Coming up on Pensacola State today, PSC's Dynamic Patient Simulation Center presents a remarkable opportunity for nursing students.

The growing Charter Academy is delivering a PSC education to more and more high school age learners.

And a Pirates hoop star from Crestview is living up to a remarkable family legacy.

Hello and welcome to Pensacola State today.

I'm Rameca Vincent Leary and it's a pleasure to welcome my new co-host and friend, Steven Nissen.

Thank you so much.

Filmmaker.

There are so many impactful things happening at PSC, and we're here to highlight the remarkable people, programs, events and achievements.

We start with the Student Scholar Symposium, an enlightening event and valuable opportunity for students in the Robinson Honors Program.

Scholars took center stage to showcase a semester's worth of research and projects.

There were poster presentations in the bar's building atrium, including oral presentations in various classrooms.

Over 30 students from nine different majors presented on topics they were passionate about within their own disciplines.

It is the third year Pensacola State students have taken part in the program that's run in conjunction with the University of West Florida.

The schools alternate hosting the symposium with PSC taking Fall and UW Spring for the 2024 25 academic year.

The symposium also included a faculty panel and guest speaker, but the main focus was on research and presentations.

A lot of our students come to us.

They've never presented in any form, any public speaking.

And this is a chance for them to hone those oratory.

Skills and presentation skills they're going to need in the.

Workplace and in future university settings.

This is their chance to focus on what they're passionate about and to bring that to life and to share that information with us.

The Pensacola State Women's soccer team broke new ground by reaching the national tournament last season.

Now a literal groundbreaking is setting the stage for future program success.

A new soccer field complex is coming to campus, and the groundbreaking ceremony in December officially got the building process started.

The spiffy 6.7 acre complex will be across the street from the baseball field at the corner of Underwood and Tippin.

A later phase will produce a press box and concession stand.

In just a second year of existence, the program won the Region championship In just a second year of existence, the program won the Region championship last season, despite playing home games a long way from campus at the Ashton Brosnahan complex in cantonment.

With a sparkling new home field on the way, their momentum takes another huge leap.

I'm super excited.

I am just so excited to call it home and just play on the field with my teammates and our coach.

It's a game changer.

Right.

To be able to actually show the recruits, Hey, this is where our field is.

This is where we practice.

We have a flat surface to practice on.

This is where our locker rooms are.

Like, This is where things are.

This is what it looks like.

It's big pride to local kids to actually see it and then other other players potentially to be able to see that.

And go, Oh, man, that's a beautiful place to to want to go and play on.

Meanwhile, one of the college's special traditions is the nurse pinning ceremony held at First Pentecostal Church.

This twice annual event honored graduating nursing students celebrating their dedication and achievement with a meaningful and often emotional celebration.

The fall semester ceremony in December saw 68 students get pinned, signifying their transition to the nursing profession.

111 graduates are expected in the usually larger spring ceremony.

Guest Speaker Brett Aldridge, chief operating Officer about this hospital, congratulated and inspired the graduates who earned bachelor's and associate degrees, including nursing career certificates.

The joy and sense of accomplishment were overflowing.

It's been one of the hardest things I've ever done going through this program.

And I don't know, it's just surreal to finally be done and be celebrating and being able to go out there and make a difference.

It has definitely prepared us well.

It has taught us amazing critical thinking skills that we can put to work every day.

Our clinicals are great.

We've been very fortunate to go to many different hospitals, many different specialties.

So I think it's really prepared us quite well for the real world.

Most of our graduates, they have jobs even before they graduate, so we're very proud of that.

We graduate between 250 300 nurses each year and to say, you know, they can leave the academic setting and go into the workforce before they even graduate is a huge accomplishment.

One of the biggest reasons PRC nursing graduates are so prepared is the patient simulation Training center located on the Warrington campus.

The state of the art facility is an incredible resource for nursing students.

I'm going to be your nurse today, this is Amanda.

She's going to help me take the vitals.

