Directory

Susan B. Leight
EdD, CRNP, FNP-C, ANP-BC, FAANP, FAAN

Research Professor

Graduate

Phone: (304) 203-0299

Email: sxl6189@psu.edu

Leight is a Research Professor and the Director of the DNP, NP Options Programs and the Leadership Initiative of the Nese College of Nursing, Pennsylvania State University. She has been a nurse educator and Family Nurse Practitioner for more than 30 years, with a special interest in women’s health and rural health promotion. Leight has two United States/International patents for her work in simulated breast model development and a licensing agreement with the MammaCare Corporation in Gainesville, Florida to use this training technology.

Prior to coming to Penn State, Leight was director of the School of Nursing and graduate programs at WV Wesleyan College in Buckhannon, WV. She holds a BSN from the SUNY Buffalo, and MSN and EdD from West Virginia University, and completed a NIH-NINR funded post-doctoral fellowship in Psycho-Social Oncology at the University of Pennsylvania.  Leight is a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and the American Academy of Nursing. She serves as an accreditation site visitor with the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education and is a manuscript reviewer for Public Health Nursing. Leight maintains active FNP practice with an international humanitarian health organization.

Education

• EdD, West Virginia University
• MSN, West Virginia University
• BSN, State University of New York at Buffalo

Awards and Honors

• Innovation Fellow, The Ohio State University, College of Nursing, Center for Healthcare Innovation and Leadership,  2023

Teaching

Courses Taught over the Last Five Years

• NURS590: Colloquium
• NURS835: Doctor of Nursing Practice Project
• NURS836: Healthcare Informatics

Clinical Expertise and Areas of Specialization

PRIMARY:

• Family Practice

CERTIFICATIONS:

• FNP-C
• ANP-BC

Mentorship

• DNP students: Current: 7   Graduated: 12
• PhD students: Current: 1    Graduated: 1
• Working with Health and Human Development on Microcredentialing for leadership development.
• Certificates: Provided curricular revision for the four NP certificate programs (F/INP, AGACNP, AGPCNP, and PMHNP)

Research

Research & Publications

Research Interests and Areas of Expertise

PRIMARY

• Rural Health Promotion

SECONDARY

• Women’s Health

Presentations and Conference Involvement

PODIUM PRESENTATIONS:

• Leight, S. “Resilience and High Effort Coping in Rural Undergraduate Students: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic. Podium presentation at Sigma 46th Biennial Convention, Indianapolis, IN. (Nov. 2021).

POSTER PRESENTATIONS:

• Leight, S. “The future of College Student Mental Health: Perspectives on Co-Construction of the Crisis by Students, Faculty and Administration.” Poster to be presented at Eastern Nursing Research Society, 37th Annual Scientific Sessions, Philadelphia, PA. (April, 2025).
• Leight, S. “The Health Impact of Upward Mobility: Perspectives on High Effort Coping in Rural College Students.” Poster presented at Eastern Nursing Research Society, 36th Annual Scientific Sessions, Boston, MA. (April 4-5, 2024).
• Leight, S. “COVID 19 and Indicators of Unmet Social Determinants of Health Needs in Rural College Students.” Poster presented at Eastern Nursing Research Society, 35th Annual Scientific Sessions, Philadelphia, PA. (March, 2023).

Research Funding and Grants

• “ACHA Well-Being Assessment across a Distributed Sample of Undergraduate BSN Students.” Nese College of Nursing, $4000.
  Role: Primary Investigator
• ”Student Well-Being during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Exploration of Coping and Resilience in Rural Undergraduate Students.” Appalachian College Association, Faculty Fellowship, 2020-2021. $15,000.
  Role: Primary Investigator

Publications and Scholarly Work

• Leight, S. (2021). Resilience and high effort coping in rural undergraduate students: Lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic. Published as proceedings of conference presentation at Sigma Theta Tau, 46th Biennial Convention, November 2021, Indianapolis, IN.

Editorial and Peer Review Roles

• Reviewer, Public Health Nursing. 2005 – Present

Service

Community and Policy Engagement

• Nursing Education Program Evaluator, Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. 2022 – present

Professional Organization Involvement and Fellowships

MEMBERSHIPS:

• American Association of Nurse Practitioners
• American Academy of Nursing
• American Nurses Association, Sigma Theta Tau

FELLOWSHIPS:

• FAAN
• FAANP

Policy and Advocacy Work

• Member, Expert Panel on Informatics, American Academy of Nursing

Interprofessional Collaboration, Community Engagement, and Global Health

• Two US/International Patents with Licensing Agreement with Mammacare, Gainesville, Florida for breast model technology:
• Leight, S. Nutter, R., & Matic, B. United States Patent No. US 6,575,757 B1, June 10, 2003, “Computer Based Instrumentation and Sensing for Physical Examination         ” 2005.
• Leight, S., Leight, V., Nutter, R. Schmidt, C. & Miller, D. United States Patent No. US 6,669,483, B1, Dec. 30, 2003. “Instrumented Breast Model.” 2005.
• Global Health: Nurse Practitioner Volunteer, Carolina Honduras Health Foundation – 2018 to present

Learn more about Interprofessional Education »

Download Leight’s Curriculum Vitae »
Last updated 8/16/2025