{"id":2363,"date":"2017-12-18T16:34:58","date_gmt":"2017-12-18T16:34:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/?p=2363"},"modified":"2017-12-18T16:34:58","modified_gmt":"2017-12-18T16:34:58","slug":"tstc-grad-continues-nursing-legacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/?p=2363","title":{"rendered":"TSTC Grad Continues Nursing Legacy"},"content":{"rendered":"

(HARLINGEN) – Kairo Castillo will join his family\u2019s legacy of nursing tonight when he earns his certification in Vocational Nursing during Texas State Technical College\u2019s commencement ceremony at the Harlingen Municipal Auditorium.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still can\u2019t believe that I\u2019m about to graduate. I\u2019m so excited,\u201d he said. \u201cIt won\u2019t become real until I put on my cap and gown.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 21-year-old and at least 300 other TSTC students will earn certificates or associate degrees and join an alumni network made up of more than 100,000 graduates statewide.<\/p>\n

\u201cNursing is in my blood,\u201d said the Harlingen native. \u201cIt was always the plan for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Castillo\u2019s parents are nurses and he has personally seen the positive impacts nursing has on a family.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy parents went to college late in life and survived the rigors of a nursing program to better our family,\u201d he said. \u201cIf they could do it, so could I.\u201d<\/p>\n

Castillo\u2019s family struggled financially before nursing became a part of their lives. The family of four lived in a one-bedroom apartment and at times with his grandparents. They never had a permanent place to call home.\"Kairo<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cMy sister and I vowed that we would get an education early, and that\u2019s what I\u2019m doing,\u201d he said. \u201cWe both saw how education got us out of poverty, and now I\u2019m working toward a career that will benefit me and my future family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although Castillo still needs to pass the National Council Licensure Examination, he said he is excited and prepared to enter the workforce.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to lie. The program has been challenging and there were days I wanted to give up,\u201d said Castillo. \u201cBut all of the instructors at TSTC know how to motivate and encourage you to keep going. They really do want to see us succeed in our exam and out in the field.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that the best part of the program was the hands-on experience he received in the classroom and during clinicals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not the same kid I was when I entered. This program really prepares you and matures you,\u201d said Castillo. \u201cThe bar is set high for nursing students, and TSTC prepares us for the real world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Castillo said he wants to thank his instructors for their open-door policies and always offering the support he needed during his journey. It is because of his positive experience in the program that he hopes to return to TSTC to pursue registered nursing.<\/p>\n

Castillo added, \u201cNot only were my parents there to push me, but so was the faculty. That\u2019s rare, but I\u2019m glad they were there. I wouldn\u2019t be where I am today.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the new year, Castillo hopes to find a full-time nursing position at a local outpatient clinic or acute care hospital.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love helping people, and nursing is my way of doing that,\u201d he said. \u201cI want to help others be the best they can be physically, emotionally and mentally. At the end of the day, that\u2019s all I want.\u201d<\/p>\n

TSTC\u2019s Commencement Ceremony is Friday, Dec. 15, at 6 p.m. at the Harlingen Municipal Auditorium.<\/p>\n

For more information on TSTC and its programs, visit tstc.edu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(HARLINGEN) – Kairo Castillo will join his family\u2019s legacy of nursing tonight when he earns his certification in Vocational Nursing during Texas State Technical College\u2019s commencement ceremony at the Harlingen Municipal Auditorium. \u201cI still can\u2019t believe that I\u2019m about to graduate. I\u2019m so excited,\u201d he said. \u201cIt won\u2019t become real until I put on my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2363","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-harlingen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2363","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2363"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2363\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2365,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2363\/revisions\/2365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2363"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2363"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}