Nursing Student
As UMA celebrates 60 years of expanding opportunity across Maine, we continue sharing the stories of the people who bring that mission to life.
Alyssa Stonier always knew she wanted to work in healthcare. What felt uncertain was how to make that goal fit alongside work, parenting, and the realities of adult life.
After leaving her job at the VA to stay home with her young child during a period of family transition, she stayed connected to school through online coursework at Central Maine Community College. When her family’s plans shifted again, Alyssa found herself returning to work, buying a home, and realizing that her long-held goal hadn’t changed.
“When we reshaped our life, I realized that being a nurse was still my dream,” she said. “I just didn’t know if nursing school could actually work with everything else.”
As she explored nursing programs across the state, Alyssa quickly ran into the same barrier again and again. The programs required rigid, full-time, daytime schedules that made working nearly impossible, especially for someone supporting and caring for a family.
Then she discovered the University of Maine at Augusta.
As she learned more about the flexibility of the nursing program, her dream began to feel like a real possibility. Evening classes, asynchronous coursework, and adaptable clinical pathways meant she didn’t have to put the rest of her life on hold to move forward.
Alyssa remembers calling admissions with pages of questions, convinced there had to be a catch. “I thought it was too good to be true,” she said. “I asked everything about prerequisites, the cohort, clinicals, all of it. I needed to know exactly what I was signing up for.” But as her questions were being answered, Alyssa realized there was no catch. “I remember thinking, the opportunity actually feels real here.”
Thanks to transferred credits from her associate degree in psychology from CMCC, Alyssa is currently a sophomore completing her program prerequisites at UMA. She is excited to be joining the fall 2026 nursing cohort. As Alyssa continues working toward her degree, she is juggling online classes, a remote data entry job, and family life with two littles at home—including newborn Charlotte.
What stays with Alyssa most is how grounded and normal the experience feels. With all of her responsibilities, she never feels set apart from the rest of her classmates. At school, she is simply a student, learning, growing, and preparing for the work she hopes to do.
“Even during my pregnancy, I was able to stay focused on learning and preparing for my future,” she said. “UMA made it possible to keep progressing toward my goals, and I always knew support was there if I needed it. Now that Charlotte is here, happy and healthy, I’m so grateful I’ve been able to continue my education through it all.”
When asked what advice she would give to someone unsure whether nursing can fit into their life, Alyssa doesn’t hesitate.
“Just do it,” she said. “UMA is very human-oriented. They care about you as a person, not just as a student. If you need to slow down, take time, or shift directions, that’s okay. They understand that life happens.”
For Alyssa, that understanding has turned a long-held goal into a plan she can finally carry forward. With a path that fits her life, she is doing what once felt impossible and moving steadily toward the nursing career she has always wanted.
Stories like Alyssa’s reflect what 60 years of UMA looks like in practice: opportunity, persistence, and a community that helps people move forward.