Graduating WT Nurses Take Part in Time-Honored Celebration

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu

CANYON, Texas — More than 50 graduates from West Texas A&M University’s nursing program were honored at a pre-commencement observance.

WT’s Laura and Joe Street School of Nursing’s annual pinning ceremony—held at 11 a.m. Dec. 13 in Legacy Hall inside the Jack B. Kelley Student Center on WT’s Canyon campus—recognized 55 students who graduated during a commencement ceremony held later that afternoon.

Pinning ceremonies are an opportunity to recognize the students’ hard work and dedication in their clinicals and in classwork, marking the transition from student to nurse, said Dr. Collette Loftin, interim head of the Street School of Nursing and the Nancy and John Kritser Professor of Nursing.

“The pinning ceremony is the culmination of hundreds of hours our students have dedicated to their classroom and clinical work. It marks the transition from nursing student to graduate nurse,” said Dr. Collette Loftin, head of the Street School of Nursing and the Nancy and John Kritser Professor of Nursing. 

“Our graduates proudly wear their WT Nursing pin because they know the high quality of the education they earned here,” Loftin said. “This pin welcomes our graduating seniors into the ever-growing family of WT nurses.” 

Of the 55 graduates, 76 percent will work in Amarillo or the Panhandle region.

December 2024 graduates in the bachelor of science in nursing program who were pinned are (with hometowns):

Established in 1972 and graduating its first students in 1974, WT’s Street School of Nursing currently provides about 70 percent of nurses employed throughout the Texas Panhandle.

WT nursing graduates, over the past five years, have averaged a 97 percent score on the National Council Licensure Examination, required by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing to test the competency of nursing school graduates in the United States and Canada. Nationally, the average is 85 percent; in Texas, it’s 87 percent.

Educating nurses is a key component of WT’s mission to address regional challenges, as set out in the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised more than $160 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT, a Regional Research University, is redefining excellence in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers 58 undergraduate degree programs, one associate degree, and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

Photo: Jessica Castañon, right, is pinned by her aunt Teresa Castañon during a Dec. 13 pinning ceremony held by West Texas A&M University's Laura and Joe Street School of Nursing.

—WT—