Toward the end of her December 13 speech, Dr. Joy N. White posed a slightly uncomfortable question to the more than 70 newly minted Linfield Univeresity-Good Samaritan School of Nursing graduates sitting in the first rows of Parkrose High School auditorium.
“I want to take a moment to acknowledge the courage that it took for each of you to get to this point,” she said. “By show of hands, let’s see anybody who, at some point, thought ‘This isn’t for me. I’m not sure I’m cut out for this.’”
The graduates laughed nervously, and slowly hands started going up — virtually all of them.
“This profession is not for the faint-of-heart, and you have proven that you have the passion and the resilience to succeed, because you’re here,” she continued. “You’re poised to leave your mark, and it begins now.”
She would know: White is the vice president and chief nursing officer at Legacy-Good Samaritan Medical Center, as well as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner who specializes in supporting women navigating trauma and complex mental health issues.
In his introduction to the December pinning ceremony for new graduates, Dean Paul Smith hailed White’s “transformative leadership,” but those weren’t the only kind words he’d deliver that night. He had much to say about the graduating cohort, having personally bonded with many of them when he co-taught their leadership capstone class during the fall semester.
“You will touch countless lives in so many ways,” he said. “As nurses, you will be the voices of compassion, care and healing in every setting you enter. The work you do will be felt, not just by your patients but entire communities.”
He continued, “the difference you make will ripple outward, shaping lives and communities for years to come.”
He then named the three winners of the School of Nursing Student Awards:
- Carson Overstreet ’24 earned the Senior Honors in Nursing Award, which goes to a student chosen by the faculty who demonstrates “exceptional academic and clinical performance.”
- Eleanor Zaerr ’24 took the Professional Excellence in Nursing Award, which recognizes “a nursing student who excels in leadership, scholarship and the human science of nursing.”
- Noemi Sanchez ’24 received the Wilma Pope Alumni Award, awarded to a graduate who “has demonstrated exceptional qualities in clinical practice and university activities, as selected by faculty vote.”
Related: Linfield Spotlight on nursing student and Army National Guard member Miguel Olide Gomez
But the most prestigious honor of the night — the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Student, was still to come. Dean Smith unpacked its significance.
“The DAISY Award … is now recognized in more than 5,500 health care facilities worldwide and has become one of the most prestigious honors for nurses,” he said, then asked the 17 nominated students to stand. The auditorium erupted in cheers.
Before the actual announcement, Smith shared portions of the winner’s nomination.
“This student has exemplified kindness, compassion, integrity and efficiency,” he began, going on to share several more quotes. He ended with, “She is a shining example of what it means to thrive as a future nurse. Please join me in welcoming … Yuki Zhang.”
After the ceremony, Zhang ’24 reflected on the honor, and her time at Linfield.
“What really stands out to me about my time at Linfield is the amazing sense of community,” she said. “Looking back in five years, I think I’ll remember how my professors and classmates not only helped me succeed academically but really supported me as a person.”
The win, she said, was a complete surprise.
“I was honestly shocked … I didn’t expect to win anything because I wasn’t super involved outside of my class,” she said. “But when Dean Smith called my name, it hit me that my friends and professors saw something in me that I hadn’t realized myself. It was such a humbling moment.”
During the ceremony, student speaker Katie Cornelius ’24 also addressed the gathered students, family and friends. She described the students’ collective journey semester-by-semester, from the foundational knowledge of the first semester through final term.
“As fast as it flew by, the last semester was also the most rewarding,” she said. “We could see the finish line, and though there were moments when we doubted ourselves, look at us now! We made it. We’re officially nursing graduates with our Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Linfield University.”