It doesn't take long for Pensacola State's patient Simulation training center to leave you in awe The very first time we walked into the simulation center, I was blown away by the mannequins and the heart rates, and they breathe and they blink and they cough and they grimace.

And like they have real pulses.

The 1200 square foot center originally opened in 2006 with many upgrades and additions along the way.

15 high fidelity simulators in nine simulation suites, including birthing, pediatric cardiopulmonary, mental health and an emergency room delivering a wide range of real life clinical scenarios.

We actually have one of the most technologically advanced simulation centers in the southeastern part of the United States.

So for us to have that here in Pensacola speaks volumes for our students that graduate for our program.

Simulation classes start with a precision meeting before students are thrown into a scenario watching and evaluating from a control room.

Instructors orchestrate the simulation, tossing in unexpected challenges.

Why is the room spinning around?

I'm busy.

We walked into a post-op patient who was going through a little bit, had some hypovolemic going on, and we had to recognize that diagnosis.

Call the doctor and then come up with what we were supposed to do.

It's extremely stressful.

That patient, if you're not able to get their blood pressure, their pulse, you are just doing everything you can to try to get that.

And you can't even realize that time is moving behind you and that the world is still going on because you're so involved right there in the moment.

It's crazy.

I've never experienced anything else really like that.

When you go home.

Think about it.

How would I handle this next time?

Making those mistakes and having the opportunity to make them in simulation.

A post in the hospital.

When you're dealing with a simulated patient and not a real life patient, I think it makes all the difference in the world, and I think it will make us all better nurses.

Says clinical coordinator Marla McGehee.

Hey knows that very well.

She went through the program that she now runs.

I remember being very scared in the beginning, and.

I remember by the time I graduated and very confident and the Simulation lab was a very.

Important part of that because I soon come to realize that this is a.

Safe place to learn to.

Ask questions.

If I made an error, it was okay.

It was, you know.

You almost expect.

To make an error.

And this is where you learn.

I should have come in here as a nurse prepared to be like, okay, now I've seen it.

Even if it just was in simulation, I have that experience to say, Well, I dealt with the hyperbole, make patient, What did I have to do?

What did Miss Pearson's tell us was really important to address for this patient?

I really don't have anything else to say other than it's just incredible.

You can't get that anywhere else.

As a nursing student.

It's time for the president's perspective or we get to spend some time with Dr. Ed Meadows.

Thanks for letting us hang out in your office for a little bit.

So back in the fall, PFC started the I Am PFC campaign.

The idea was to raise money for scholarships.

The goal was to raise $75,000 in honor of the 75th anniversary of PFC.

You way exceeded that almost doubling it.

How happy were you with the way things played out with the PMC campaign?

Well, Steve, extremely happy, of course, to not only exceed the goal, but almost double it.

And the good thing about this was this House.

Hey, the feeling of of everyone pulling together for a common goal and, you know, the universal scholarships, they're the most critical aspect of many of our students because that scholarship reaches into places and the students that otherwise would not be eligible for scholarship or federal financial aid.

Oh, I obviously I MPAC campaign not only brought together a lot of our community friends, but also our employees and even some of our students that help reach that goal.

So it was a fundraiser, but really it was more than that.

It was about kind of connecting people to PSC.

What were some of the the reactions, the responses you got from people that decided to jump in and help in this campaign?

Well, some of them wanted to do even more than what they were asked to do.

When I found out, you know, the importance of universal scholarships to the students.

So that was enlightening, to say the least, to help people to actually want to give more than what they were being asked to give.

Some other good news recently.

PSC named was named Best for Vets College and onto that list by military times.

It's been numerous times PSC has been named to that list.

How significant is getting on a list like that showing you know what you do for veterans?

Well, not only is it important to get on the list, but to stay year after year, because almost 20% of our students are affiliated with a military.

They're either active duty military veterans were dependents of active military or are veterans.

And so to have that large a number of students at the college, it's good that I know of that we have the kinds of services in addition to the standard services that are available to all students, that we have additional services available to all military personnel and their dependents.

