Nevada State College graduates new class of nurses

Erin Dostal

Graduates of Nevada State College’s School of Nursing say the International Pledge for Nurses at their pinning ceremony.

By Erin Dostal

Saturday, Dec. 12, 2009 | 2:39 a.m.

At her graduation ceremony, Lindsay Woodbury-Enriquez knelt down on the stage so that her daughters, Emma, 5, and Eileen 10, could affix a pin onto her blouse.

The pin, which read: “Nevada State College: BSN: Mind, Body, and Soul,” signified her completion of nursing school.

Twenty students of Nevada State College’s School of Nursing graduated Friday during a pinning ceremony.

The ceremony took place at DragonRidge Country Club, 552 S. Stephanie St., in Henderson. About 250 people attended the event.

The graduates chose friends or family members to present the pins as they were called onto the stage. Many received their pins from parents, spouses or children.

Woodbury-Enriquez, 27, said she chose her daughters to give her the pin because “they’ve been a big part of this as well. It’s been a long two years.”

She said what she’ll miss the most about nursing school is getting to know the patients she worked with.

“Each time you met with a new patient, it was a new story and a new family,” she said. “You learned a lot.”

The students selected Sherri Coffman, assistant dean of the school of nursing and a specialist in pediatrics, as their faculty speaker.

“When you actually see these students grow from knowing nothing about nursing to graduating...there could be no better reward,” Coffman said.

“There’s a stereotype that some of us are teachers and the students are the learners,” she said. “I assure you, it’s not always so clear cut.”

The graduates also selected fellow graduate Betsy Gustafson, 23, to speak during the ceremony.

“Four semesters and seven clinicals ago, we all came together for nursing orientation,” she said. “We were informed how the next two years of our lives would change.”

“We were told to get used to not seeing our friends, family, or even the back of our own eyelids,” she said.

Gustafson’s sister, Sarah, 24, also graduated on Friday. She said she and her sister have wanted to be nurses since they were little girls. They wanted to be like their mom.

Shirlee Snyder, the interim dean for the School of Nursing, officiated the ceremony. She said her favorite part of teaching is watching the students grow and “as they progress and graduate, knowing they’re going to give the best care.”

“Nursing school is so rigorous,” she said. “This is the culmination of their success and accomplishment.”