WASHINGTON – The College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences is proud to announce the first White Coat Ceremony for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program on Friday. The private ceremony is a milestone to honor the 50^th Anniversary of the program launching.

“I am excited about the opportunity to celebrate the next cohort of great nurses, especially on this 50th-year celebration of the beginning of the first Bachelor of Science in Nursing class. This ceremony is designed as a rite of passage to emphasize the importance of compassionate care,” says Devora Winkfield, Ph.D., FNP-BC, interim chair of Undergraduate Nursing and director of Graduate Nursing at Howard University’s College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences.

“The ceremony allows the incoming upper-division nursing class to voice their commitment to honesty, civility, and integrity throughout their matriculation in the program. This is a beginning step to ensuring that we develop caring nurses.”

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing program was introduced in 1969 with the first cohort graduating in 1973. In May 2019, several Freedmen’s Hospital nursing alumni celebrated the 2019 graduating nursing class at their pinning.

"The College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences is pleased and proud to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the baccalaureate nursing program which stands on the shoulders of the Freedman’s Hospital nurses, whose contributions are important to the field of nursing. It is their valuable and stellar contributions, experience and legacy of excellence that we currently stand tall and proudly upon, " says Gina S. Brown, Ph.D., MSA, RN, dean of the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences.

Read an excerpt from the Journal of the National Medical Association, March 1969 Volume 61 No. 2.

The Howard University School of Nursing in Historical Perspective

Written by Anna B. Coles, RN, Ph.D. Dean, Howard University School of Nursing.

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(Photo of Devora Winkfield, Ph.D., FNP-BC, interim chair of Undergraduate Nursing and director of Graduate Nursing at Howard University’s College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences next to the Freedman's Hospital nurses plaque - source Imani Pope-Johns/Howard University)

About the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences

The College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences is comprised of top-ranked educational programs that prepare healthcare professionals to be leaders and innovators in practice, education, research, and service. Graduates will deliver patient-centered, interprofessional care, and utilize cutting-edge technology and evidence-based practice to improve the health of all people with an emphasis on promoting health equity toward eliminating health disparities. Currently, the College offers degrees in the following accredited programs: baccalaureate degrees in Clinical Laboratory Science, Health Management Sciences, Nursing, Nutritional Sciences, and Radiation Therapy; master’s degrees in Nursing, Occupational Therapy, and Physician Assistant; post-master’s certificate in Nursing; doctoral degree in Physical Therapy; and master’s and doctoral degrees in Nutritional Science in conjunction with the Howard University Graduate School.

About Howard University

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University operates with a commitment to Excellence in Truth and Service and has produced four Rhodes Scholars, 11 Truman Scholars, two Marshall Scholars, one Schwarzman Scholar, over 70 Fulbright Scholars and 22 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States.  For more information on Howard University visit www.howard.edu

Media Contact: Imani Pope-Johns, Imani.popejohns@howard.edu