Celebrating the Jackson Accelerated BSN Class of 2023
By: Brittany Vice
Brittany Vice
Project Manager,
Marketing and Recruitment
December is a time of celebration as well as giving. Students from our Jackson Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program began their classes in the spring of 2023, and just twelve months later, completed the program. The program may be short, but it is rigorous and prepares our students to enter the nursing workforce no matter the area or specialty they choose to pursue.
Our accelerated graduates now sit to take the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX), and, upon successful completion, officially become RNs! These sixty graduates will begin working all over the state of Mississippi and beyond, impacting the lives of countless patients and their families. Their career choice is one of giving.
We honored these students with a pinning ceremony held on December 4, 2023, at the Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation (MDRS) in Madison. This ceremony celebrates not only the students’ academic accomplishments but also their commitment to giving to the community around them through their service as a nurse. Family and friends showed up in record attendance to celebrate alongside the graduates. Cheers could be heard across the venue as guests exclaimed how proud they were of their loved ones.
Dr. Jeanne Calcote, assistant professor and director of the Nursing and Health Care Administrator MSN track, was the keynote speaker for the event. She spoke on the history and changes that have taken place over the years within the nursing profession and on what has remained the same. While technology, administration and health care models as a whole may change, the heart of nursing does not. Nursing will always be about the continual care and support of patients and their families. They not only provide care, but comfort and compassion at some of the most difficult times.
Exceptional students were recognized throughout the ceremony. Several students were inducted into Sigma, the international nursing honor society by Dr. Kimberly Douglas, associate professor, director of the Nurse Educator MSN track and Sigma, Theta Beta Chapter President. Dr. Tina Ferrell, assistant professor and RN-MSN program director, presented the Nursing Student DAISY Award during the ceremony.
The DAISY Award is presented to an extraordinary nursing student to recognize and celebrate the above-and-beyond care and compassion shown by the student to patients and their families. The winner of the Nursing Student DAISY Award receives a certificate, lapel pin and “The Healer’s Touch” sculpture. There were seven nominees for the Student DAISY Award within the Jackson Accelerated BSN Class of 2023. Zyreaia Tingle was presented with the award. A preceptor nominated her for the outstanding care and compassion that she provided as she worked within the bone marrow transplant unit. Zyreaia chose to give at a time when it was needed most and made a positive impact. Dr. Ferrell reminded the students and others in the audience that the DAISY award could be presented to nurses during their careers as well. Compassion and care are always needed. May we continue to give this season and always.