In April we celebrated community colleges; in May we celebrate one important segment of our college community, i.e. our Heroes of the Heart: our Nursing faculty and Nursing students. In short, these special people are made up of equal parts compassion, knowledge, discipline and grace. At CCBC, we could not be more proud to join our colleagues across the country in celebrating their journey during National Nurses Week.
Nurses are not just the caregivers at our bedside. Many of today’s nurses began their training – or persevered through it – in the shadow of the COVID pandemic. Whether they emerged as healers and nurturers or continued in careers already forged, they brought heart and head together in the most trying circumstances imaginable. They not only survived, but they thrived, mastering or teaching a curriculum that demands the precision of a scientist, the compassion of a poet and a deep commitment to medical ethics.
Most of the nation’s community colleges serve as engines that staff the hospitals and medical facilities in their regions. We are proud of the fact that CCBC is the largest provider of nursing and allied health care education and training in the state of Maryland. Offering state-of-the-art programs that strengthen the region’s health care workforce across many disciplines, our college educates and trains thousands of health professionals who deliver critical care at all levels in hospitals, clinics, schools and homes across the state.
Our well-trained nurses are one of our gifts to our communities. Each year, a new cohort of graduates carries not only their knowledge, but our shared mission into the communities they serve. These are a contingent of graduates no community can do without. Given the rigor of their training, we willingly place our reputation in their skillful hands, confident they will not let us down. Standing on the shoulders of our impressive faculty, they successfully navigate a profession that must demand excellence but offers a deep purpose in return.
At one of our college’s Nursing Pinning ceremonies, a speaker used an image that has stayed with me; she described nurses as angels in comfortable shoes. Because that is exactly who they are – people who walk quietly but carry strength, grace and care in every step.
To our nation’s nurses, thank you for choosing this path. Thank you for choosing to care and thank you for choosing America’s community colleges as your doorway to a rewarding career.