July 19th, 2021 by WCBC Radio
Susan “Susie” L. Tasker-Weaver, Class of 1977, is the third recipient of the Allegany College of Maryland Distinguished Alumni Award. A former nursing instructor at ACM and Frostburg State University, she is director of nursing at Southeastern University and known in the greater Cumberland region as a cofounder of Covenant Counseling Ministries, Inc.
"I am indeed honored to receive this award from ACM where my educational journey began,” said Tasker-Weaver. “ACM provided a tremendous foundation to build upon and I will forever be grateful. In addition, my years as a faculty member at ACM were priceless as I discovered a passion for academia and educating future nurses.”
She was nominated for the award by her brother, Robert “Bob” W. Powell. “Susie is an outstanding example of what is possible when an individual sets a path and devotes her time and effort to advance in her profession while living in service of others. She’s had a positive effect on hundreds, if not thousands, of lives – whether guiding and instructing nursing students or by counseling individuals through strife, stress, and/or grief using her skills, understanding, and compassion,” said Powell.
Tasker-Weaver grew up in South Cumberland, graduating from Fort Hill High School in 1968 before attending Zion Bible Institute. While the mother of two children under the age of four, she enrolled at ACM in 1974 to pursue her nursing degree. After graduating with honors in 1977, she began a nearly two-decade career at Cumberland’s Memorial Hospital, rising to become its assistant director of nursing.
She earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1986 and a Master of Science in Psychiatric Nursing/Family and Group Counseling in 1992 from University of Maryland Baltimore County. She returned to ACM to teach nursing from 1992 to 2013. She founded Covenant Counseling with Sherry Campbell, a lifelong friend, in 1993 and remains vice-president of its board of directors.
Tasker-Weaver earned a Doctor of Education from the University of Phoenix in 2009. After serving as an assistant professor of nursing at FSU from 2013 until 2016, she accepted her current position at Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida, where she is presently developing an online Master of Nursing program with tracks in administration and education.
Among her many volunteer activities, Tasker-Weaver is a member of the Quality and Safety Committee for the Winter Haven Hospital of Baycare Health System in Winter Haven, Florida, and remains a dedicated camp nurse for the Potomac District Youth Camps for two weeks every summer in Gore, Virginia.
“She dedicated her time and service to others by sometimes working three different jobs while juggling her roles as a wife, mother, grandmother, student, and professional,” said Powell.
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