by Olivia Odom
Samford University’s Ida Moffett School of Nursing held its annual spring award ceremony April 20. The ceremony recognized the accomplishments of the school’s undergraduate students in both the traditional and accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs.
“We have a phenomenal group of students in Ida Moffett School of Nursing,” said Nena F. Sanders, vice provost of Samford’s College of Health Sciences. “We think they are all exceptional. This afternoon, you are going to meet those that are Mrs. Moffett standard: they excel in academics, caring, compassion and service.”
Amy Allen, president and chief executive officer of Baptist Health System, presented this year’s Baptist Health System Awards and the Baptist Health Foundation Awards.
The Academic Achievement Award is awarded to the senior nursing student with the highest GPA in the graduating class. This year, Anna Maddox, a senior from Warner Robins, Georgia, received the award for the traditional B.S.N. program, and Ashley Hopkins, a senior from Vestavia Hills, Alabama, received it for the accelerated second-degree B.S.N. program.
The Ida V. Moffett Caring Award recognizes a student of high ethical value with an ability to serve a patient’s invisible and visible needs. This year’s recipient was Madison Thomas, a senior from Savannah, Georgia.
Baptist Health Foundation Award recipients included the Lucy Jarrell Estes Memorial Scholarship Award to Emma Kate Batch, a junior from Acworth, Georgia; the Marion A. Marx Nursing Scholarship Award to Rachel Thompson, a junior from Peachtree City, Georgia; and the Ida V. Moffett Memorial Scholarship Awards to Dara Bessinger, a junior from Benbrook, Texas, traditional B.S.N., and Julia Adams, a senior from Mountain Brook, Alabama, accelerated second-degree B.S.N.
Along with the student awards, professor and Samford’s emergency readiness coordinator Cindy Berry was recognized with this year’s Outstanding Faculty Award.
“As evident today, each student has demonstrated excellent work ethic, professionalism and the characteristics of a Moffett nurse,” said Jill Hightower, assistant professor and chair of the nursing school’s Student Life Committee. “We know you will each make a difference in the lives of the patients you care for. We look forward to seeing all that you will accomplish in your nursing career.”
Olivia Odom is a journalism and mass communication major and a news and feature writer in the Division of Marketing and Communication.