The 24 December graduates of the nursing, traditional bachelor’s degree were “pinned” during a ceremony on Friday. During an event filled with tradition, the students entered with candles, heard from a faculty member and classmate of their choosing, passed the light to representatives of a future graduating class, and recited the Nightingale Pledge. During her remarks, faculty speaker Terri A. Stone, assistant professor of nursing, told the graduates that, if she had to pinpoint a common quality among those who successfully completed the program, it wouldn’t be that they are the smartest or most able – although many of them are – but that they have developed the quality of perseverance. “This quality … is your crowning achievement today,” she said. The students are set to graduate on Saturday.