A look back on May

By: Brittany Vice

May is a month of celebration at the School of Nursing and the university as a whole. We celebrated Honors Day at the Jackson Medical Mall on May 4th. Honors Day is held to celebrate the outstanding achievements of our students, as well as the contributions of the organizations, individuals and businesses that have chosen to support those students.

More than $200,000 in scholarships were awarded, and sixty-five awards/honors were presented this year. Awards ranged from recognition on the Dean’s List to specific scholarships and various awards. Scholarships and awards were presented to students, while ten master preceptors were recognized for their tremendous impact on training new nurses and their contributions to the profession of nursing. Recognizing our preceptors is fundamental, as we cannot continue to develop nurse leaders without their expertise and leadership.

On May 25th, we celebrated our Traditional BSN students with a Pinning ceremony at Jackson Preparatory School. It was great to see families and friends gather to celebrate the accomplishments of their loved ones completing their nursing program as they prepare to move forward and take the NCLEX. The Pinning ceremony is a celebration of the nursing student transitioning from a student to a nurse. It serves not just as a tradition but as a symbol of the nursing students’ hard work and commitment towards coursework, clinicals and ongoing care of patients.

Commencement rounded out our celebration on May 26th at the Jackson Coliseum. Family and friends gathered once again, this time to celebrate the completion of academic study. The School of Nursing had a total of 428 graduates, including 12 post-graduate certificates, touting a more than 12% increase in nursing graduates compared to the previous year. Increasing our total nursing graduates equates to increasing our reach to improve health within Mississippi and beyond, which is all the more reason to celebrate.