Hello, my name is Katherine
Bilsbury. I'm a Dean's ambassador
and I'm graduating today from
the Traditional BSN Program. I'm
happy to be here today with the
distinct pleasure of introducing
the Dean of the Texas Tech
University Health Sciences
Center School of Nursing, Dr.
Michael Evans. Dr. Evans holds
the University Medical Center
Endowed Chair for Excellence, as
well as the Texas Tech
University Health Sciences
Center Grover E. Murray
Professorship. Dr. Evans has
been with our school since
January 2012. He was in hospital
administration for 25 years
before his career bridge to
academic administration. Welcome
to our school's first ever
virtual commencement. This is
the year the World Health
Organization deemed to be the
Year of the Nurse and Midwife in honor
of Florence Nightingale's 200th
birthday and for her many
nursing contributions. It was
completely unexpected that 2020
would also be the year of an
international health crisis, a
pandemic that has now touched
every person in this world. The
celebrations of Florence
Nightingale's life well-lived
were halted due to COVID-19.
Instead, we are honoring her by
reinforcing her teachings. Her
teachings including being
vigilant and promoting the
benefits of being exposed to
fresh air, practicing good hand
hygiene and maintaining a
healthful environment. After
many of us have witnessed or
performed the role of the nurse
during the pandemic and all of
its challenges, we have seen
nurses forging ahead undaunted
in their commitment to their
patients. Because of the media's
focus on nurses in the front
lines this year, our entry level
BSN programs have experienced a
sharp increase in applications
for entry into our programs.
Year after year nursing is voted
by the American people
as the most trusted profession.
However, the pandemic has
brought into sharp focus, the
ever-expanding role of the nurse
in the health care system. My
wishes for all of you are that
you make a positive mark on your
profession, are proud of your
profession, never leave your
profession, and look for the many
avenues you can take within
nursing as they are countless. Your
faculty and I commend you on
navigating the rigorous
curriculum and mastery of the
knowledge necessary to get you
here today. It is because of
your commitment that people
across the country will have
better access to high quality,
compassionate health care. So
now is your time to celebrate
your accomplishments - being a
nurse and beginning a new
journey.
And now it's my pleasure to
introduce you to Dr. Lori Rice-
Spearman, President of the Texas
Tech University Health Sciences
Center.
On behalf of the Texas Tech
University Health Sciences
Center, I want to welcome you to
the School of Nursing 2020
graduation ceremony. This
ceremony looks a little
different than what we had hoped
for. But it's still just as
special. We're so excited to be
with you today to celebrate this
wonderful thing in your journey.
We are so grateful that you've
made a commitment to your
nursing career and the nursing
profession. We know that you are
going to touch lives, that you
are going to change lives, and
you are going to change this
world as part of our Red Raider
family. I also want to share
with you that your role in the
coming years in healthcare is so
critical to what we do. You are
going to be with families when
they receive the very best of
information. And in some cases,
the very worst information and
we know that you have been
trained to be able to be with
those families and those
patients and to support them.
And we thank you in advance for
that. We are so proud of you.
And we know that you are going
to be tremendous ambassadors
and alumni for our great
University. So happy graduation,
and I look forward to seeing the
great things that you are going
to accomplish.
We will now recognize graduates
receiving awards beginning with
the Excellence in Nursing
Awards announced by our
department chairs.
The Excellence in Nursing Award
recognizes graduating students
who had best exemplified nursing
through the philosophy of holism
in patient care.
Our first recipient has
demonstrated an impressive drive
and commitment to learning. In
her role as Risk Management
Director, she has been able to
integrate course content from
her graduate studies into her
practice. She actively shared
with her peers in discussion
board assignments and
communicating frequently with
our instructors. All this to
improve the level of integration
of the course content into her
practice. Congratulations to
Melonye Huber, recipient of the
Excellence in Nursing Award for
the Master of Science in Nursing
Program.
While working overtime to care
for patients battling COVID-19,
this award recipient also used
her knowledge from her BSN
program to develop creative ways
to virtually teach clinical
skills to LVN students. Despite
the many personal and
professional challenges caused
by being on the front line of
the pandemic, she remains
focused by staying positive and
encouraging others to do the
same. Congratulations to Lindsey
Butler, recipient of the
Excellence and Nursing Award for
the RN to BSN program.
Our next recipient is described
as an exceptional student by her
faculty she is respectful to
those around her is consistently
helpful with her colleagues. She
possesses a desire to learn
accompanied by compassion,
collaborative skills, diligence,
integrity,
passion, self-awareness, and
demonstrates a high degree of
accountability. Congratulations
Connor Casale, recipient of the
Excellence in Nursing Award
for the Traditional BSN award.
