My name is Noel Wright and I am truly honored to be the student speaker for the summer 2024 Johns Hopkins School of Nursing graduation.
This is a moment where all your possibilities of tomorrow are celebrated today.
Congratulations graduates on your numerous accomplishments! Congratulations graduates on your unlimited potential. You are committing to a career that improves the lives of your fellow person.
You’ve heard often that nursing is a work of heart. Those of you familiar with the Miyazaki film “Howl’s Moving Castle,” know….”A heart is a heavy burden.”
To care deeply on another’s behalf is the heart of nursing, however you manifest that care, whether that be at the bedside or in the halls of the senate. This institution has brought together a multitude of backgrounds, experiences, and expertise in order to improve the health and futures for our families, our communities, our world; ourselves.
For turbulent times are ahead. It is the unspoken promise of a world in constant flux, that change is certain. The stakes feel much higher now and rightfully so. Imposter syndrome and what-ifs may battle for your attention.
But you are the best of the best. Not just because you were accepted into the #1 school in the nation. It is because you have committed to a profession that above all else, exudes the best traits found in humankind.
Nursing has spent over 20 years as the most trusted profession. It is because of the compassion, the perseverance, the care that nurses provide to each person they meet, that has led us to maintain this title for so long. It is evident in your accomplishments as advanced degree holders that you are dedicated to continuing this commitment.
So often when we help others, we help ourselves. We feel lighter, shine brighter. The future of healthcare is dependent on nurses being at the forefront of healthcare advocacy, and I see before me the potential, and the desire to make change for the better.
You are the most trusted. The most capable. The most kind. Genuine. Smart. Dedicated.
We will continue to speak on behalf of the voiceless, as we committed to do during our white coat ceremonies.
Praesis ut prosis ne ut imperes: Lead in order to serve, not in order to rule.
We need leaders who will champion the good and equitable causes, through and through. We need leaders who will bring together expertise, both lived and academic, to craft a brighter future. So go forth; With the gift of knowledge accumulated and taught to you by leaders of the field.
A big shout out to our nurse educators, doubling down on their commitment to others by not only being a nurse, but also a teacher. What a way to give of yourself to the world. They entrust with you their hope, their dedication to a better future by providing you this tailored learning.
I leave you with a quote from the first modern nurse herself, Florence Nightingale.
“Let us never consider ourselves finished, nurses. We must be learning all of our lives.”
Congratulations Class of 2024!!
About the Author: Noel Wright
Originally from Pomona, California, Noel has made her home in Modesto, California. She
graduated with her BA in Psychology from California State University- Stanislaus and worked as a sales and marketing director prior to entering JHSON. During her time at Hopkins she was a Policy Honors Fellow and Sigma Theta Tau inductee. She looks forward to pursuing a DNP/PhD in the future with interests in space nursing and behavioral health policy.
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