Senior BSN student Mallory Newsome is turning a graduate-level innovation course into real-world impact
The Gordon E. Inman College of Nursing is giving undergraduate students early access to graduate coursework through its Jump Start program, which allows eligible Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) juniors and seniors to take select graduate nursing courses and apply the credits toward a future Belmont graduate nursing degree. The results are making a difference beyond the classroom.
Mallory Newsome, a senior BSN student, used one of those courses — Introduction to Nursing Innovation, designed for the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in Leadership & Innovation program — to develop an adaptive clothing solution for children with disabilities. The project pairs her clinical nursing knowledge with a cross-disciplinary collaboration with a fashion design student, and it’s one she plans to carry forward into the DNP program this fall.
From Patient to Future Nurse
Newsome’s path to nursing began when she was six years old and spent a week as a patient at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. What could have been a traumatic experience became a defining one.
“The care that I received gave me a passion for nursing,” Newsome said. “These nurses were so kind. Since I was six years old, I knew I was going to be a peds nurse.”
When it came time to choose a college, Newsome, a Murfreesboro native, needed a program that would let her pursue both a four-year, direct-entry nursing degree and collegiate cheerleading. That combination proved hard to find, and Belmont checked both boxes. Once on campus, she threw herself into campus life: tutoring in the skills labs, mentoring peers, volunteering at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital and competing on Belmont’s cheer team.
Finding Inspiration in a Teammate
It was through cheerleading that Newsome met the person who would inspire the project. One of her teammates had learned about Team IMPACT — a national nonprofit that pairs children facing serious illnesses or disabilities with college athletic teams — and helped Belmont’s squad secure a match.
Their match was Charlotte, a teenager with cerebral palsy. Through Team
IMPACT, Charlotte isn’t a visitor or a guest — she’s a rostered member of the team. She participates in media days, cheers at roughly four games a year and the team designs skills and routines that incorporate her as a full participant.
When the Introduction to Nursing Innovation course asked students to identify a real-world problem and develop a creative solution, Newsome immediately thought of Charlotte. She knew from her clinical training that children with disabilities often struggle with clothing that doesn’t accommodate braces, mobility devices or other medical needs. A conversation with Charlotte’s mother confirmed what Newsome suspected: the options for adaptive clothing were limited, expensive and often insufficient.
“Charlotte has issues with temperature control, so a fleece lining would be helpful. She needs breakaway pants because regular pants are hard to put on. And multiple entry points on shirts — like a pullover plus a side zipper — so you’re not trying to maneuver around her contractures,” Newsome explained.
Interdisciplinary Impact
To bring the project to life, Newsome partnered with her roommate and teammate Trinity Nicholson, a fashion design major. The collaboration is a natural fit: Newsome brings the clinical understanding of what patients need, while Nicholson brings the technical skill to design and construct the garments.
That kind of cross-disciplinary thinking is central to Belmont’s DNP in Leadership & Innovation track, which prepares nurses for leadership roles that extend well beyond the hospital floor. DNP students in the program already partner as advisors on projects in fields like architecture and design, gaining firsthand experience in the nontraditional, interdisciplinary leadership the track is built around. For Newsome, collaborating with a fashion design student on a patient-centered solution is an early taste of that model.
“It’s really cool that both programs have such a focus on innovation,” Newsome said. “Fashion may not be patient-centered care in the traditional sense, but it’s the same idea, and seeing how the two fields cross and come together has been really beneficial.”
The two are currently developing prototype adaptive garments for Charlotte, including breakaway pants and tops with flexible entry points designed around her specific needs.
From Classroom to Clinic
Newsome presented the project at the end of the fall 2025 semester, and plans to continue this innovative work. Her presentation included a roadmap for implementing adaptive clothing resources in hospital and rehabilitation settings and building support networks for parents navigating similar challenges.
She plans to continue developing that framework as a student in Belmont’s DNP in Leadership & Innovation program, which she will enter this fall after graduating in May. This summer, she’ll begin her career in pediatric nursing through the Nurse Residency Program at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital — the same place where her journey began.
“Right from when we are freshmen, they encourage us to look at the patient as a whole,” Newsome said of Belmont’s nursing program. “We’ve moved beyond patient-centered care into innovation. If you see a process that doesn’t work or a need that isn’t being met, don’t leave it to someone else. You can be the change.”