NDSU Nursing at Sanford Health has scheduled its inaugural White Coat Ceremony for Sunday, Oct. 19, at 3 p.m. at the Best Western Seven Seas Hotel in Mandan, North Dakota. A total of 107 sophomore and junior nursing students will receive white coats symbolizing their duty to patients and colleagues.
During the event, students are officially welcomed into the nursing program. In addition, the students recite the Florence Nightingale pledge, which is intended to instill a culture of respect, dignity and compassion for both patients and professionals.
NDSU President Dean L. Bresciani and Charles Peterson, dean of the NDSU College of Pharmacy, Nursing, and Allied Sciences, are scheduled to give welcoming remarks. Assisting with the ceremony will be Carla Gross, NDSU associate dean and chair of nursing; Karen Latham, chair of NDSU Nursing at Sanford Health; and Mary Smith, director of student services.
“The white coat ceremony is designed for students to take the first steps on the journey to becoming a professional nurse. It marks the beginning of the process of professional development that will continue throughout their careers,” Gross explained. “Students are reminded that their goal is to keep the white coat clean by practicing in a competent, professional and ethical manner.”
For further information, contact Sara Wald, director of development, at 701-231-6461 or sara.wald@ndsu.edu.
NDSU is recognized as one of the nation's top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.