Nearly 40 students were honored at the recent Mount Saint Mary College white coat ceremony.
Nearly 40 students from the Mount Saint Mary College Nurse Practitioner program were honored at the Spring 2025 white coat ceremony on Friday, May 9.
The graduates’ white coats were presented to them by their chosen family members, from spouses and children to parents and grandparents.
The ceremony reflected the students’ transition to the professional nurse practitioner role. Nurse practitioners are advanced practice nurses who provide high quality healthcare services. They can diagnose, treat, and prescribe across a wide range of health problems.
After welcome speeches by Marilyn Lashlee, associate professor of Nursing and School of Nursing Graduate Coordinator, and Dr. Robert Gervasi, president of the Mount, students and their families enjoyed a congratulatory message from Ann Marie Brooks, Interim Dean of the School of Nursing.
“You need to build the bridges of trust with every patient,” said Brooks. “I look forward to hearing about everybody doing great things…so go out, save lives, and stamp out disease. But also, surround yourself with people who are going to lift you higher. Go forth, lift yourselves and others higher.”
Michael Ciaffone, adjunct instructor of Nursing at the Mount, was chosen by the graduating students to be the ceremony’s keynote speaker. Ciaffone noted that he also started his healthcare journey at the Mount, about 20 years ago.
“Every step, even the painful ones, brings you right where you need to go,” he said. “Remember, you will have tough days. But you’ll also have beautiful ones.”
Graduate Eric Ablordey of Middletown, N.Y. was selected to discuss the group’s progression through the Mount’s nurse practitioner program.
“White Coat is more than just an event,” said Ablordey. “The white coat we receive today…is a promise to uphold the values of compassion, integrity, innovation, and excellence.”
After the graduates received their white coats, Rebecca McGuire of New Windsor, N.Y. and Franklin Owusu of Elmsford, N.Y. were recognized for excellence in their studies with the Sigma Award. Likewise, Nicholas Terzulli of Brooklyn, N.Y. was honored with the Sr. Leona DeBoer Graduate Nursing Award, named after one of the Dominican Sisters who founded the Nursing major at the Mount.
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