Kelsey Green’s Inspiring Return to USF as Nurse, Leader, and Educator
Kelsey Green, a three-time Don and adjunct professor at USF, discusses what sets USF apart, how she became an educator, and what her teaching philosophy is.
What have you found at USF in your journey as a student and alumna?
USF is where I became who I am as a nurse, a public health leader, and now an educator. As a three-time Don (BSN ’17, MPH ’25, DNP ’26), each program revealed a new layer of my purpose: first leading weekly health education sessions at the Kinney Hotel as a BSN student, then discovering my passions for maternal health and a diverse healthcare workforce in my graduate programs. What sets USF apart are the unique opportunities to connect classroom learning with real-world impact. As a student, I benefited from diverse clinical placements such as St. Anthony’s Medical Clinic and the San Francisco Department of Public Health, where I learned from expert clinicians deeply committed to social justice.
Faculty mentorship played a pivotal role in my growth, with professors always willing to support and challenge me to think deeply about health equity and leadership. At USF, the mission is more than a slogan — it’s lived every day. Cura personalis shapes not only my approach to nursing, but also to teaching and mentoring. Returning as faculty isn’t just another step in my career; it’s a heartfelt homecoming, and a chance to make a lasting difference from the place that shaped me.
Did you always know you wanted to become an educator?
Not at first; teaching found me, though the signs were there from the start. As a BSN student, I served as a supplemental instructor for Community and Mental Health and as a skills lab TA. After graduating, students still sought me out for help studying for their HESI exam in preparation for the NCLEX. It has been incredibly rewarding to watch students I mentored not only pass their exams, but go on to leadership roles in clinical settings and even return to USF as teaching assistants themselves.
Later, as an emergency department nurse during the pandemic, my most meaningful work was educational: an evidence-based poster series on COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on communities of color, a DEI board, and vaccine education in underserved communities. The calling became undeniable when I began clinical instructing at USF. Seeing a former student share her health equity project at a national conference confirmed for me that preparing the next generation to recognize and challenge injustice is how change lasts.
Returning as faculty isn’t just another step in my career; it’s a heartfelt homecoming, and a chance to make a lasting difference from the place that shaped me.”
What is your teaching philosophy or approach?
My philosophy is simple: when you respect your students, they respect you. Students will always tell you how they learn and what they need if we listen, so I let my students guide my teaching, staying fluent in case studies, simulations, worksheets, and learning stations so I can pivot to meet varied learning needs. I role-model cura personalis by checking in with students before class begins, then adjusting the lesson based on where they are that day. I also make a point to be accessible and responsive outside of scheduled class time, offering mentorship and support through office hours, email, and flexible meeting times. I want every student to feel welcome reaching out for guidance or encouragement as they navigate their education. And I teach that the power of presence, taking time to truly sit with and listen to a patient, is as healing as any clinical intervention.
What would you like to accomplish as a faculty member?
My scholarship bridges clinical gaps with educational innovation through two passion projects. As Clinical Director, instructor, and program evaluator of USF’s CNA Training Program, I want to grow this health studies pipeline for diverse students and disseminate our results, including at the Western Institute of Nursing and the National CNA Educator Conference. My second focus is maternal mental health: my DNP project on matrescence, the developmental transition to motherhood, became a keynote at Roots Community Health’s annual symposium, a CEU through USF, and a second career as a matrescence consultant. From there, I now research and speak on patrescence, the transition to fatherhood, as well. Longer-term, I plan to earn my post-graduate PMHNP certificate and provide matrescence- and patrescence-informed therapy and counseling to mothers and new parents because healthy parents are the key to healthy societies. Above all, I want to equip USF nursing students to be leaders who change the world from here.
What's a fun fact about you?
I love to travel, especially during Christmas time, and have been to 15 Christmas markets across Europe! And I am not done yet!
