Kaitlyn Maggart of Huntington honored during Huntington University's nursing pinning ceremony

2014 May 19

Kaitlyn Maggart of Huntington, IN, was honored in a traditional nursing pinning ceremony May 16.

The Class of 2014 is the fourth graduating class from the Department of Nursing.

The history of the pinning ceremony comes from the Crimean War when Florence Nightingale took 38 women to Turkey to nurse sick and wounded British soldiers. As she cared for her patients by the light of a lamp, Florence Nightingale became known as the "lady with the lamp." As a tribute to Florence's dedication, the lamp icon became symbolic of nursing. In the traditional ceremony the nursing pin is used to signify this same dedication, the end of formal education and the beginning of practice. It is a way of welcoming graduates into the nursing profession.

At the ceremony, students received the Huntington University Department of Nursing pin with the department's emblem.

This year, Lindsay Shellabarger was presented with the Senior Leadership Award. The Leadership Award is voted on by the senior class.

The ceremony also included a "Passing of the Lamp" presentation from Shellabarger to Brianna Givens.

"The pinning ceremony has a distinctive meaning to graduating nursing students as it signifies the end of an intense and rigorous education leading them to the socialization into their chosen careers," said Dr. Margaret Winter, director of nursing.

Commencement exercises at Huntington University are scheduled for May 17.

Photos from the ceremony are available online at http://www.huntington.edu/News-Releases/Academics/Nursing/2014-graduating-nursing-students-honored-at-pinning-ceremony/?__taxonomyid=2241. Click on the photos to open and download the high-resolution image.

Huntington University is a comprehensive Christian college of the liberal arts offering graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations. U.S. News & World Report ranks Huntington among the best colleges in the Midwest, and Forbes.com has listed the university as one of America's Best Colleges. Additionally, Princeton Review has named the institution a "Best Midwestern College." Founded in 1897 by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, Huntington University is located on a contemporary, lakeside campus in northeast Indiana. The university is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).

For text of this and all Huntington University news releases, visit www.huntington.edu/news.