Preview
Award Date
2021
Title at time of award
Family Nursing Practitioner
Description
Kim Bankston ’96 has been working in the central Illinois region as a Family Nurse Practitioner for the past 21 years. She currently works at Bloomington Primary Care, a successful primary care clinic in Bloomington-Normal, where she provides care to her own panel of about 2,500 patients. She received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Illinois Wesleyan University, her Master of Science in Nursing at University of Illinois at Chicago, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice at Illinois State University. In 2020, Kim was voted the top primary care provider in the Bloomington/Normal Area in the Pantagraph Reader’s Choice Awards. Although she began her nursing career at IWU many years ago, she has never forgotten those moments which inspired her to continue her education and professional aspirations. Kim is a strong advocate not only for her patients but also for fellow nurses in the community. She continues to provide mentorship to current and former IWU students, from meeting for coffee, offering extensive shadowing opportunities, and helping them to navigate their future professional and educational paths. She and her husband Tony Bankston, a fellow IWU alum, live in Normal, IL and have four daughters, one who is currently in the IWU nursing program.