Twenty-six recent graduates from Southern Regional Technical College’s (SRTC) Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) program in Moultrie had 100% passage on their board exams. These students completed coursework in the Spring, and were pinned in May of 2018. These students recently received word that each person passed their board exams on their first attempt. This 100% first attempt pass rate is a major accomplishment for a nursing program, and its students, as that percentage is well above the national average for nursing programs.
These nurses represent the first ASN class to graduate from Moultrie’s new Generic ASN program as well as Moultrie’s new LPN-RN Bridge program. According to SRTC’s Nursing Program Chair, Tammy Bryant, this program was initiated in response to the growing nursing shortage in the South Georgia area. “The decision to extend the ASN program enabled SRTC to meet career needs of individuals as well as the needs of area business and industry. We already had a well-established ASN program in Thomasville. By expanding to Moultrie as well as Tifton, SRTC continues to work diligently to address the nursing shortage in our region. Over the next three years, an additional 300+ registered nurses will be needed to fill open vacancies in community hospitals and healthcare facilities in Southwest Georgia. To meet the challenge of having a sufficient number of highly qualified health care professionals, SRTC must continue to expand its health care offerings and capacity to prepare more students to enter these fields,” commented Mrs. Bryant.
In support of this program, Colquitt Regional Medical Center has committed to funding one full time ASN faculty position on the SRTC Veterans Parkway campus in Moultrie, as well as student scholarships for local future nurses. SRTC President, Dr. Craig Wentworth expressed that the results of this partnership speak for themselves, saying that he is “so proud of our Moultrie Campus’ first cohort of Associate Degree Nursing graduates. That 100% pass rate is not only indicative of the student graduates’ knowledge and skill level, but of their hard work, dedication, and commitment as well as that of our excellent Nursing faculty. These graduates will make great nurses and they, and their instructors, are to be commended and congratulated on quite an achievement!”
The program continues to grow as the second class is already as large as the first cohort, with applicants continuing to apply to the program in Moultrie. Most importantly, 100% of the student who graduated from the program this year are now employed as nurses, according to Mrs. Bryant, who sums up her thoughts on this first class quite simply: “I am so proud of them.”