The Aiken Technical College School of Nursing held its Fall 2023 Pinning Ceremony on Monday afternoon.
The school honored 50 graduates across its Associate and Diploma in Applied Science: Nursing and Patient Care Technician Certificate programs.
“This ceremony symbolizes the culmination of countless hours of study, critical practice and heartfelt service to others,” said ATC President Dr. Forest Mahan. “Let us remember that these professions are not merely jobs, they’re callings… to serve with empathy, to deal with compassion, and to advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves.”
Pinning ceremonies for graduating nurses in the U.S. dates back to the 1880 class of the American School of Nursing at Bellevue Hospital in New York City. The pins are in the shape of a blue and gold Maltese cross. The program for the ceremony noted shape’s origins in the Crusades, when the first nursing orders were instituted for wounded military, alongside the fact that ATC’s school colors, blue and gold, were those worn by South Carolina troops in the Revolutionary War.
Ebony Hicks was selected valedictorian among eight candidates receiving their diploma in Applied Science: Nursing, alongside Taylor Eagans among the associate degree candidates.
Hicks was also one of three candidates, elected by classmates, to receive the Tradition of Caring Award, which acknowledges students for “going above and beyond” in aiding their colleagues. In her presentation as valedictorian, she bid her fellow nurses to “reflect on the purpose that brought us to this field,” which included “the commitment to care for others with compassion, empathy, and unwavering dedication.”
After the candidates received their pins, they turned toward the audience with lit candles, per tradition, to recite the Florence Nightingale Pledge, which includes admonitions against harm, and toward devotion “to the welfare of the those entrusted” into their care.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering business for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
