the A-10 Warthog,” she explained. “My supervision knew of my previous medical background — I am a medical laboratory technician — and pushed me to pursue nursing through the Air Force Nurse Enlisted Commissioning Program.”

After learning more about the program, Sadley said, “I knew this was what I needed to do. Not only could I continue to serve my country, but now I could also do it through something I loved — caring for others.”

Sadley is currently active-duty military at Moody Air Force Base. As a student, she was assigned to Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) Detachment 172 at VSU.

As a student at VSU, Sadley earned repeated Dean’s List honors and served as vice president of the Valdosta Association of Nursing Students and as student representative on the School of Nursing Undergraduate Academic Committee. She completed more than 60 hours of community service. Working with a few of her fellow nursing students, she conducted a systematic review of the effects of aromatherapy during the labor process and later presented those findings at a School of Nursing virtual poster exhibition.  

“After graduation I will attend Officer Training School in Montgomery, Alabama, followed by on-the-job training through the Nurse Transition Program in Texas at the San Antonio Military Medical Center,” she said. “Finally, I will work as a medical-surgical nurse at Mike O’Callaghan Military Medical Center on Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada.”

Sadley hopes to someday return to school and pursue a Master of Science in Nursing and become a nurse practitioner. Her supportive family includes mom Jane Johnson, husband Estefan Sadley, sister Sarah Johnson, niece Lilyana Lovato, and fur babies Jackson and Jinxy.