ECU College of Nursing welcomes new students at Lamp of Learning ceremony
The ECU College of Nursing welcomed 122 future nurses on Sept. 6 during a ceremony at the Brody School of Medicine.
Parents beamed while their daughters and sons crossed the stage to receive a gold lamp pin signifying service and light as part of the twice-annual Lamp of Learning ceremony that serves an official welcome to the college’s new Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program.
Nursing students Hanah Terhune, left, and Edirin Tebehaevu pin each other with the gold lamp pin at the ECU College of Nursing’s Lamp of Learning ceremony. (Photos by Conley Evans)
The lamp symbol, representing the founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, also appears on the pin that students receive upon graduating. During the ceremony, Dr. Sylvia Brown, dean of the College of Nursing, urged students to reflect on the pin’s meaning when they wear it.
Nursing students Jeremy Wilson, left, and Samantha Williams, affix each other’s lamp pins at the Lamp of Learning ceremony on Sept. 6.
“Think about your role in providing service, not only when you graduate, but also right now as nursing students,” Brown said.
Students also recited the college’s pledge, which includes promises to respect patient confidentiality, to collaborate with other health professionals, to participate in the advancement of the profession and to advocate for patients.
Natasha Walker, a nursing student who grew up in Germany and Georgia, was among those receiving a pin to wear on her purple scrubs.
“I feel like all my work has paid off to get here,” she said. “I know that it’s going to be hard, but it’s all worth it in the end. This is what it was all about, being a nurse.
Admission to the College of Nursing’s BSN program is very competitive. In addition to meeting the university and college requirements, students’ scores on a required national pre-admission exam are taken into account along with their GPA, enrollment status and other factors. Students accepted into the program this fall had an average GPA of 3.8.
Nursing student DaCaria Adams leads the line of nursing students into the auditorium at the Brody School of Medicine for the Lamp of Learning ceremony.
-by Natalie Sayewich, University Communications