Nicole Struthers, '17, Honored With Outstanding Young Alumna Award
By Tony Scott

Nicole Struthers, '17, recipient of the NIU Alumni Association’s 2026 Outstanding Young Alumna Award.

Nicole Struthers, ’17, is dedicated to helping others succeed, whether she's mentoring students, training future healthcare professionals or advancing the field of pathology through education and service.

Struthers serves as a full-time faculty member with the rank of assistant professor in the Pathologists’ Assistant Program at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago. There, she helps prepare the next generation of pathologists’ assistants, specialists who are academically and practically trained to provide accurate and timely processing of a variety of laboratory specimens, for careers that ultimately impact patient care.

Struthers, who received a Master of Health Science degree from Rosalind Franklin University, also works as a per diem pathologists’ assistant in the Surgical Pathology Department at Endeavor Health's NorthShore University HealthSystem.

Prior to that per diem position, she served as a full-time pathologists' assistant for NorthShore University Health System and held pathologists' assistant posts at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago and Swedish American Hospital in Rockford, and did her clinical rotation at the University of Minnesota Medical Center in Minneapolis.

In addition, Struthers frequently visits the NIU campus to speak to students in the Medical Laboratory Sciences (MLS) program about opportunities in the laboratory science and pathology fields.

Her commitment to education, mentorship and service, along with her continued support of NIU and its students, has earned her the NIU Alumni Association's 2026 Outstanding Young Alumna Award.
 

For Struthers, receiving the honor was both unexpected and deeply meaningful.

"When my MLS program director, Jeanne Isabel, reached out to inform me that the program would like to nominate me for this award, I was shocked," she said. "I was honored to even be considered for this award, let alone to ultimately receive it."
 

She credits NIU with opening doors that shaped both her professional and personal life.
 

"NIU played an integral role in shaping me into who I am today," Struthers said. "I've said to friends and family over the years that NIU led me to the opportunities that ultimately shaped me into who I am today and that I was always meant to be a Huskie."

Two faculty members in particular helped guide her journey: Isabel and Ellen Olsen, who is the current MLS program coordinator.
 

"Dr. Isabel and Ellen continually fostered my innate curiosity in laboratory medicine and consistently encouraged me to participate in the myriad of opportunities that were available to me," Struthers said.
 

Those opportunities included the NIU MLS Club, a Mayo Clinic summer internship and a study abroad experience in Belize. Outside the classroom, Struthers found equally valuable lessons through campus employment. She fondly remembers working in marketing for Housing and Dining, where she helped with open houses, residence hall tours and freshman move-in events.

"That job challenged me in ways I had yet to experience," she said. "I experienced tremendous growth during my time there."

Today, many of those same lessons guide her work as an educator.

"Growth happens when you say 'yes' to opportunities that challenge you," Struthers said. "Some of the experiences that shaped who I am today came from stepping outside my comfort zone, getting involved and building relationships with faculty, mentors and classmates."

That philosophy continues to shape the legacy she hopes to leave. Through her teaching, Struthers strives to equip future pathologists' assistants with technical expertise, critical-thinking skills and an unwavering commitment to patient care.

"Every student I help train will go on to impact the lives of thousands of patients throughout their career," she said.

By investing in future healthcare professionals and remaining deeply connected to NIU, Struthers embodies the spirit of service, leadership and lifelong learning that define the Outstanding Young Alumna Award.

Struthers will be recognized during NIU's 119th Homecoming celebration. Learn more about Homecoming events and festivities here.