UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Jill Orr-Russell had spent more than three decades working diligently to support her family as a single mother of three when she decided to go back to school to pursue her dreams of becoming a nurse. Inspired by their mother’s commitment and resilience, Orr-Russell's daughters Kaitlyn Keller and Heather Orr both knew that they would one day follow in her footsteps.
Orr-Russell’s passion for nursing ignited at the young age of 16 while volunteering at a local hospital in Colorado, but the impetus behind her nursing career journey wouldn’t start until many years later, when her mother suffered a stroke. Orr-Russell earned an associate degree in nursing from College America Nursing in 2011, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the Penn State Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing through Penn State World Campus in 2019, and a master's degree in nursing and a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner degree from Walden University in 2022. She now owns and operates an outpatient mental health clinic in Parker, Colorado.
With Orr-Russell as a role model who encouraged and reinforced the benefits of the nursing pathway throughout their childhoods, Kaitlyn and Heather both made their nursing dreams a reality at Penn State — a place they both said has always felt like a second home, traveling all the way from Colorado as children for football games with their stepfather, a 2021 Master of Business Administration graduate.
“As a mother and mentor, I have instilled in my daughters the value of education, resilience, and compassion,” Orr-Russell said. “I have encouraged them to never relent in their pursuit of knowledge and to utilize their skills to uplift others.”
Kaitlyn, the eldest by two years, graduated with a bachelor's degree in nursing from the college in 2021 and earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice online through Penn State World Campus in 2024. Heather graduated from the same undergraduate program in 2023 with a 4.0 GPA and was selected as her class’s student marshal. Both Kaitlyn and Heather attribute much of their motivation and success to their mother.
“Seeing her go back [to nursing school] at such a difficult time in our life and being committed to that while managing everything else in her life was really inspiring,” Kaitlyn said about her mother. “When nursing got hard or when you felt like you wanted to quit, she was an example of resilience and what it looks like to commit to something — if she could do it, I could do it, too.”
The family’s Penn State legacy continued even after graduation. Orr-Russell was honored at the college’s last Alumni Society Board awards ceremony with the emerging professional award. She was unable to attend, so Kaitlyn and Heather accepted the award on her behalf.
“Penn State already really felt like family. We wanted to continue the legacy, and we all love our shared experience as alumni,” Heather said.
Kaitlyn currently works as a nurse practitioner at an ear, nose, and throat surgery group in Camp Hill, and said she hopes one day to continue her nursing career as a professor. Heather works as a bedside nurse at a Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center adult inpatient unit.
“Our shared journey into nursing is not merely a familial bond but a testament to our collective dedication to serving others and advancing the field of health care,” Orr-Russell said.
Learn more about the nursing degrees and certificates offered in partnership with the Penn State Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing online through Penn State World Campus.