Several Mount Saint Mary College student groups worked together to host the “Delicious Diversity: Celebrating Culture and Care for Others” event, which benefitted the Letter Project.
Students in Mount Saint Mary College’s Nursing Workforce Diversity (NWD) program finished out the semester by aiding the Letter Project for women, and learning more about the hospice and palliative care movement.
NWD students teamed up with the Mount’s Black Student Union, Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), and Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) for the “Delicious Diversity: Celebrating Culture and Care for Others” event. More than 20 students attended.
While enjoying a meal of multicultural foods, the students penned handwritten letters to encourage and empower women and girls. The Letter Project is a female-led organization with the mission to send letters to women and girls who need some extra love, support, and encouragement. The letters, written by volunteers like the Mount students, are delivered throughout the U.S. and England.
Also this semester, NWD hosted a lunch and learn event featuring Hudson Valley Hospice. Guest speakers included Teresa Holstein, Sr. Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Hudson Valley Hospice; and Priscilla Kraut, Vice President of Patient Access.
The students screened the moving documentary Extremis, which explores the hospice and palliative care movement. The film features families struggling to make end-of-life decisions for their loved ones.
Holstein and Kraut then delved into hospice and palliative care services, as well as the work of the Hudson Valley Hospice. More than 30 students were in attendance.
The Mount’s School of Nursing was recently awarded a $1.6 million, three-year Nursing Workforce Diversity grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The NWD program focuses on the recruitment, support, retention, and graduation of nursing students from underrepresented groups. It increases nursing education opportunities and assists students from disadvantaged backgrounds to become baccalaureate-prepared nurses.
The Fall 2023 semester marks the start of the program’s second year. The nursing students in this program benefit from a multitude of support services and opportunities to serve the community.
The Mount’s service-focused approach to education goes hand-in-hand with helping professions like Nursing. Mount Nursing students enjoy state-of-the-art simulation labs and clinical relationships with dozens of area hospitals. The Mount’s passionate faculty are dedicated to the success of both their undergraduate and graduate students.