PSC celebrates 117 nursing graduates with Spring Pinning Ceremony

The Pensacola State College Nursing Department celebrated its latest cohort of nursing graduates, with 18 students receiving the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree and 99 receiving the Associate of Science in Nursing degree, during the Spring 2026 Pinning Ceremony at First Pentecostal Church in Pensacola.

Welcome and congratulatory remarks from Health Sciences Assistant Dean Mitzie Sowell, Ph.D., serving as master of ceremonies, PSC President Ed Meadows, Ed.D., and PSC District Board of Trustees Chair Gordon Sprague preceded the guest speaker’s address from Baptist Health Care Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer Joyce Nichols, APRN.

Nichols, a graduate of Pensacola Junior College, holds board certification as a Family Nurse Practitioner and is certified in wound and ostomy care. She shared insight from her own career spanning from the emergency room and family practice to hospital administration.

“You’re entering nursing during a really unprecedented time. It’s complex. It’s challenging. It’s really a meaningful time in health care with all the technology, but the technology does not take the place of the human touch, and that’s what you all will bring,” she said. “You’ll witness innovation and pain and joy, heartbreak and exhaustion. You’ll have purpose, and you’ll feel all of that in a single shift — sometimes before lunch!”

“You will witness things that most people aren’t equipped to see. Remember your why.”

Meadows asked the graduates to remember those who helped them succeed in completing their nursing degree programs.

“Nursing is one of our most difficult curriculums, and it has been a difficult time for you and your families. You rarely get the chance to publicly acknowledge your friends and families for their sacrifice and support,” said Meadows, before asking the graduates to turn and face the audience, find their supporters, and offer them a round of applause.

“It is surreal. It’s getting an opportunity to fulfill a life goal and, in the long term, I’ll wind up being a CRNA (Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist),” said Jonathan Hilt, who completed his A.S. in Nursing to become an RN.

“From start to finish, it’s been excellent. It has taught me things about myself that I didn’t realize I could do. It has taught me how to adapt to things that I otherwise wouldn’t be able to adapt to. Overall, it’s been a fantastic experience.”

Alyssa Pearson also completed her A.S. in Nursing. “I’m really excited. I’ll be working the 8th Floor at Baptist, the surgical floor,” she said. “After that, I want to continue my career and go the NP (Nurse Practitioner) route or maybe CRNA.”

“It was definitely hard — a lot of tears and a lot of failed exams, but you have a good team around you. At PSC, they really make sure that you feel comfortable and that you know what you’re doing once you go to your clinicals. So, it was a really good experience after all is said and done.”

Pearson credits the camaraderie among nursing students with helping her persevere and complete the RN program. “We look out for each other. That’s what you’ve got to do in nursing school — make sure that everyone sticks together and makes it out together.”

Many graduates, like Hilt and Pearson, will likely continue their studies at PSC to advance in their careers. Hilt plans to return in support of future nursing students, as well.

“Moving forward, I plan to join Baptist Health Care and achieving higher rank and then giving back to my school — coming and doing graduate assistance and tutoring, making this my hub,” he said.

“This school contributes greatly to the Pensacola area,” added Hilt. “The graduates that come out of here are top-tier, and we’re very fortunate as a community to have them.”