SLU School of Nursing Holds White Coat Ceremony for Class of 2027
10/04/2024
Saint Louis University’s Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing hosted its White Coat Ceremony, a rite of passage for students as they begin their clinical training and progress toward becoming baccalaureate nurses.
“May you live out your role as professional nurses with integrity, intelligence, caring, and courage and serve as men and women for all,” said Kristine L'Ecuyer, Ph.D., interim dean at the Valentine School of Nursing.
Saint Louis University’s Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing anticipate their White Coat Ceremony held on Friday, Sept. 27, at St. Francis Xavier College Church. Submitted photo by Jalen Lee.
The ceremony was held on Friday, Sept. 27, at St. Francis Xavier College Church. The keynote speech was given by Patricia Miller, Ph.D., chief nursing officer at SSM Health St. Louis University Hospital, where many SLU nursing students will complete their clinicals.
Miller is an experienced health care executive with more than 20 years of senior management experience at hospitals around the country. In her introduction, L'Ecuyer described Miller as “an insightful planner” who “demonstrates multifaceted leadership skills and ability to implement organizational improvements and enhance patient care outcomes through physician-nurse partnerships.” Miller is also respected for her keen ability to inspire others to perform.
“Know that there will be times that you may fail but look at them in a different way. Fail simply means ‘First attempt in learning.’ Take risks. Never give up. If you do these things, the next generation and the generations that follow will live in a world that is better than the one we live in today,” Miller said to the audience.
Valentine School of Nursing students celebrate at SLU's Busch Student Center during a White Coat Ceremony reception on Friday, Sept. 27. Photo by Jalen Lee.
SLU nursing faculty coated 121 students during the ceremony before family and friends in the iconic white coat that signifies their status as health care professionals. Their hands were anointed with sacred oil and a prayer that they “may be a blessing to all they encounter.” Students recited the health profession’s covenant, publicly affirming their intention to providing humanistic patient care.
In 2014, recognizing the vital role nurses play in the health care team, the Gold Foundation partnered with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing to adopt a White Coat Ceremony for Nursing. More than 450 schools of nursing have participated, and the number continues to grow. The Gold Foundation champions the human connection in health care. The foundation engages schools and their students, health systems, companies, and individual clinicians in the joy and meaning of humanistic healthcare, so that patients and their families can be partners in collaborative, compassionate and scientifically excellent care.
For more information about the White Coat Ceremony and the Gold Foundation, visit www.gold-foundation.org.
Latest Newslink
- Helen De Cruz, Ph.D.: 1978-2025Helen De Cruz, Ph.D., the Danforth Chair in the Humanities at Saint Louis University, died Friday, June 20, 2025. She was 46. The Belgian-born philosopher examined why and how humans engage in pursuits that seem remote from the immediate concerns of survival and reproduction, such as theology, mathematics, and science.
- 'I am More Than Just a Refugee': A SLU Student Shares His StoryThe Saint Louis University-Jesuit Worldwide Learning (SLU-JWL) program offers remote bachelor's degrees to international students displaced by conflict, lack of opportunity, and poverty in places such as refugee camps in Kenya and Malawi. One student, Dictor Olame, reflected on his experience as a SLU student in the Kakuma refugee camp in North-Western Kenya.
- SLU Supports St. Louis by Hosting City's Tornado Relief CenterIn the weeks following a devastating tornado that tore through St. Louis on May 16, hundreds of households have turned to a centralized Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) at Chaifetz Arena for assistance.
- Persistence Pays Off for Fulbright Award RecipientAnuj Gandhi is a Fulbright Scholar. A year after being chosen as an alternate, Gandhi has been chosen for a Fulbright-Nehru Student Research Award. With the Award, the recent Saint Louis University graduate intends to "investigate how globalization-based acculturation influences Indian young adults' attitudes toward mental health and treatment options."
- Pestellos Honored With Honorary Street NameA stretch of Laclede Avenue that has undergone major development since President Fred P. Pestello, Ph.D., and First Lady Fran Pestello, Ph.D., arrived at Saint Louis University 11 years ago now has a new name.
- Disaster Assistance Center Opens to the Community in Response to the May 16 TornadoThe City of St. Louis, in partnership with the Missouri State Emergency Management Agency and Saint Louis University, opened a Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) on Monday, June 9, to serve as a central space for tornado-affected residents to connect with agencies offering guidance, resources, and assistance related to recovery and long-term support. The DAC will take place inside Chaifetz Arena.
