Three undergraduate UCF nursing students were honored with leadership awards from Orlando Health and Florida Hospital at the College of Nursing’s Spring 2010 Recognition Ceremony on Wednesday, May 5.
Christine “Chrissy” Ferrell received the Orlando Health Student Excellence Award for a junior undergraduate nursing student. Anne Peach of Orlando Health presented Ferrell with this award.
As a junior, Ferrell has already distinguished herself as a promising leader in nursing. She joined the Student Nurses Association in Fall 2009 and served as a delegate to the Florida Nursing Student Association Convention. She has been elected president of the Orlando Student Nurses Association Chapter for 2010-2011. Her nursing instructors say she is a kind, caring individual, dedicated to her patients and her work as a nurse. She is very enthusiastic about her chosen profession of nursing.
Kearstin Kelley received the Orlando Health Student Excellence Award for a senior undergraduate nursing student. Anne Peach of Orlando Health also presented her award.
During her UCF career, Kelley demonstrated strong leadership in her role in as the Student Nurses Association liaison to the college’s Undergraduate Curriculum Committee. She also represented the college as a delegate at the Fall 2009 Florida Nursing Student Association Convention. Additionally, she served the President’s Leadership Council, a group of students who serve as ambassadors for the university. Kelley has consistently gone above and beyond what is expected of her as a student. As one preceptor commented, “she not only wanted to know what she had to do, but also what else needed to be done and why things were being done. But most importantly, she always took pride in the quality of her work. Her enthusiasm for the profession is contagious and she is very deserving of this award.”
Julie Wunderlich received the Florida Hospital Mission Excellence Award for a senior undergraduate nursing student. The award was presented by Kristin Duquaine of Florida Hospital.
Wunderlich has proven herself an exceptional student. She consistently goes above and beyond in her clinical work with patients demonstrating strong critical-thinking skills and excellent communication skills. Clinical instructors note that, “she is a pleasure to work with; she is enthusiastic and brings a freshness to her clinical work that inspires others.”
About the Nursing Recognition Ceremony:
The College of Nursing hosts its traditional recognition ceremony at the end of each semester during the university’s commencement week. Graduate students are draped with an apricot-colored hood, the color symbolizing nursing, while undergraduate students are pinned to celebrate their passage from student nurse to professional nurse.
The College of Nursing’s Spring 2010 graduating class includes: