A South Georgia Technical College mother-daughter duo, Danielle Murphy and Shermit Sims. were awarded the very first South Georgia Technical College Foundation Magnolia Manor Senior Living Scholarships recently.
Murphy and Sims both graduated from the South Georgia Technical College Practical Nursing program and applied and were accepted into South Georgia Technical College’s first LPN to RN Bridge program this past fall. They are currently in their second semester.
Danielle Murphy of Plains attended SGTC in 2009 – 2010 and graduated from the Practical Nursing Program. One year later, her daughter, Shermit Sims of Preston, came to SGTC and earned her Practical Nursing diploma.
Today, both of them are back at South Georgia Technical College and enrolled in the LPN to RN Bridge program together. Both of them are also employed at Magnolia Manor of Americus Center.
“We are excited to celebrate two exceptional employees at the Magnolia Manor of Americus Nursing Center, Danielle Murphy and Shermet Sims, for receiving the Magnolia Manor Senior Living Scholarships!” said Dianne Harrison, Senior Vice President of Human Resources for Magnolia Manor, Inc.
“We extend a huge congratulations to Danielle and Shermet for these well-deserved achievements! You both exemplify dedication to professional and personal growth. Your passion for learning and serving others reflects our core value of integrity through excellence,” said Harrison, who added, “Thank you for representing Magnolia Manor so well. We are cheering you on every step of the way!”
Magnolia Manor Senior Living President and CEO Hill Fort partnered with South Georgia Technical College recently and endowed a scholarship to help benefit students and the workforce in this area through additional education opportunities. The scholarships are being utilized to assist academically deserving and financially disadvantaged students in the medical fields, technical and business-related programs of study.
“Magnolia Manor is such a great asset to our community and to South Georgia Technical College. Over the years, hundreds of our nursing students have gained their practical learning and skills through their clinical experience at Magnolia Manor. Many of our graduates from the practical nursing, certified nurse assistant, medical assisting and business or technical programs have gained employment at Magnolia Manor and continue to serve there. On behalf of our faculty, staff, students and graduates, we thank Magnolia Manor for their support of our workforce development mission and now through an endowed scholarship opportunity,” added Dr. Watford. “We are also excited that these two LPN to RN Bridge students were recognized with this scholarship opportunity.”
South Georgia Technical College was granted development approval by the Georgia Board of Nursing (GBON) to offer an Associate of Science Nursing (LPN to RN) Bridge program on the Americus campus and the college accepted 40 students into the initial program offering Fall Semester.
There is currently a critical shortage of Registered Nurses in rural Southwest Georgia and the nation. This new program will build on SGTC’s solid Practical Nursing program and prepare currently Licensed Practical Nurses to become Registered Nurses. This will be a one-year program and allow LPN’s who have been working for six months or longer to get a jump start on the RN degree.
South Georgia Technical College has been offering the practical nursing program since 1953 and 72 years later, SGTC offered its first registered nursing classes. To apply for this program, individuals must have completed 17 hours of college core classes to include: English 1101 – Composition and Rhetoric; Math 1111 or Math 1103 – College Algebra; Biology 2113 and Biology 2113L – Anatomy and Physiology I and Lab I; Sociology 1101 or Psychology 1101 – Introductory Sociology or Introductory Psychology; Biology 2114 and Biology 2114L – Anatomy and Physiology II and Lab II; Biology 2117 and Biology 2117L – Introductory Microbiology and Lab and two of the following courses: Arts 1101 – Art Appreciation; English 2130 – American Literature; Humanities 1101 – Introduction to Humanities and/or Music 1101 – Music Appreciation.
In addition to those 17-hours of core courses, a high school diploma or its equivalent is required for admission. Individuals must be 18 years of age or older and have achieved appropriate scores on the college’s placement test or submission of acceptable SAT or ACT scores. Individuals must have an unencumbered Georgia LPN license with at least six months of experience as an LPN. The LPN licensure must be maintained throughout the ASN program. Failure to maintain LPN licensure will result in dismissal from the program. Students will not be eligible for apply for admission to the ASN program if they have unsuccessfully completed any ASN, AND, or BSN programs at another institution. Students will be considered for admission to the ASN Bridge option three (3) years after the last nursing course failure.
All students will be required to take and achieve minimum required scores on standardized and program-generated achievement tests (TEAS) and a competitive process was used to determine which students were admitted to the program. Completion of all general education courses and completion of required exams does not guarantee admission to the program and does not guarantee participation in the clinical setting. A criminal background check may be a stipulation of the clinical facility before beginning the clinical rotation.
Once admitted into the program, there are 36-credit hours of courses required including: Principles of Pharmacology, Transition to Professional RN Practice, Adult Health Nursing I, Mother/Baby/Family and Pediatric Nursing, Adult Health Nursing II, and Mental Health Nursing.
For more information about this program contact SGTC Admissions Director Candie Walters, cwalters@southgatech.edu. Individuals can apply to the college by visiting www.southgatech.edu and clicking on the Apply Now button on the top right hand corner of the home page.