On Friday, December 13, Three Rivers Community College held its fifty-fourth Nursing Pinning Ceremony, and hundreds of friends and family gathered to watch their loved ones take the final step in becoming nurses. During the ceremony, 36 nursing students of the Class of Fall 2019 received their nursing pin, marking the completion of their nursing degree and serving as a symbol of their readiness to be compassionate professional caregivers.

Faculty and administration spoke to the students, admiring the hard work and determination that brought them to this point. Their class advisor, Associate Professor Jillian Zupan, acknowledged that nursing is a challenging career, saying, “You are about to enter a profession that is not for the weak hearted or thin skinned, but it is for the people that can embrace the challenge, lift up the weak and give their heart, and that is you.”

Krista Prendergast, a former Three Rivers nursing professor, was the keynote speaker. Now an Assistant Professor of Nursing at Southern Connecticut State University, Prendergast was this class’ Nursing 101 course leader while at Three Rivers. She was honored to address them at the pinning and urged them to “Keep your mind open as you enter the nursing profession. You are smart and strong, and your ideas matter.”

Katelyn Chenail, Class Vice-President and Class Speaker, told her classmates, “Keep pushing forward – find your niche and be the best nurses you ever could imagine. I am so proud of our hard work, dedication and willingness to go on.” A candlelight recitation of the Nightingale Pledge came after the presentation of the students’ nursing pins.

The students have earned an Associate of Science in Nursing. Upon completion of a licensing examination, the graduates will have earned the credential of Registered Nurse (RN).

Three Rivers graduates’ scores on the National Council Licensing Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) are consistently above the national average, with a three-year average of over 93%. Graduates also report a 99% job placement on the last three graduate surveys.

List of Nursing Graduates with their towns

• Sarah Behne, Norwich, CT
• Ma Agnes Booc, Old Mystic, CT
• Kathrine Bustamante, Portland, CT
• Michelle Callosingh-Nembhard, Waterbury, CT
• Amanda Caouette, Baltic, CT
• Katelyn Chenail, Moosup, CT
• Lindsay Danner, Groton, CT
• Christine David, Waterford, CT
• Anah Deangelis, Sterling, CT
• Alyssa DeCrosta, Killingworth, CT
• Courtney Duff, Oakdale, CT
• Kelsey Durand, Plainfield, CT
• Katherine Gagnier, Colchester, CT
• Laci Gardner, Norwich, CT
• Maria Grabill, Lisbon, CT
• Karen Greb, Dayville, CT
• Heather Gruwell, Chaplin, CT
• Meghan Ivey, Ledyard, CT
• Evelyn Johnson, New London, CT
• Kiari Johnson-Claudio, Salem, CT
• Tea Kutrolli, New London, CT
• Amanda Marchand, Baltic, CT
• Fallon McIvor, Bozrah, CT
• Donna Miller, Niantic, CT
• Alexander Nelson, Brookly, CT
• Kristina Oddo, Oakdale, CT
• Stefanie Owens, New London, CT
• Tabitha Parciak, Jewett City, CT
• Beth Rogers, Oakdale, CT
• Keleigh Santarcangelo, Plainfield, CT
• Jessica Scrivano, Willimantic, CT
• Sonia Stavens, Waterfod, CT
• Magdalena Tkaczuk, Colchester, CT
• Jiraporn Walton, Old Mystic, CT
• Cindy-Jo Youssef, North Grosvenordale, CT
• Ashley Zupan, East Haddam, CT