![\"\"](\"http:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/TSTC-VN-Pinning-Ceremony.jpg\")
<\/a> something greater than any of us could ever imagine,\u201d said TSTC Vocational Nursing alumnus Jason Rodriguez. \u201cYou belong here, you\u2019ve earned it. Don\u2019t quit now, continue growing your knowledge.\u201d<\/p>\nRodriguez graduated with his certificate in vocational nursing in 2015 and works with Windsor Atrium, a nursing home in Harlingen. He said it was an honor to have been invited as a guest speaker and he is hoping that some remember the wisdom he shared.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything in this world worth having is worth working for,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd remember, the title does not make the nurse, the nurse makes the title.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Maria Cisneros, the class\u2019 valedictorian with a 3.8 grade-point average, the wisdom was taken to heart.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor as long as I can remember, I\u2019ve wanted to be a nurse,\u201d she said. \u201cThe road has not always been easy, but today makes all of the hard work and tears worth it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cisneros, a mother of two, reminisced during her valedictorian speech about her grandmother, who inspired her to be a nurse.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe took care of me while my parents were at work. We were close,\u201d she said. \u201cBut her health began to decline and I was helpless. This is when I knew I wanted to be a nurse.\u201d<\/p>\n
She first graduated from TSTC in 2015 when the certified nursing assistant program was offered. And now the TSTC vocational nursing graduate plans on returning to campus next year for the vocational nurse to registered nurse transition program.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere have been so many days where I have to put a smile on for my kids, but I did not feel like smiling,\u201d she said. \u201cI wanted to show my kids there is no obstacle to big and that quitting is never an option, and it was my second family made up of instructors and peers that made the struggle easier. I\u2019m going to miss them.\u201d This is a sentiment that many could relate to, making the moment bittersweet.<\/p>\n Through tears of relief and joy the ceremony continued with remarks from TSTC administration and faculty, the anointing and blessing of hands by Pastor Dan Anderson from The Bridge-Rio Hondo Baptist Church, a first for the program, and a candle lighting ceremony, which marks the passing of the light of knowledge.<\/p>\n The Vocational Nursing Pinning Ceremony is held twice a year during the fall and summer semesters and is described as a rite of passage by TSTC Vocational Nursing Director Heather Sauceda.<\/p>\n \u201cOur students work so hard to get to this day,\u201d said Sauceda. \u201cToday begins another chapter in their lives and we are very proud of them.\u201d<\/p>\n For more information on the Vocational Nursing program at TSTC, visit tstc.edu.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" (HARLINGEN) – It was an emotional ceremony for the 20 Texas State Technical College Vocational Nursing graduates who were recently pinned and officially welcomed into the profession during the program\u2019s annual pinning ceremony. \u201cWe were put on Earth for something greater than any of us could ever imagine,\u201d said TSTC Vocational Nursing alumnus Jason Rodriguez. […]<\/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-3327","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-harlingen"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3327","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=3327"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3327\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3330,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3327\/revisions\/3330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.tstc.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a><\/p>\n