As a Licensed Therapist, UToledo Alumna Returns for Third Degree

As a Licensed Therapist, UToledo Alumna Returns for Third Degree

For Aurora Milliron, The University of Toledo wasn't the obvious choice - it was the right one.

"I initially resisted coming to UToledo because it felt like the place everyone went," said Milliron, a Sylvania native completing her master of science in Nursing degree through the College of Health and Human Services.

"But it is the only place I have ever truly felt at home."

That feeling has now carried Milliron to earn three degrees at The University of Toledo. Previously, she earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and then a master's in clinical mental health counseling at UToledo. Milliron then returned for the graduate-entry nursing program, which is designed for students who hold a bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field.

With her degree in clinical mental health counseling, Milliron earned her Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor licensure and opened her own mental health practice alongside two other counselors in 2021, offering services to clients through a variety of insurers, including Medicaid.

Milliron said that pursuing a degree in nursing wasn't a shift in career choice, but a chance to offer her therapy patients more than she was able to offer as a therapist only.

"I love doing therapy, but I realized there were limitations in what I could do within that role alone," she said. "Pursuing nursing allows me to eventually become a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, where I can both provide therapy and prescribe medications. My goal is to combine both roles so patients can receive more comprehensive care from one provider."

The path to a second master's degree wasn't without its challenges.

Milliron balanced the graduate coursework with a full-time job while also raising two young children. But the biggest challenge was dealing with her ADHD and dyscalculia, a learning difference that affects the ability to process numbers and mathematical concepts, which had long made math and test-taking difficult.

"What kept me going was knowing that this path would allow me to help others in a more meaningful way," Milliron said.

Dr. Holly Myers, interim director of the Graduate-Entry M.S.N. program, worked with Milliron to develop personal learning strategies and helped her succeed in dosage calculations.

"While balancing the demands of graduate education, a career and raising two young children, Aurora has also worked tirelessly to overcome many life challenges, demonstrating resilience and determination at every step," Myers said. "She leads by example, serving as a powerful role model for her children and those around her."

During Milliron's capstone project, her passion and purpose truly came alive, as she helped create and program a virtual simulation designed to help nursing students recognize warning signs of pediatric human trafficking across different clinical settings.

Her mental health background proved to be an indispensable asset in this process.

"My mental health background allowed me to approach this through a trauma-informed lens and, by combining that with my nursing education, made the simulation more impactful," she said. "It also highlighted the need for more education on pediatric human trafficking, which I plan to carry into my practice moving forward."

The project was accepted into two conferences, an outcome Milliron credits to Dr. Kathleen Mitchell, assistant dean of student affairs and diversity for the School of Nursing, and Dr. Kelly Phillips, department chair of the School of Nursing, who encouraged her team to build something that had not been done before.

"Having faculty who support innovation and student ideas made a huge difference," Milliron said.

After graduation, Milliron said she plans to continue her work as an independent mental health practitioner and wants to enroll in UToledo's Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner certificate program, bringing the full arc of her education to bear on a single career.

Now as she approaches her third commencement, Milliron's feelings about UToledo are obvious: "I honestly cannot imagine myself anywhere else."