Carroll professor dies
A second instructor in the university’s nursing department dies from coronavirus.
Carroll University’s Dr. James Mikolajczak-LaRosa, a clinical assistant professor of nursing, died on New Year’s Day of COVID-19 — the second such death in the college’s nursing department.
He was 44. Mikolajczak-LaRosa’s son, Joseph Mikolajczak, said that his father was the kind of person who was always giving and taking care of others.
“If I ever dug myself into a hole, he was the one to dig me out,” Mikolajczak said. “He was the man with the shovel.”
Mikolajczak-LaRosa’s husband, Brad LaRosa, said that he was a brilliant and loving man.
“He was an extremely caring husband and father,” LaRosa said. “He always put his family first, always put his sons first.”
LaRosa said that this caring personality came through at work as well.
“He absolutely loved his job,” LaRosa said. “He loved his colleagues and he loved his students.”
According to Dr. Teri Kaul, chair of Carroll University’s nursing program, Mikolajczak-LaRosa was a warm educator who connected with his students.
“He was very interactive — he really brought the textbook to life for students, really brought in some case studies and had a lot of experience to share with students,” Kaul said.
“He also brought humor to the classroom, which helped relieve students’ anxieties.”
After joining Carroll University’s staff in 2016, Kaul says that Mikolajczak-LaRosa grew into his own as an educator, especially after receiving his doctorate.
“He matured as he came to Carroll and really learned the craft of being a nursing educator,” Kaul said.
“He always supported the students throughout and engaged with those students who were struggling and wanted to be a nurse. He really took those students under his wing.”
Nursing student Kylie Austin, who was one of Mikolajczak-LaRosa’s advisees since 2016, said that he was a humorous and friendly professor, even when students were struggling.
“He had a funny and kind of sassy personality,” Austin said. “And even during clinicals, which, you know, no one likes having to wake up at 4 a.m. to go to the hospital, he made us laugh.”
Nursing student Meghan Grimm echoed those sentiments, adding that Mikolajczak-LaRosa was someone who showed he cared about his students.
“He put others before himself, especially students,” Grimm said. “He instilled a drive in us that we would make it through nursing school, even if it was hard.”
Grimm is a senior, and with Carroll’s graduation coming up in four months, she said it will be difficult for her and many of her peers not to have Mikolajczak-LaRosa there with them.
This is the second loss in the department in recent months; Mikolajczak-LaRosa’s colleague, Kelly Raether, died of COVID-19 in November. There are now 16 faculty members teaching in the department.
“He and Kelly were best friends,” LaRosa said. “You could even call her his work wife at Carroll, they were always together.”
Austin said that their losses have definitely been felt in Carroll’s nursing department, and she is hoping to plan a tribute for the two professors at graduation.
“With the nursing department, when someone dies, everyone puts white roses on the casket,” Austin said. “We thought it would be nice to wear white ribbons at graduation to honor them.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to help pay for Mikolajczak-LaRosa’s medical expenses as well as funeral costs.
Any funds left over after covering those expenses will be used to create a scholarship for nursing students at Carroll, according to the GoFundMe description.
Mikolajczak-LaRosa is survived by his husband and two sons. There will be a socially distanced funeral service on Jan. 18 at Harder Funeral Home in Brookfield.