Not only will you hopefully get a few ideas—many of which are relevant for the times—but perhaps you'll learn a little more about the wonderful people who teach the classes and work here at Touro SHS. (You know, in case if you'd like to apply to one of our academic programs!) 

From Sandra Russo, Nursing Chair:

• Deep Work Rules For Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport
• I Feel Bad About My Neck And Other Thoughts On Being A Woman by Nora Ephron

From Dr. Chad Woodard, PT, PhD, DPT, OCS, SCS, CMPT, FRCms, FRAs, CSCS, Assistant Professor, Touro College Doctor of Physical Therapy Program

• Principles by Ray Dalio
  • "The life's work and learnings from one of most successful people to have lived sounds like a good read!" 

From Christy Gilliam, Administrative Assistant

• Get Out Of Your Head: Stopping the Spiral of Toxic Thoughts by Jennie Allen
  • "It is a New York Times Bestseller and I am looking forward to reading it. My son gave me this book for my birthday because I do need to get out of my head. I need to stop the negative thoughts and think positive. When you can change the way you think, it can set you free. I have a lot of fear, I let people get to me and in my head and change my thought process, so he thought this book will help me get out of my head! I am really looking forward to reading it, hoping it will have a lot of good advice."

From Meredith King Jensen, Assistant Professor, Nursing

• The Selected Poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay edited by Nancy Milford
  • "Edna St. Vincent Millay was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American poet who often wrote on love and life. Reading her work relieves you from the pandemic peril and leads your mind into solemnity and ideal living. Her work was suggested to me by a bookstore owner I have come to know from Lennox, MA. One poem seems apt for the current environment; entitled ‘The Prisoner’, it reads: 

    “All right,
    Go ahead!
    What’s in a name?
    I guess I’ll be locked into
    As much as I’m locked out of!”

• Heroes of the Frontier by Dave Eggers
• Keep it Moving: Lessons for the Rest of Your Life by Twyla Tharp
  • "This title caught my eye in a favorite bookstore. Not only is it a signed copy and a self-help type of book (which I usually avoid), but she is a 78-year-old dancer who invokes specific ideas and practices to living her life. The book offers a series of meditations on how to live with purpose as time passes. Keep it Moving offers a cure to our fear of time passing and resulting in the aging process and outlining a daily approach to a more hopeful and energetic approach to the everyday life. In an example from the book, she states: “When you walk, think of yourself as striding” and “Be robust in your greeting a friend” and “Take up both physical and mental space”, to name a few. I’m looking forward to reading more of it!"

From Sondra Rivera, MS, RN, Assistant Professor, Nursing

• Florence Nightingale's Nuns by Emmeline Garnet 
  • "This book was a gift from my mother when I graduated from nursing school in 2001. I have read it before and I was inspired to dust it off and read it again in this time of COVID-19. The American Nurses Association's focus for this year is 'The Year of the Nurse 2020. Lead, Innovate, Excel.' This quick read reminds me never to forget the gifts Florence Nightingale and her fellow nurses gave to all nurses in her leadership, forward-thinking innovation, and how she excelled the health and safety of all in her care and the nursing profession."
• A Sacred Covenant: The Spiritual Ministry of Nursing and also Spirituality in Nursing: Standing on Holy Ground by Mary Elizabeth O'Brien 
  
  • "Both of these books are supportive reading in the sense of spirituality and inspiration. Again, with COVID-19 I was/am looking for ways to stay connected and to support and inspire both student nurses and my fellow nurses."

From Mary Ellen Luczun, MSN, RN. PMHCNS-BC, Assistant Professor

• When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times by Pema Chodron
  • "I chose this because it gives us the encouragement and hope from what others have learned during times of crisis."

If you're seeing a trend here, you're right: What interests our faculty and staff are books that are good for their own lives and their own profession, but also for their students. That's the kind of environment you'll find here at Touro. Interested in learning more about our programs? 

Reach out to us at Touro SHS anytime