Public Employee Press

The College of New Rochelle graduates first class of Public Health Nurses

By ALFREDO ALVARADO

For Local 436 President Judith Arroyo, the graduation and pinning ceremony of 18 members of the local at the campus of the College of New Rochelle May 11 was a milestone. The 18 Jr. Public Health Nurses were the first to graduate with a bachelor of science nursing degree from the DC 37 campus of the College of New Rochelle.

Establishing the nursing courses for union members at DC 37 was an uphill struggle initiated by former president Gloria Acevedo more than 10 years ago.

Not only was finding the classroom space an issue, but finding personnel to teach the specialized courses was an issue as well. "There were some obstacles," said Arroyo, who attended the ceremony. "But we persevered and today we celebrate."

The collaboration is special because the first 12 of the required 30 credits towards the degree are tuition free, as are the textbooks. Now the Jr. Public Health Nurses who graduated are eligible to be promoted to PHN II and PHN lll. The first accredited nursing class was offered at the union campus in the beginning of 2014.

Local 436 Education Committee Chair Laura Humphreys was one of the 18 union members who graduated.

"Completing the degree opens up a lot more opportunities for us," Humphreys said. Humphreys works at Robert F. Kennedy High School in Queens and credited former Ed Fund Administrator Barbara Kairson for helping to find space at DC 37 for the evening classes. "She gave us so much support," Humphreys said.

Volunteers step up

After the space for the classes was secured, the college needed to recruit teachers. Finding teachers to travel from the New Rochelle campus to come to Manhattan was another challenge. Many instructors live an hour or two north of New Rochelle.

Dr. Lynda Shanda was the first professor to volunteer to teach at the union campus. "I couldn't be more proud," she said, as she hugged all of her students after the ceremony. She was also responsible for donating textbooks to the school to start their library.

The DC 37 graduates received their nursing pins during an afternoon ceremony at the New Rochelle campus along with the remaining College of New Rochelle nursing students. The pin was presented to each graduate by the dean of the nursing school, Dr. H. Michael Dreher.

The pinning ceremony is a time-honored tradition that symbolizes the dedication and courage of those who choose the nursing profession. The first pinning ceremony was in 1880 at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan.