Nurses graduate from college

Newton — All 12 graduates of the 2008 Nurse Education Program at Sussex County Community College have successfully completed the NCLEX examination and are now Registered Nurses. The college’s program is offered in collaboration with Passaic County Community College, making a concerted effort to alleviate the shortage of nurses in the health care industry. The graduates were Tammy Marie Castles, Kathleen Anne Gendron, Alexis Goralyczyk, Patricia Hannam, Elizabeth Anne Langan, Michael Scott Lovitch, Gemma Riccardi, Ann-Marie Skeie, Patricia C. Sullivan, Laurie Anne Swanson, Carol Ann Vogt, and Donna C. Zeuner. Graduates received their Associate of Applied Science Degree in December and were the ninth graduating class of the Nurse Education Program. In this innovative program, qualified students who are admitted to the PCCC Nurse Education Program, offered in conjunction with SCCC, take the clinical nursing courses with PCCC here on the SCCC campus. These clinical courses comprise a four-semester sequence, which begins each January and is designed to include both general education and nursing courses for students who have selected careers as registered nurses. General education courses from the sciences and liberal arts enhance the students understanding of clients with acute and chronic health problems. The curriculum prepares students to practice in hospitals and health agencies within the framework of the American Nurses Association’s Standards of Practice and the New Jersey Nurse Practice Act. Currently, there are 31 students in their first semester enrolled in the Nursing Fundamentals course. They will graduate in 2010. For more information about the Nurse Education Program contact Linda Siegrist at 973-300-2283 or visit www.sussex.edu.