New nursing students to take part in first-of-kind ceremony
SUGAR LAND - The University of Houston-Victoria School of Nursing will initiate a special group of students into the nursing profession through a unique ceremony Saturday morning.
Students in the Second Degree Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, which allows individuals with bachelor’s degrees to become nurses in as little as a year, will take part in the first Hands of Caring Ceremony with their family, friends, and school faculty and staff at 9 a.m. in the Multi-Purpose Room of Brazos Hall at the University of Houston System at Sugar Land, 14004 University Blvd.
 |
| Kathryn Tart |
“This is a way to welcome these new students into the noble profession of nursing,” founding Dean Kathryn Tart said. The ceremony is a unique tradition starting at UHV.
It serves as a milestone at the beginning of their nursing education, much like a pinning ceremony marks the completion of the program. During the pinning ceremony, a unique pin is placed on the lapel of the graduating nurses.
“Nurses’ hands are symbols and instruments of caring to all the patients whose lives we touch,” Tart said. During the hands of Caring Ceremony, family and faculty will participate with students in using their hands as a rite of passage into the profession of nursing.
 |
| Linda Dune |
Linda Dune, assistant professor and coordinator of the Second Degree BSN program, will read an original poem she wrote for the occasion.
“The support of friends and family is integral to the success of these students as they take part in this intensive 12-month program,” Tart said.
Students and their guests also will hear from faculty and staff members about how the concept of caring is integrated into the innovative curriculum, cutting-edge instructional technology and research presently underway at the UHV School of Nursing.
The event will include tours of the new Methodist Sugar Land Nursing Simulation Center in Brazos Hall.
“We’d love for the family and friends of our students to see the state-of-the-art facility we have at Sugar Land,” Tart said.
Parents of students will receive special T-shirts with the school’s logo.
The event is open to the friends and family of the 45 invited students, along with UHV faculty and staff.
The University of Houston-Victoria provides nursing and many other degrees at UHS at Sugar Land and UHS at Cinco Ranch.
For more information, contact Tammy Neeley Whatley, senior recruitment coordinator at the UHV School of Nursing, at 361-570-4297.
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 80 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.
