Since its initial cohort in 2018, the Cauble School of Nursing & Health Sciences continues growing and furthering its reach. Reinhardt’s most recent cohort proudly donned their white coats for the first time at the White Coat Ceremony earlier this week to celebrate their inauguration into the nursing program.
The seventh White Coat Ceremony, hosted in the Falany Performing Arts Center, launched 14 nursing students into a program that will teach them how to serve, care and save lives. The size of this cohort is twice the size of the December 2020 graduating class – Reinhardt’s Cauble School of Nursing & Health Sciences is on the rise!
“You’re going to have real people that you’re going to be taking care of. You’re going to have the responsibility to take care of them, and with that responsibility, we hope that you are learning how important that is – to be kind, to be thoughtful to every situation you encounter. You know that the pandemic has been difficult for all of us – living and learning in a way we’ve never had to before,” said Dr. LeAnne Wilhite, dean of the Cauble School.
The White Coat Ceremony is a long-standing tradition to welcome future doctors into medical school and more recently became incorporated into the nursing profession. Reinhardt’s ceremony typically includes wisdom from seasoned professionals, and students receiving a blessing in the Blessing of the Hands portion of the ceremony. With COVID restrictions, the ceremony was scaled down and live-streamed on the Reinhardt University Facebook page for family and friends to watch. After receiving their white coats, Campus Pastor Rev. Joshua Garner blessed the hands of all the student nurses once they returned to their seats, preparing them to care for the many lives ahead.
When Rola El-Tahrawi-Price received her white coat, she felt the ceremony signified the next level of her commitment and responsibility as a nursing student.
“It was an opportunity to reflect on all that had been accomplished up to that point, a moment to be grateful for the hands that have trained us, those who have supported and loved us as well as being optimistic about the journey we are on to serve the community,” said El-Tahrawi-Price.
El-Tahrawi-Price looks forward to learning the values required of caretakers in healthcare.
“Nursing school is an opportunity to learn how to serve others with humility and grace. A nurse needs to have patience, courage, be a critical thinker and problem solver, and above all have faith in doing no harm to others. Nursing school is the place where these skills are fine-tuned and nurtured.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree and her master’s of education from larger universities, El-Tahrawi-Price chose Reinhardt’s nursing program to learn in a smaller student-to-faculty ratio.
“This time, I wanted a place where I could have those face-to-face conversations with faculty and not get lost in the crowd. The nursing faculty at the Cauble School of Nursing at Reinhardt genuinely care about our attainment of knowledge and not simply passing a class. I chose Reinhardt because I wanted a quality education where our differences were celebrated, but all were working toward a common goal of serving our clients and community.”
Reinhardt University looks forward to watching our latest student nurses grow to serve the community as well-rounded healthcare professionals.
Watch the White Coat Ceremony on Reinhardt University’s Facebook page.
