Cook County’s newest nurses! Commencement exercises at Itasca Community College included nine local students who completed the licensed practical nursing program. Participating in the graduation on May 10, 2012 were (L-R, front) Tim Young, Sherry Donek, Kelli Goldstein, Jessica Gervais, Kate Surbaugh. (L-R, back) Nursing Instructor Mark Abrahamson, Faith Sjoberg, Elena Everson, Sasha Falk, and Allison Oja.
Commencement exercises were held at Itasca Community College on May 10, 2012 and among the new licensed practical nurses earning their degree where nine local students— Tim Young, Sherry Donek, Kelli Goldstein, Jessica Gervais, Kate Surbaugh., Faith Sjoberg, Elena Everson, Sasha Falk, and Allison Oja.
Itasca Community College offered the LPN diploma program in Cook County. Classes began in August 2011, with lecture components online and clinical training taught locally by Mark Abrahamson. Most of the clinical activities took place in the lower level of the Cook County Higher Education North Shore campus, thanks to equipment, such as hospital beds and mannequins donated by the North Shore Hospital.
Prerequisites for the course included completing the nursing assistant course, as well as anatomy and physiology, English composition, and others.
Cook County Higher Education Director Paula Sundet said, “Most students spent a year or more completing these requirements. They have been working hard for a long time! Congratulations students – you make our whole community proud.”
Tim Young was one of the speakers at commencement and he noted that it was sometimes difficult to go back to school as one of the “oldest kids” in the class. But he said, you are never too old—or too young—to pursue your dream. He congratulated his classmates and wished them well as they continue their life’s journey.
He said, “I’m so proud to be part of this caring, capable group of healers, and so grateful to the teachers who educated and mentored us. Your fingerprints are all over us, and that indelible touch will be a part of your legacy as we travel the world putting your teaching into practice. We want to make you proud.
“Thank you so much for believing in us, sometimes more than we believed in ourselves,” said Young.
Leave a Reply