Well, what are some of the specific things that PSC does to cater to to the military and their families?

Well, for example, we have a veterans center where veterans can go be together and help each other study.

And we also have special we have two federal programs that help veterans get prepared for college level work.

And then once they get into college level work, it helps them maintain the academic rigor that's necessary to complete and graduate.

All right.

So most of the students there are older type students with PSC also making inroads with younger students with the charter academy, which is for high school age students where they can get their high school diploma here and also get their AA here started back in 2022.

And it continues to grow.

More and more students have come in.

How happy have you been with kind of the development of that program?

Well, believe it or not, this also has a military connection, because one of the reasons we started the charter academy for high school students was to serve the military family members that were bringing their children into the area and to give them an opportunity for school choice.

But we're right in high school.

You can't get any better than that.

It sends a strong message out to the military world that any Pensacola and the other Whiting Field and other naval bases in the region have have a unique opportunity for service members with family and children to come to northwest Florida.

All right, Dr. Meadows, thanks for your time and thanks for giving us the president's perspective.

Most welcome.

It's an opportunity of a lifetime and it's created quite the buzz.

That's because nine through 12th graders have a prime opportunity to earn a high school diploma and an associate degree at the same time.

The journey can start when they enroll at the Pensacola State College Charter Academy just as Dr. Meadows emphasized in his president's perspective.

To discuss this further, I'm happy to welcome Dr. Karen McCabe, Charter Academy principal and Alia Knight, student engagement specialist.

So glad to have you here.

Thank you for having us.

Dr. McCabe, let's get to it.

Admission requirements.

Let's cover the grades and also what it takes to get in.

Sure.

So we've added ninth and 10th grade this year.

We're in our third year.

So ninth and 10th grade, we're looking at an unweighted 3.0 GPA.

And and that really holds true, actually, for all all classes on grades 11th and 12th grade, though they need to have some testing requirements because they're going to enter into the college classes.

So those students will have to have A.C.T., S.A.T.

or PERT scores.

Those are on the website.

As far as you know, what the recommendation is.

But that really points us in the direction of we know that they're going to then be accessible and that they will be able to meet the college requirements.

Are any of these classes held at the Pensacola campus?

Yes.

So that's grades, Correct.

So this year we have nine through 12 on the Warrington campus and that's where we initially started.

We opened up the second location here at the Pensacola campus in the 11th and 12th grade.

Students have an option to choose if they want college classes here or at Warrington, and that's predominately because they drive.

So the other students were bus, right?

Right, exactly.

Dr. McCabe, speaking of high school seniors Charter Academy senior Jake Hutchinson has some amazing thoughts he wants to share.

Let's take a look.

How awesome is it to come to a school where you know you're not in the high school mode anymore?

You're in a college mode that's getting you ready for, you know, for higher education and a career.

And it's all paid for.

I mean, you can't beat that.

I wouldn't have my social history right now.

Would not be in the are in program.

I'd still be in high school just, you know, the day to day grind, what it would be.

But you it's changed my life.

Just the people that I've met here, not even in the charter academy, people I've worked with in the nursing program.

Being that I'm over there, they've helped me kind of plan out and get a better understanding of what my career is going to be like.

They've I've discussed, you know, getting my bachelor's here at PSC with their BSN program online, and I feel like the contacts that I've made just being at the charter academy are actually going to help me even pass my education into my career.

Alicia What can I say?

Hearing him was so inspirational, wasn't it?

Yes, it was.

Talk about your mission as an employee there at the Charter Academy.

You see him and other students on a daily basis.

What does that mean to you?

So it means a lot.

My mission is to really connect with the students in the school and to also connect with students in the community and let them know about what the charter academy has to offer.

But you approach your daily venture quite miraculously, I would say, because you have such a hefty schedule.

Not only are you right there at the charter academy, you go out and about in the community.

And I've had the pleasure of joining both you and Dr. McCabe for quite some time.

You've handled the Juneteenth event downtown.

