Aug. 21, 2026 – South Florida State College (SFSC) graduated 16 Practical Nursing (PN) program students in a traditional pinning ceremony on Thursday, July 30 in the Alan Jay Wildstein Center for the Performing Arts on the Highlands Campus in Avon Park.
The graduates were Jaleigh Brantner, Zareana Fogel-Thomas, Pamela Garcia-Cisneros, Cathryn Kersey, Hailey Lee, Jannan Lee, Tracy Likens, Jeshua Lopez, Alysia Mayer, Rosa Montalvo, Aleine Petit-Homme, Mackenzie Pruitt, Samantha Rivera, Alexia Segura, Heather Steele, and Biatriz Ynoa.
Jeshua Lopez was the recipient of the Academic Excellence Award and Mackenzie Pruitt was honored with the Clinical Excellence Award, both supported by the Thakkar Family Foundation.
Each year, PN graduates award the Golden D.U.C.K. to someone or an organization that has served as a mentor to the students in the program. The D.U.C.K. acronym represents the foundational elements of the mentoring arrangement: Developing, Understanding, Compassion, and Knowledge. The award was presented to Good Shepherd Hospice for their “way of providing comfort, preserving dignity, and being present for patients and their families during life’s most meaningful moments,” which left a lasting impression on the graduates.
The practice of pinning new graduates has been a nursing school tradition in the United States since 1916 and, symbolically, welcomes each graduate into the nursing profession. The pin is worn prominently on a nurse’s uniform throughout their career. One story of the ceremony’s beginning goes back to 1883, when Queen Victoria awarded Florence Nightingale the Royal Red Cross on St. George’s Day for her service to the sick and injured during the Crimean War. In turn, Nightingale later extended the honor to her outstanding nursing students by presenting them with a medal of excellence.
Graduates of the 11-month Career Certificate PN program each become a licensed practical nurse (LPN) by passing the National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses (NCLEX-PN) exam. SFSC Nursing graduates are usually fully employed in the field within a few months of graduation.
SFSC offers an Associate in Science degree in Nursing (ADN) program for students interested in becoming registered nurses in two formats: a two-year Generic-RN program and a one-year Transition-LPN to RN program. The College also offers a fully online Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program.
For information about SFSC’s Nursing programs, contact Danielle Nuccio, Health Sciences advisor at 863-784-7027 or by email at healthsciences@southflorida.edu.
| Name: | Emily Avila |
| Year: | Sophomore |
| Height: | 5’3″ |
| Hometown: | Avon Park, Fla. |
| Name: | Carlie Eaton |
| Year: | Sophomore |
| Height: | 5’6″ |
| Hometown: | Okeechobee, Fla. |
| Name: | Azariah Wroy |
| Year: | Freshman |
| Height: | 5’0″ |
| Hometown: | Kissimmee, Fla. |
| Name: | Josselyn Lopez |
| Year: | Freshman |
| Height: | 5’2″ |
| Hometown: | Arcadia, Fla. |
| Name: | Daisy Cortes Enriquez |
| Year: | Freshman |
| Height: | 5’0″ |
| Hometown: | Bowling Green, Fla. |
| Name: | Melina Cardona-Vargas |
| Year: | Sophomore |
| Height: | 5’5″ |
| Hometown: | Lake Wales, Fla. |
| Name: | Ezmeralda Alamia |
| Year: | Sophomore |
| Height: | 5’5″ |
| Hometown: | Bowling Green, Fla. |
Aug. 19, 2026 – On Thursday, July 23, South Florida State College (SFSC) honored 13 of its Radiography graduates in a traditional pinning ceremony on the Highlands Campus in Avon Park. The graduates have earned their Associate in Science (A.S.) in Radiography.
The graduates honored were Destiny Badillo, Tori Britt, Megan Crawford, Cristina Diaz Agosto, Lili Garcia, Azusena Gomez Urbina, Lissette Ledesma, Lisa Lee, Brisa Elena Luevano, Eunice Moffatt, Juan Molina-Molina, Chloe Pomerleau, and Alyssa Prieto.
“We are incredibly proud of our graduates and all they have accomplished,” said Amy Ferrante, director of SFSC’s Radiography program. “One of the most rewarding parts of being an educator is having the opportunity to watch students grow in knowledge, confidence, and professionalism as they prepare to enter the healthcare field. Seeing students reach this milestone and begin their careers as radiologic technologists is truly the reason we do what we do.”
Upon completing SFSC’s two-year A.S. degree in Radiography, graduates can work as certified radiologic technologists by passing the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) national examination. Radiologic technologists work in hospitals and clinics performing diagnostic imaging examinations, such as X-rays and MRIs.
For information about SFSC’s Radiography program, contact Danielle Nuccio, Health Sciences advisor, at 863-784-7027 or by email at healthsciences@southflorida.edu.
Aug. 17, 2026 – The South Florida State College (SFSC) Foundation is proud to announce the establishment of the Ruth E. Handley Memorial Scholarship, a new scholarship honoring the life and legacy of former SFSC employee Ruth E. Handley, a lifelong supporter of the profound impact of education. The scholarship will support those who have a passion for educating others.
Mrs. Ruth E. Handley believed in the transformative power of education, fairness, and equal opportunity as she dedicated her life to serving others and making a positive impact in her community. Through this scholarship, her legacy of compassion, service, and commitment to future educators will continue by helping students pursue their educational and career goals.
“Mrs. Handley’s impact on this community is impossible to measure,” said Emily Dabolt, executive director of institutional advancement at SFSC. “Through this scholarship fund, her legacy will be honored for years to come by helping students discover the same passion for educating others that guided her entire life.”
To be eligible for the Ruth E. Handley Memorial Scholarship, applicants must be enrolled at SFSC and a resident of DeSoto, Hardee, or Highlands County. Applicants must also submit a 500-750-word essay describing their career goals and motivation for pursuing a career in educating others. Preference will be given to students with a 3.0 GPA or higher and involvement in extracurricular activities. The student must also complete a standard financial aid application.
For more information about this or any scholarship at SFSC, email foundation@southflorida.edu or call 863-453-3133.
