The class chose Kim Soule to give the graduate address; she often welling up with pride for the group's achievements.
View full sizeKalina Lynn Duncan gives a thumbs up while walking down the asile at the Class of 2011 Greenfield Community College Practical Nursing Program graduation at the VA Medical Center in Leeds on Friday.GREENFIELD – Twenty-seven students from Greenfield Community College’s practical nursing certificate program graduated Friday, taking a major step toward becoming licensed practicing nurses.
“We applaud your persistence, your patience and your hard work ... in the pursuit of a better life for you and your families,” said college president Robert L. Pura at the program’s 19th graduating ceremony at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Leeds.
Pura said the men and women sometimes cannot afford or take the time to receive four-year college degrees, some are working toward career changes after losing jobs and many are parents working and going to school. Despite all those challenges and many more, the graduates are “the nation’s collective hope for tomorrow,” he said.
The class chose Kim Soule to give the graduate address. She cried several times throughout her speech, often welling up with pride for the group’s achievements.
“Having courage isn’t about not being afraid. It’s about showing up and doing whatever it is anyway in spite of being fearful,” said Soule. “I think that sums up what I experienced this year and seen my classmates experience.”
Kayan Foster of Springfield takes a photo of her and her mom, Veronica A-M Wilson of Springfield, left, at the Class of 2011 Greenfield Community College Practical Nursing Program graduation at the VA Medical Center in Leeds on Friday. Wilson was one fo the graduates of the program.She described the fear she felt when performing medical procedures on classmates and, later, patients. But “there was less and less fear as time went on,” she said.
Students were at their clinical session at Holyoke Medical Center on June 1 when tornadoes struck Western Massachusetts, she said. The hospital called a Code Yellow, she said, which alerts staff to prepare for a pending emergency.
“It was a terrifying drive home afterward, listening to the radio describe the tornado and the kind of devastation is was creating,” she said. “I think a lot of us have family and friends that were affected pretty severely, so our thoughts and prayers go out to the folks who are still recovering.”
Four of the graduates received awards. Alicia A. Clemons and Melinda D. Thayer were recognized for excellence in academic and clinical achievement, Jennifer Court earned an honor for leadership and Thavy Chien was awarded for professionalism.
The graduates are now eligible to take the NCLEX, the licensing exam for nurses.