We are very proud of.
The next award recipient is
receiving the School of Nursing
Dean's Leadership Award. This
award is presented to Dean's
Ambassadors who demonstrate
exemplary professionalism and
leadership excellence. As a Dean's
Ambassador, this recipient
displayed strong interpersonal
skills, leadership qualities and
a sense of pride for nursing.
She volunteered her time welcoming
future Red Raider nurses to
the Lubbock campus. As an
orientation leader she played a
vital role helping facilitate
the adjustment of new students
beginning nursing school. She
aspires to become a flight nurse
for the US Air Force.
Congratulations to Katherine
Bilsbury, recipient of this
award.
And congratulations to all of
the award recipients. We will
now proceed with the conferring
of
degrees for the School of
Nursing. Degrees are awarded to
those who have successfully
completed all requirements
established by the Texas Tech
University Health Sciences
Center and the faculty of the
School of Nursing. Dr. Rice-
Spearman, the candidates are
recommended to you for
conferring of their respective
degrees.
By virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Board of
Regents of the University, I
confer upon each of you the
degree for which the Dean of the
School of Nursing has
recommended you.
At this point, we will recognize
individual graduates, beginning
with the Master of Science in
Nursing Program. They will be
announced by program directors
and lead faculty.
Hello, my name is Dr. Cindy
Acton. I am the director of the
nursing administration program.
The following individuals are
being awarded the Master of
Science and nursing degree in
nursing administration.
Hello, my name is Dr. Kelly
Bruce, program director for the
family nurse practitioner track.
The following individual is
being awarded the Master of
Science in Nursing degree from
the family nurse practitioner
track.
Janice Morgan Nevins.
Congratulations, Janice. Hello,
my name is Dr. Rebecca Burpo.
I'm the program director for the
nurse midwifery track.
Today the following individuals
are being awarded the Master of
Science in Nursing degree in
nurse midwifery.
the following individual is
being awarded her postmasters
certificate in nurse midwifery.
Samantha Carpenter
Hello
my name is Darlene Lacy program
director for the RN to BSN
Program. The following
individuals are RN to Bachelor
of Science in Nursing candidates
and are being awarded a Bachelor
of Science in Nursing degree.
Congratulations to you all.
Hello. My name is Ruth
Bargainer, Assistant Professor
and regional program director
for the Traditional BSN Program.
The following individuals or
Traditional Bachelor of Science
in Nursing candidates and are
being awarded the Bachelor of
Science
in Nursing degree.
I will be announcing graduates
from the Abilene campus, along
with regional campus Dean, Dr.
Pearl Merritt.
Hello. My name is Toni Lowrance,
Assistant Professor with the
Traditional BSN Program. Each level
lead will now take turns
announcing the Lubbock graduates'
names based on alphabet.
Hello, everyone. I'm Terry Hill,
Assistant Professor, level three
lead.
Hi, my name is Hollis Franco,
Assistant Professor and level two
lead.
Hi, my name is Erin Gibson and
I'm Assistant Professor and I'm
level one lead.
Hello, my name is Dr. Wendy
Thal, Associate Professor. The
following individuals are
receiving an Interprofessional
Certificate in Global Health or
Rural Community Health.
Receiving a certificate in
global health. Chephra McKee.
Receiving a certificate in
rural community health, Scarlett
Merritt. Congratulations to you.
Ladies and gentlemen, it gives
me great pleasure to present to
you the 2020 Class of the School
of Nursing. Congratulations.
I would like to thank our
faculty and staff for their
dedication in preparing these
health care professionals so
well for the challenges that lie
before them. And to you the
graduates, I am pleased to add
my sincerest congratulations.
We believe the nature and
purpose of nursing is providing
a caring
response to human needs. We
believe the practice of
professional nursing provides
nurses and clients a unique
opportunity to share the wonder,
pain and awe of human existence.
We further believe that to
fulfill our commitment to those
needing nursing care, we must
require increasing expertise
from our colleagues; function as
advocates for our clients;
continued to develop
organization, economic,
political, legal, and ethical
climates that support nursing
values and expertise; increase
collegial relationships with
others in the health field, and
support the spirit of
professional unity. With caring
at the heart of our profession,
we dedicate ourselves to our
clients and each other. Today we
publicly affirm our commitment
to our clients, our colleagues
and our profession.
