​ When one thinks of nursing, most people think of Florence Nightingale - a celebrated English nurse who laid the foundation of professional nursing by establishing a nursing school in London in 1860. It is only fitting that the same spirit, passion and pursuit of nursing education was recently recognized as part of a long-standing “pinning” ceremony at Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC)’s nursing graduation.

The CGCC nursing program, which started in 2005, celebrated its tenth pinning ceremony, which signified graduation for 39 nurses in 2012 from the two-year program. August graduations are part of the program’s accelerated track, which allows students to graduate in 18 rather than 24 months. Students who take the traditional track graduate in May with CGCC’s graduating class.

“The Chandler-Gilbert Community College nursing program offers a diverse, intense and rewarding educational experience, which prepares our students to meet the challenges of the nursing profession,” said Jill Anderson, director of the nursing program at CGCC. “We are proud of the fact that our students not only meet but exceed the national average for licensing examination pass rates.”

Chandler-Gilbert Community College’s Nursing program offers a curriculum with a variety of course-work that is committed to preparing future nurses in a dynamic, multi-cultural world. Today’s nurses must be prepared to serve in an ever-changing environment and under a tremendous amount of pressure. To address these challenges, the program offers a mix of classroom, lab work and clinical rotations. This means that future nurses don’t simply attend a classroom lecture, study the notes, read a chapter or two and then take a test. These students must not only gain book knowledge – and be able to recall the information – they must also learn how to interact with patients and families and master the art of physical care. These skills include giving medications, inserting an intravenous line, drawing blood, changing dressings and much more.

This sometimes grueling schedule starts out with four days a week of classroom work, then transitions to two days a week in the classroom as students begin clinical work. An average day often spans more than 12 hours between classroom, lab and clinical rotations. This environment simulates a potential working environment and hours.

Nursing students benefit from a variety of clinical rotations based on the classes they are currently taking. If a student is taking a pediatrics class then their clinical work is with pediatrics, if it’s a psychiatric course then it is a psychiatric clinical experience, a medical surgery course means a medical surgery clinical experience. It is this real-world approach, which helps CGCC students earn a 95 percent pass rate and above on the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN). The national average for NCLEX-RN pass rate ranges from 85-87 percent. Licensing requirements are the exclusive responsibility of the Arizona State Board of Nursing.