Summer 2012 - Robert Morris University

AND PERSONAL
FACULTY PROFILE
Although Susan Van Cleve, D.N.P., encourages her patients to get a lot of sleep, she has no
time for a nap. Besides being an associate professor of nursing at RMU and a pediatric nurse
practitioner providing behavioral and mental health care to children and teens in the South
Hills, Van Cleve is president of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, or
NAPNAP. The professional organization works to improve health care for infants, children,
and adolescents and to advance the role of nurse practitioners in providing that care.
Promoting the role of nurse practitioners and advocating for children's health has long
been a priority for Van Cleve, who teaches in the university's Doctor of Nursing Practice
program. She was a founder of the Three Rivers Chapter of NAPNAP in 1993 and has
been an officer in several nurse practitioner organizations in her career.
Susan Van Cleve
Her expertise focuses on assessing and treating children with developmental, behavioral,
and mental health issues, such as ADHD, autism, anxiety, genetic syndromes, depression,
and anxiety. "I love to work with children and families," she says. "Children are
receptive to change, and it is interesting to note how parents will
change their own habits to benefit their
child's health."
Helping students to be the
best they can be and guiding
them in their careers is what
Van Cleve says she enjoys most
as a professor. For example, take
a research course she teaches
about writing grants. "I can see
the students improve their
writing. It's fun to watch the
growth and understand how their
problem-solving skills develop until
they reach that 'aha!' moment. The
most gratifying part of teaching is
when a student is able to understand
a concept, fact or analysis and
integrate it into practice."
WRITTEN BY SARA MEIER '11
PHOTOGRAPHY PROVIDED BY
SUSAN VAN CLEVE
rmu.edu/foundations
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