The College of Health Sciences at the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith will host three awards ceremonies in May to commemorate students in surgical technology, dental hygiene, and nursing.

 

May 8: Surgical Technology Pinning

 

Dr. Stephen Heim, an orthopedic surgeon at the Cooper Clinic in Fort Smith, will speak at the Surgical Technology pinning ceremony held at 6:30 p.m. May 8 in the Reynolds Room of the Smith-Pendergraft Campus Center.

 

Heim, a native of Fort Smith, has worked at the Cooper Clinic since 1988 after graduating from medical school at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. He presented two workshops for students earlier in the spring semester.

 

The ceremony will recognize Dr. Ronald Knobloch, a local urologist and volunteer medical director of the surgical technology program, for his efforts in educating students.

 

Clinical Student of the Year and Academic Student of the Year will also be announced at the event, with plaques presented in recognition of the students’ accomplishments.

 

The event is invitation only due to limited seating. For more information, contact Sydney Fulbright at 479-788-7855 or sydney.fulbright@uafs.edu.

 

May 9: Dental Hygiene Pinning & Awards

 

The guest speaker for the Associate of Applied Science in Dental Hygiene program pinning and awards ceremony held at 6 p.m. May 9 will be UAFS student Taylor Hibbard of Cedarville, president of the University’s 2014 dental hygiene class.  

 

Fourteen students will be pinned at the ceremony held in the Weidman Center, room 133 of the Pendergraft Health Sciences Center.

 

Hibbard will receive the Arkansas State Dental Hygiene Association Career Award at the ceremony. In addition to her duties as class president, she is also the president of the student chapter of the American Dental Hygiene Association. She graduated as valedictorian in 2011 from Cedarville High School.

 

The event is invitation only due to limited seating. For more information, contact Pam Davidson at 479-788-7272 or pam.davidson@uafs.edu.

 

May 9: School of Nursing Awards Ceremony

 

The awards ceremony for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing and Associate of Applied Science in Nursing programs will take place at 7 p.m. May 9 in the Reynolds Room of the Smith-Pendergraft Campus Center, with Dr. Antonio deMondesert as the keynote speaker.

 

Dr. deMondesert, who currently works as a gastroenterologist at the Cooper Clinic in Fort Smith, possesses nearly 20 years of experience in medicine. He graduated with a Doctor of Medicine from the Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Urena in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, where he also earned his undergraduate degree in biology.

 

UAFS holds an awards ceremony at the end of the fall and spring semesters for students completing the nursing program. A total of 39 students will be pinned at the ceremony, a symbolic tradition marking a student’s progression from pupil to nurse.

 

The event requires a ticket for admission, which is available from nursing students. For more information, contact Dr. Carolyn Mosley, dean of the College of Health Sciences, at 479-788-7840.