During a pinning ceremony back in May, Amy Banner - Southwestern Community College’s Nursing Director – read aloud a sample question from the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN).
Nursing graduates in the first few rows grinned knowingly. The rest of the crowd chuckled at the medical lexicon and the question’s overall ambiguity.
Within three months, all 25 of the SCC Nursing graduates honored that day would go on to successfully pass that challenging exam on the first attempt and are now officially Registered Nurses.
“We are elated,” said Amy Banner, SCC’s Nursing Program Director. “All the hard work of our students and faculty is paying off. It was a total team effort between tutoring and extra hours in the office, and everyone being willing to pitch in all the time.”
The Associate Degree Nursing career path at SCC is a two-year program.
Southwestern also offers the WNC Regionally Increasing Baccalaureate Nurses pathway, which allows students to complete their first three years toward a bachelor’s degree at SCC before transferring to Western Carolina University for the final year.
“The NCLEX is extremely difficult for good reason,” said Dr. Thom Brooks. “For every single one of our graduates to pass is evidence that Amy and all of our instructors have done a great job of preparing their students, and it’s also proof of how hard all of our graduates have worked.”
Southwestern has been training nurses since 1967 when it launched a “Practical Nurse Education” tract. SCC serves Jackson, Macon, Swain Counties and the Qualla Boundary and also regularly draws students from outside the region.
“At Southwestern, we consider it an honor to train the next generation of healthcare workers for our service area and beyond,” said Dr. Don Tomas, SCC’s President. “Our instructors challenge students because they need to be ready to succeed their very first day on the job. We’re extremely proud of all our 2023 graduates because they worked hard and earned this, and we are also very proud of our faculty members who supported the students every step along the way.”
For more information about Southwestern and the programs it offers, visit SouthwesternCC.edu, call 828.339.4000 or drop by your nearest SCC location.
