Professor Emeriti Lynn Blanchette and her family have had a 47-year connection to Rhode Island College.
When Lynn Blanchette ’82 and her sister, Donna (Allen) Octeau ’81, became the first in their family to go to college, they never imagined that seven family members would later choose Rhode Island College as well.
Octeau earned her degree in education, and Blanchette, the eldest of four sisters, earned her degree in nursing and was president of the Student Nurse Association. While at Rhode Island College, Octeau and Blanchette were also cheerleaders for the wrestling team.
“Having the college experience with my sister was wonderful, because I automatically had a friend on campus, and we could navigate it together as first-generation students,” says Blanchette. “Donna and I were PELL recipients and relied heavily on financial aid to start college. There was simply no better place, academically and financially. RIC offered the whole package.”
In 2006, 25 years after graduating, Blanchette returned to teach in RIC’s Zvart Onanian School of Nursing.
Throughout her 43-year career as a board-certified public health nurse and nearly two decades as a faculty member at Rhode Island College, Blanchette not only inspired generations of students but also served as the undergraduate program director and associate dean, playing a pivotal role in developing new programs.
“I am proud of the growth that the nursing program went through while I was at Rhode Island College, adding graduate programs, master’s programs and a doctoral program. We expanded the number of students that we were able to educate, to improve and increase the nursing workforce in Rhode Island,” she says. “I’m really proud of the faculty colleagues that I worked with for our contributions. I’m proud of the fact that RIC is so purposeful around being a college of opportunity.”
Over the past 19 years, the family legacy at Rhode Island College has continued.
Octeau’s daughters are also RIC alumnae: Danielle (Octeau) Shewcov graduated in 2018 with a degree in accounting and completed her Master of Professional Accountancy (M.P.Ac.) in 2023 and Stephanie (Octeau) Sverapa graduated in 2015 with a B.S. degree in health sciences, with a concentration in human services.
Blanchette’s younger sister, Gayle (Allen) DelPrete, graduated from RIC in 2010 with a B.S. in special education. DelPrete has four children, two of whom graduated from RIC as well: Lauren (DelPrete) Jamieson graduated in 2013 with a B.A. in communications and Korie DelPrete graduated in 2021 with a B.A. in psychology.
Blanchette’s youngest sister, Jacqueline, did not attend Rhode Island College, but her husband, Timothy Brooks ’97, earned a degree in communications from RIC as well as their eldest daughter, Shelby Brooks, who graduated with a B.S.N. in 2023.
“Shelby wanted to be a NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) nurse from the time she was in high school. Her education at RIC made that possible,” says Blanchette.
After retiring, at the beginning of 2025, Blanchette remains connected to Rhode Island College as an adjunct instructor, teaching doctoral and master’s degree courses. Her life is full of commitments and accomplishments. She serves as the vice president of the Scituate Health Alliance, where she helped establish the Neighborhood Health Station and promoted the Town Nurse model to provide health services to the community of Scituate.
And just last month, she was the recipient of the 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award, “highlighting her dedication to community-centered care, innovative public health strategies, and significant mentorship, solidifying her legacy as a leader in Rhode Island’s public health sector,” notes the Rhode Island Public Health Association on its Instagram page.
“Here I was thinking 67 wasn’t really a lifetime, but, apparently, if you retire from full-time work, they consider it a lifetime,” she says. “It was a big surprise.”
Blanchette and her family are woven into the fabric of Rhode Island College’s history. Their story is a powerful reminder of the deep connections that make the RIC community so special.