The Armstrong McDonald School of Nursing at College of the Ozarks holds 15th annual Pinning and Blessing Ceremony

POINT LOOKOUT, MO. — The Armstrong McDonald School of Nursing (AMSON) at College of the Ozarks held its 15th Annual Pinning and Blessing Ceremony on Friday, May 10, at 4 p.m. in Williams Memorial Chapel.

Class of 2024 graduates, nursing faculty, and family members and guests of the graduates attended the event. A reception for the graduates and their families was held afterwards.

Lindsay Boone Skinner, RN, BSN, and AMSON class of 2016, was the keynote speaker for the event. Skinner currently serves as the executive director of operations within the Nursing Leadership Team at Mercy Hospital in Springfield, Missouri. She has had the opportunity to lead nursing teams and steer hospital system projects during her time as a leader. She believes compassionate leadership and nursing having a role in healthcare decision-making. During her leadership journey at Mercy, Skinner has been recognized as “Manager of the Month” and received the 2018 Mercy Values in Action Award.

At the ceremony,18 students received a specifically designed pin that reflects the program’s five main pursuits of truth, character, critical thinking, the tenets of Florence Nightingale, and creating a nourishing environment.

Dr. Janice Williams, nursing program director, expressed how impactful this ceremony was and how proud she is of her graduates.

“The purpose of the Pinning and Blessing Ceremony is to celebrate the nursing graduates’ accomplishments and commission them for future service to the profession,” Williams said. “The ceremony signifies the completion of a rigorous education process and also a farewell to faculty and friends with whom they have shared the process. The nursing pin communicates the wearer’s earned right to the title of nurse and provides a tangible link to the source of their education. It has been one symbol of our service as nurses to others for over 1,000 years.

“These graduates entered AMSON in fall of 2020 as the pandemic expanded,” Williams said. “They have learned to serve others with courage, compassion, and joy.”

With the graduating class of 2024, 269 graduates have completed the AMSON program. These graduates have earned 100 percent first-time pass rate on the NCLEX-RN exam for the past five years. The program has been recognized as a “Top Ranked Nursing School" and "Best BSN program" in Missouri since 2020.