Another reminder to plan now for Spring Semester 2010 at PDCCC! Early Bird Registration for current students begins November 16, with classes starting January 11, 2010—and the application deadline for local scholarships and grants is November 6th. In addition to scholarships cited in last week’s column, following are descriptions of two memorial nursing scholarships available for Spring Semester:

Connie Patterson Memorial Nursing Scholarship

The Connie Patterson Memorial Nursing Scholarship was established September 22, 2006 to honor the memory of Connie Patterson. Connie was employed by Internal Medicine from October 14, 1996 until her death in 2006, as a medical administrator. Connie is survived by her husband, John Patterson and two sons, Adam T .Patterson and Mark E. Patterson.

The initiative for the Fund came from her coworkers at Internal Medicine and the physicians, Robert G. Edwards, MD and Daniel K. Peak, Jr. MD, who worked with Connie and wanted to honor her commitment to helping others by establishing a scholarship to assist deserving students in the nursing profession.

Criteria for the $250 scholarship award include the following:

4Scholarship awards are granted from the distribution of the endowed account to students who are enrolled in PDCCC’s Associate Degree Nursing Program.

Consideration will be given to projected contributions to the nursing profession upon graduation as demonstrated by active participation in nursing associations while a student.

Students must be in good academic standing.

Students must have successfully completed the third semester nursing curriculum.

Awards can be based on the financial needs of a particular student (but not necessarily).

Ryan L. Kirkland Memorial Scholarship for Nursing Students

This scholarship was given in memory of Ryan Lawrence Kirkland, who enrolled in the PDCCC Nursing Program in 2006. His ready smile, sense of humor, dedication to study, and caring for others quickly earned the trust and respect of his classmates and college faculty. He was elected President of the Class of 2008. On March 21, 2007, Ryan died in a car accident.

Criteria for this $1,000 scholarship include the following:

Enrollment in PDCCC Registered Nurse (RN) Program

Member of the RN Class of 2010

Minimal GPA 2.5

Two Letters of Recommendation: one from a member of the Nursing Faculty and one from someone in the community other than a family member

Financial Need

Applicant’s description of support for fellow classmates throughout the nursing program and how Ryan’s legacy of caring will continue in his/her nursing career.

For information on all Spring Semester Scholarships and programs available at PDCCC, call 569-6700 or visit our website at www.pdc.edu.