The Watson family, and also Kingdom Builders, Christian Ministry Church.

We went there for a back to school giveaway, didn't we?

Yes, we did.

So why do you find so much joy in experiencing and going out there in the community recruiting for the charter Academy?

Well, really, I get to see the students firsthand.

I get to connect with them and let them know about all the great things that the charter academy has to offer.

I get to hear their responses, hear what they're kind of going through at their current schools and just let them know this is another opportunity that you can choose when you're taking your academic route.

Dr. McCabe I love the word free because there are a lot of free things on the table here.

Tell us what they are for anyone who's considering enrolling at the PSC.

Turner.

Absolutely.

First and foremost, I think the biggest one and parents will certainly appreciate this is that we offer it's free college tuition.

So a student that comes in as a junior, if they start with us as a junior, they'll they'll leave with two four years of college.

We provide Dell laptops for all of the students.

They don't pay any fees as far as, you know, tuition fees, registration fees, textbooks.

We cover all of that.

So it's it's all free.

A day in your life seeing these students in action in the classroom.

We have some amazing video of that.

They are so focused, aren't they?

They are.

And that's I think the beauty of the charter academy is that the students that come there, they choose to come there.

They've made that selection.

And the other pieces that they are all like minded.

So they're all working toward the same goal.

And I think that that's what really helps them feel comfortable with one another.

Alicia One of the interesting things about the charter Academy is that if a student likes to play basketball or is involved in other certain activities, they can still participate in those events at the other high school, correct?

Yes, Yes, they can.

They can still participate at their zoned high school.

Amazing.

One thing that I noticed about the charter academy is that the teaching staff so well seasoned Dr. McCabe, there's a recruiting involved in that as well.

Yes.

So we have veteran teachers for the ninth and 10th year high school teachers.

The 11th and 12th graders, of course, go to the college classes.

And the college has for years offered, you know, masters in their fields.

But but the teachers are very, very dedicated and love what they do.

And that comes out in the classroom.

Ellie, I know that you have an interesting story of someone that you either helped write their at the charter academy or out in the community.

Why don't you share a quick story for us of encouragement for anyone out there thinking about enrolling?

Yes.

So there was a time there was a mother and and she cried when we told her about what the charter academy had to offer because she didn't know that there was a school where their student could really excel.

And it was just so it was great to see the positive response from her about us when we explained everything that we had to offer to the students.

Ladies, so many positives and the word free is resonating in our minds.

Thank you so much for joining us.

We appreciate what you do for the college.

Thank you.

Thanks for having us.

The Pirate Sports report kicks off with a PSC women's basketball star from Crestview who will grab your attention.

Katie Casey brings the skills, attitude and an impressive family history.

I like this.

Cartier Casey took up basketball as a youngster, but it wasn't until she watched a game, a Gulf Coast State College, that she realized the amazing hoops legacy in her house.

I see my mom in the Hall of Fame there and it's like, oh, well, she always talks about being big.

So now I actually see that she was actually really good.

Tionda Williams was the first all-American for Gulf Coast, won the National Junior College Player of the Year award in 1998 and went on to play in the SCC at Alabama.

As young Katiya started to excel, advice from Mom helped her navigate the path.

In middle school.

It was a little difficult because I was definitely the best player on the team.

I knew a lot of people were young, like a lot of girls hadn't played before.

She taught me like, sometimes you got to be a leader and you got to lead.

You know what everyone else is supposed to do?

So like help them out.

With Mom jumping in as an assistant coach, Katia shined at Crestview High School, scoring over 1000 career points.

As a sophomore, she attended a camp at Pensacola State and caught the coach's eye in a number of ways.

The first thing that stood out, obviously, was her hair.

You know, it was different.

You know, you just don't see that with a lot of high school students.

But then the next part was just how tough and feisty she was.

I think she may have been the only kid there that took a chance.

When you see someone who who's willing to do that and just puts their body on the line like, you know, that kid has a little bit of toughness and.

