The White Coat Campaign has been held during Nurses Week, May 6-12, every year since 2017 to purchase coats for incoming students enrolled in the Master’s (Entry into Nursing) program for a ceremony to mark their official entry into the nursing field. Fundraising is done by the Johns Hopkins Nurses’ Alumni Association.
Erika Juengst, now director of constituent engagement at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, launched the campaign while at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing (JHSON). “In my time as alumni relations director, I had the pleasure of hearing stories of nursing alumni from every decade ranging back to the 1950s. While many things have changed over the years (a finely pressed nurses cap became a white coat), there was a unifying memory of the first time each recited the Nurse’s Pledge and committed their life to the care of others. I launched the White Coat Campaign to give alumni a tangible way of welcoming new students into the Hopkins Nurse Network, and for students to feel the support of the many generations of incredible nurses who came before.”
The 2017 White Coat Campaign raised $9,370; the 2022 campaign raised $19,685.
“My white coat symbolized my introduction into the nursing profession, as well as a reminder of how far I have come and how much of my journey I still had left to go,” says Gianni Montero, BS, MSN, RN, Class of 2022. “My White Coat Ceremony [Fall 2020] will forever be a special day that I will remember and hold close to my heart.”