Black River Technical College is excited to announce Simulation Lab Facilitator Bridgette Kasinger as the Spring 2023 commencement keynote speaker.
Bridgette is currently the Simulation Lab Facilitator for all BRTC Allied Health programs. As a sophomore in college, she was intrigued by the medical field after seeing her mother survive invasive cancer with a poor prognosis. She decided to change her major after being moved by individuals that cared for and saved her mother.
In 2005, she trained and completed a Nursing Assistant program. She worked as a CNA for the duration of the Practical Nursing program and graduated with a Certificate of Practical Nursing with Merit in May of 2008 from BRTC.
In addition, she was selected for the Florence Nightingale Award from the nursing faculty. The award is given to those who exemplify the spirit of caring, embodied by Florence Nightingale. These nurses are motivators and visionaries who contribute to redefining the profession of nursing. After passing her licensure exam, Bridgette began working as a Licensed Practical Nurse at St. Bernard’s Medical Center on a medical-surgical and pediatric unit.
While employed at St. Bernard’s, she continued prerequisites and was selected for the traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing program’s LPN-BSN track. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree from Arkansas State University in Jonesboro in May of 2011.
After which, she went straight to work after passing her RN licensure exam. Her major nursing emphasis revolves around critical care nursing including ICU and flight nursing. She also has experience in pediatrics, medical-surgical, urology, home hospice and wound care. During her employment here at BRTC, she has held the roles of Clinical Adjunct Instructor, Medical-surgical Instructor, Clinical Site Coordinator, and Simulation Lab Facilitator.
Recent achievements include being nominated as a presenter for a Virtual Mini-SUN conference in May 2021, as well as being selected as a keynote session speaker at the Laerdal Simulation User Network conference that was held in Houston, Texas this past fall.
Bridgette is a Pocahontas native and still resides there with her husband of 12 years, Jacob, and 10-year-old daughter, Rylee.
The Spring 2023 graduation ceremony will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 11 at the Randolph County Development Center on the Pocahontas campus. Graduation is open to the public.
For more information about general education, contact Donna Statler at (870)248-4183 or email her at donnas@blackrivertech.edu.