Three of the four directors in the program's history will speak during the reception, which will also give program alumna the chance to renew old acquaintances.

“Mostly, it'll be just visiting and looking at old photographs,” said Margaret Davidson, current director of the program. “It's just a celebration of the college's LVN department.”

The Howard College Vocational Nursing Program started in October 1958 with 18 students and one instructor, registered nurse Johnnie Amos. The program was a 2,000 clock hour certificate program with no college credit. Local hospitals participating in the students' training were Malone & Hogan Foundation, Howard County Foundation Hospital (Hall-Bennett) and Cowper Clinic & Hospital.

Because of increased demand for trained nurses, the college began offering two classes a year in 1966.

The program was expanded again in 1979 to include an accelerated associate degree (registered nurse)  program. This accelerated program accommodated currently licensed vocational nurses who desired to

become professional nurses, Davidson said.

More changes came in 1990. To make transition from LVN to ADN easier, there was a major curriculum change in the VN program, changing it from a 12-month clock hour certificate program with no college

credit to a 12-month college credit course, Davidson noted.

The nursing instructors now had the students for nine months, while Anatomy and Physiology, Nutrition, Life

Span Growth and Development and Microbiology were taught by other college faculty.

“It's a very rigorous program,” Davidson said. “We basically tell the students, 'We own you for nine months. Tell your families you'll get back to them later.'”

Close to 1,000 students have received nursing degrees at Howard during the program's history. Davidson said that, as of May 2008, the Big Spring campus' vocational nursing program has 934 students who have passed the State Board of Nurses exam, with an overall pass-rate average from 1959 to 2008 of 97.2 percent.

With increased demand has come increased salary. In 1960, vocational nurses received an average wage of $1.30 an hour, a figure that now ranges from $13 to $18 an hour, Davidson said.

For more information on the program, contact Davidson at 264-5067.

Contact Staff Writer Steve Reagan at 263-7331 ext. 234 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it