June 2014 enewsletter

Page 1

GAMECOCK

The CONnection News and Views from the University of South Carolina COLLEGE OF NURSING

JUNE 2014

Embracing our Legacy During my first 18 months as Dean in the College of Nursing, I have had several unforgettable moments. Presiding over my first convocation last May, admitting my first class of upper division and graduate students last August, observing the spirit and camaraderie of our alumni at the Viana McCown event, and opening the letter indicating that USC is in the top 3% in the country in graduate nursing education---have all been special moments for me. However, two weeks ago while visiting one of our distinguished alumna, Edna Swartzbeck, is a day I will treasure for a lifetime. During our afternoon visit, we took a journey in time perusing historical memoirs of Edna’s cherished mentor, Irene Brown. I heard inspiring stories of Edna’s own trailblazing career as an advanced practice nurse in South Carolina, and we shared positive stories about our time as nurse practitioners in the VA health system.

Inside This Issue Students Corner..................2-3 Alumni & Development......4-5 Faculty & Staff Notes.........6-7 Alpha Xi................................8 Upcoming Events................8 NO LIMITS............................9

Send Inquiries or Newsletter items to: Jan Johnson jnjohnso@mailbox.sc.edu

Edna then proceeded to tell me that she had a gift for the College of Nursing that she wanted to place in my hands. Sitting on a table in her living room was a bust of Florence Nightingale (made in 1861) that was a gift to her from the first Dean of the College of Nursing, Amy Viglione Cockcroft (1957-1969). Resting beneath the bust, was a small handwritten note from 1982 in which Edna wrote the following to Dean Cockcroft: “I appreciate you honoring me with such a beautiful symbol of our professional heritage. I promise you I will see that she continues to bring the same joy to others who are devoted to nursing as she has to us.” The passage of Florence and all she beholds to our profession, as well as the symbolic passage of a gift from the first Dean to her mentee, Edna Swartzbeck, and now to the seventh Dean of the College, is both an honor and a challenge that have been engraved in my inner soul. In A Legacy of Caring: Nursing Education at the University of South Carolina, 1942-2005, the fifth Dean of USC CON, Dr. Mary Ann Parsons, wrote: “in all ways, Deans have been influenced by the faculty, students, and staff who spent time at USC.” Yes, I truly believe this Mary Ann. It is because of the many influential legacies here in the College that paths have been paved for me and many others to follow. I feel such a privilege and honor to serve as Dean of this great College of Nursing. I am inspired and influenced by all of you, and challenged to carry the torch in the months ahead. Together, we will embrace our past and create new legacies we can all be proud of as USC nurses. Jeannette O. Andrews PhD, RN, FNP, FAAN Dean & Professor j.andrews@sc.edu

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