Grit, Katiya ended up signing with PSC and as a freshman, that toughness paid immediate dividends.

But she also found out just how challenging the junior college level is.

I realized that it's not the same as high school and high school.

You can get away with a lot of things just being quick and you cannot get away with the same things here.

I had to definitely adjust, get more time in the gym to like adjust to shooting and driving and passing and just get to know my teammates and knowing what they can do.

She elevated her game impressively as a sophomore, almost doubling the scoring output with around ten points a game topping the team in three point shooting and among the leaders in steals and assists.

But her biggest impact goes beyond the stats.

A willingness to do all the little things and an off the charts basketball IQ.

There's a lot of times where there's certain things I don't have to say because she will say them before I can relay messages to her teammates, you know, things that she sees on the court.

I think all of her teammates know they need anything.

They can rely on her.

I think a lot of them know if there's a question that they don't want to ask the coaches, they'll ask her because she'll ask or she'll already know.

Nobody's ever, like, perfect, but for like, it's always perfect.

She always has it together.

Like, that's why she's like, one of the best leaders on this team.

She she leads me even though we're in seventh grade.

She always knows what's going on.

She's never confused.

She never is angry at anybody.

She says the right things like, Because I is the best.

It should not be a surprise that Katiya excels in the classroom as well at Crestview, all four years on honor roll.

Graduating magna cum laude.

And now Dean's list at PSC.

I'm always trying to do my work early because I know that if I procrastinate, you know, it could be going wrong, you know?

So I make sure I do everything early and I'm just on track and I'm always taking notes of what I need to do and just trying everything.

Down the same thoroughness that fuels her success on the court.

Impressive to anyone who's watching, especially her all-American mom.

She talks to me a lot about how proud she is.

She says she used to watch my old games and then, like watching me now, it's so much different.

How much more confident, she says, that I've always had this pushing me.

Now she could tell that I'm going to be a great player.

We turn to men's basketball for Meet the Pirates.

It's a series of interview questions to help us get to know a PSC standout athlete.

Dmitri Clark is a 16 sophomore center from Geneva, Switzerland.

So, Dmitri, you're a long way from home.

What are some of the biggest differences between life in Switzerland and life here in Pensacola?

I'm going to say like the difference between Switzerland and Freud.

I'm going to say like a winner.

He's more like, cool over there.

Switzerland, definitely.

You decided to come to the States for basketball.

You went to a prep school in Arizona for a year.

What made you decide to come to America for basketball?

Because I think like basketball in America, you get more exposure.

In Switzerland.

When you were choosing college, you ended up here at Pensacola State.

So what was it about Pensacola State that this was the place you wanted to go?

So I got my coach from Prep and you tell me like it's the best place for me going to be Pensacola State to go to the next level after.

And I decided to follow him.

And he guys in the NBA that you like to watch that you try to pattern after or emulate.

I like LeBron James try and beat that.

My favorite player is going to be Giannis Antetokounmpo.

I like this guy.

All the Greek freak's also a guy from Europe that came over here and is doing great things about away from the court.

Any any hobbies?

What kind of things are you into?

I like the video game.

Well, video games you get a uh.

I play Fortnite.

Well, good luck to you.

Thanks so much.

Appreciate it.

All right, let's meet the Pirates with Dimitri Clarke.

We cap off the pirate sports report with a couple of very worthy plays of the month.

Women's basketball against the polar Nautica Bui forces the turnover and gets the pass.

Look, a tire.

Casey takes it strong on the break is fouled and hits the acrobatic layup.

Our freshman guard from Panama City boogie with a fancy three point play the hard way producing a finish to remember to men's basketball also against DePaul on a marion Savage steps in front of the pass for a steal.

Savage elevates for the monster one hand slam.

A sophomore guard from Illinois savage with an emphatic throwdown to fire up the crowd and earn a spot on plays of the month.

Awesome job, Steve.

Now that does it for a jam packed episode, but there are so many more stories to tell.

Look for a new episode of Pensacola State today every month.

Thanks for watching.