Every journey to become a Bronco Nurse is unique, a fact clinical assistant professor Jen Mimish knows firsthand.
A Boise native, Mimish grew up with military parents and moved a lot as a kid. After high school, she returned to attend Boise State for her undergraduate degree and earned her bachelor’s in respiratory therapy in 2004.
But that wasn’t her initial plan. Mimish had first applied to the on-campus bachelor’s of science in nursing program, but didn’t make it into the cohort. So she pivoted to respiratory therapy. (An academic advisor had mentioned the program sometimes had spots that weren’t filled, and they might accept her even after the admissions deadline.)
“I’m like, ‘Okay, why not? I don’t know what an RT is, but what else am I gonna do? It’s healthcare. I’ll try it,'” she said.
Mimish loved her time as a student at Boise State. After graduating, she spent eight years working as a respiratory therapist (RT) in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Then she felt it was time for a change.
“What you can do as an RT has really grown since I graduated,” Mimish said. “But at the time, I felt like I had really kind of capped out on what I could do.”
She decided to go back to school and try nursing, again. Mimish earned her associates degree in nursing through a primarily-online program before choosing the other path to become a Bronco Nurse: she enrolled in Boise State’s online RN-BS completion program.
Navigating hardship with exceptional support
The online completion program is ideal for nurses with their associate degree who want to earn their bachelor’s. Many students are not in the “traditional” undergraduate demographic; Mimish herself was working full-time and raising kids, and she thought the course load was “really doable”.
Then in the middle of her studies, Mimish experienced an unexpected personal and familial tragedy. Yet, she said, she “managed to get through” and was able to graduate on time because of how caring and flexible the faculty and staff were.
“I always felt very supported in everything I did at Boise State,” Mimish said. “You’re guaranteed to get quality education in this program. They understand that you’re working as a nurse, you most likely have families, or you have life things going on.”
Advancing her career and coming full circle
After earning her bachelor’s degree in Boise State’s RN-BS program, Mimish began a master’s in nursing program. Her experience in the NICU had given her a passion for physiologic birth and women’s health, so she sought a dual certificate in midwifery and women’s health nurse practitioner.
“That just seemed like a natural place for me,” she said. But after graduation, finding a midwife job proved difficult.
“There weren’t a lot of positions when I was going to school,” Mimish said. “Then I just happened to come across that [the College of Western Idaho] was hiring.”
She had always been interested in returning to academia but “didn’t anticipate that until later” into her career.
But the door had opened to her, so Mimish walked through. It ended up being a perfect fit. Mimish was able to focus on maternal and newborn health, and then, in another unexpected twist, was “handed” simulation.
“It’s like, ‘Jen, come watch this.’ And then it’s like, ‘Okay, you’ve watched one, now, do it,” she joked. “I ended up loving it.”
Mimish eventually became a certified healthcare simulation educator and a core part of CWI’s simulation development. When she started working there, she was the only simulation-focused faculty and students spent one day in simulation. When she left in 2025, students had 11 simulation learning experiences and there were five faculty and staff dedicated to simulation education.
After about a decade dedicated to nursing at CWI, she started to feel like it was time for something new. Mimish soon found herself returning to Boise State, this time as faculty for the on-campus bachelor’s program.
“It’s been a great move,” Mimish said. “It’s kind of cool to come totally full circle in the program that I originally couldn’t get into.”
Jen Mimish
From her own journey into nursing, Mimish learned to go with the flow and not to be discouraged by closed doors. She hopes prospective students take this approach, too.
“Based on my personal experience, it’s not always the right time for people,” she said. “So if you don’t get in, that doesn’t mean you’ll never get in. It doesn’t mean that you’re not going to be successful in the future…it’s not the end. Maybe now it’s just not the right time, but it’s not the end.”
Impacting Idaho: The Treasure Valley and beyond
In addition to her faculty role at Boise State, Mimish has a private practice as a nurse practitioner. She provides telehealth for perimenopause and menopause.
“It’s a really needed area of women’s health,” she said. “I’m able to serve women all over the state, which I’m pretty proud of because I have women in really rural areas getting care that they wouldn’t otherwise get.”
Mimish has also made a lasting impact on the Treasure Valley, from her work at CWI to a high school class in Nampa.
During her time in Boise State’s RN-BS program, Mimish had to complete a community-based project. She created a series of presentations for a health class at Nampa High School that the teacher still uses today.
“A lot of people, when you go to the doctor, might be told their blood pressure or cholesterol is a little high, so work on nutrition and exercise,” Mimish said. “But there’s not a lot of real guidance.”
She wanted to provide practical knowledge: she taught students about diabetes, body composition testing and deeper insights into what everyday wellness looks like.
“It was cool to be at the high school level and talk to them about some of those things on a level that they could relate to, make it interesting, make it make sense,” she said.
And the class’ teacher appreciated the presentations so much, she incorporated them into her regular coursework. She and Mimish still stay in touch, all these years later.