Anna Torstenson, Class of '05
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Honors alumna Anna Torstenson graduated in 2005 with a degree in Theatre Arts. After graduating, she returned to NKU to complete the accelerated Bachelor of Sciences in Nursing program. She’s now a nurse in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. “I have been there for two and a half years now. In the meantime, I've done all those things that grown up people do, such as getting married, buying a home, and having our first child while remembering to pay bills, put food on the table, and make it through each day by learning something new.”
Currently she lives ‘theatrically’ though her husband, “who works for the IATSE Local 5 stagehand union, primarily at Playhouse in the Park.” And she does see a strong connection between her work in the Honors Program and her current career as a pediatric nurse.
“The Honors Program challenged me to learn about things I may never have been interested in, and it fed my unending desire to constantly feed my brain with new knowledge. My work as a nurse has done the same. Though I've been in the PICU for over two years, I still feel novice in what I'm doing. There is so much to learn about the human body and the interworkings of every body system. But the most interesting part about it is that we have so much more to discover about what the body does that I am convinced we will never know it all before humanity sees its end. This job offers me the challenge to constantly be learning and expanding my knowledge. Working with children from all over the world also challenges me to consider the choices I make for my child so much more than I would have if I didn't work in the pediatric field, something that so strongly relates to my Honors thesis.”
Speaking specifically about her Capstone, Anna notes that “nothing more closely relates to its subject than the raising of my own daughter. She is already nine months old, and I am still fascinated by what she teaches me – and shares with me – every single day. So much of what I proclaimed I would do for my child in my thesis, ‘Raising Joey,’ has not happened. However, much of that comes from the simple fact that my daughter is not just mine, she is ours: my husband's and mine. It takes two of us to make decisions for her, and if we both are not in agreement on how to do things, those decisions would be counterproductive. My career as a nurse has also taught me that there are far more important decisions to make for our children than whether or not they watch television or are bilingual. My priority is to keep her healthy and strong.”
When asked about some of her favorite Honors Program memories, her thoughts move back to the classroom. “My first semester I found myself enrolled in Honors 101 with Dr. Tom Zaniello and studying Pablo Picasso's work. I had never had any real exposure to the visual arts and found myself enthralled with what I was learning. I still am fascinated and find myself drawn to Picasso's work.
“The opportunity to study under Anne Braden was an opportunity not many people can say they have had. The small class size and the in-depth look at her involvement in the Civil Rights Movement really opened my eyes to a part of our country's history that I was really naïve to prior to my move to Kentucky.
“Having the honor to be part of a forum that presented at the National Honors Conference in Chicago in 2003 was unforgettable. Although I grew up just an hour north of Chicago, it was the first time I had really gotten to explore the city for all it had to offer. More importantly, I got to work with Dr. Zaniello yet again and look at how Hollywood portrays the Windy City in film. What a great opportunity!”
In thinking about her future, Anna says that she hopes to be living abroad in Ireland in the not too distant future and to become a nurse midwife “helping families grow as they dreamed.” Most importantly, however, her main wish is that “whatever I am doing, it is something I am enjoying and is the best thing for my family. Had you asked me 10 years ago if I thought I would be here now, I would have said, "No way!" However, there is nothing I would have changed along the way, and I only pray I can say the same ten years from now.