Pitts and Suratt Receive Student of the Month Community Service Award

COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD RECIPIENTS:

May 2012 Undergraduate Student recipient: Kionna Pitts

Kionna Pitts volunteered for Relay for Life @ USF. Relay for Life was an eighteen hour relay-styled fundraising event in which teams of USF organizations camped out around the USF Track Stadium and members of each team collaborated by taking turns walking around the track for the duration of the event. Each team fundraised prior and throughout the event to help raise money for the American Cancer Society to continue the fight for the cure of cancer.

Kionna volunteered as Team Captain for the College of Nursing Student Council (CNSC) team of ten. The CNSC team was recognized as the #1 (out of 82 teams) team to send out the most emails requesting donations to fight for the cure, which totaled out at over 1000 emails sent within one week. As Team Captain, she actively participated in Team Captain Meetings which were held weekly to collaborate, consolidate, and strategically cultivate a prodigious Relay for Life experience at USF. It took months of preparation to organize and recruit team members of friends, family members, and classmates. Kionna also lead CNSC team’s fundraising efforts and participation in the Relay event.

Kionna also volunteered at Hillsborough County Head Start/Early Head Start. Hillsborough County Head Start/Early Head Start is an exemplary early childhood program that partners with families and the community to build a foundation for self-reliance. It provides quality educational opportunities for ALL children and their families in a safe and nurturing environment.

Kionna volunteers at the Kimmins Early Head Start as Policy Council Representative alternate and the Parent Committee President. As part of the Policy Council Representative position, she participates as a voting affiliate in Policy Council Board conferences to represent Kimmins Early Head Start Center. In these conferences Kionna made decisions about how the program is operated, approval of hiring and terminating staff, budgeting, special activities, program planning and program improvements. Kionna also presided over the Parent Committee meetings and informed the Committee of policy changes made at the Policy Council Conferences. She also volunteers her time in the classroom assisting the teachers with activities for the children.

May 2012 Graduate Student recipient: Hayley Suratt

Hayley Suratt, a student nurse anesthetist, traveled to Antigua, Guatemala with Faith In Practice from April 14-21 for a medical/surgical mission trip. Faith In Practice is a non-profit, ecumenical Christian organization that seeks to improve the physical, spiritual, and economic conditions of the poor in Guatemala through short-term surgical, medical and dental mission trips and health-related educational programs. Hayley traveled with a group of 27 people that included 4 orthopedic surgeons, 1 general surgeon, 1 general surgery PA, 1 anesthesiologist, 5 nurse anesthetists, several OR nurses and scrub techs, 3 orthopedic devices reps, 2 physical therapists, and a wonderful cook. During the one week trip, the group completed 93 surgeries that included knees, shoulders, gallbladders, hernias, and other miscellaneous general surgeries.

While in Antigua, Hayley and another USF student nurse anesthetist  helped run the PACU (recovery room). They received every patient after their surgery was complete, stabilized them, and then transferred them to the nursing unit for continued care. Hayley was able to communicate with every patient she encountered; though her Spanish may have been broken, her soothing voice was ‘like that of an angel’ to the patients as they emerged from anesthesia. Many of the patients would wake up crying tears of joy, thanking God for sending the two USF student nurse anesthesiologists to help them.

Submit a Community Service Award application today and nominate yourself, a classmate or colleague for this meaningful award from the College of Nursing at the University of South Florida. Contact constuawards@health.usf.edu for additional details.