GAINESVILLE - The Brenau University School of Nursing has been educating new nurses for a half century, and the school wraps up its 50th anniversary celebration at a special event on Thursday, April 24.

Originally known as the Hall County School of Nursing, the school graduated its first class in 1963.

The celebration of the 50th anniversary is set for 5 p.m. on Thursday, at Brenau Universitys East Campus at the Featherbone Communiversity. At 5:45 p.m. alumni of the school of nursing will be recognized, as will be the schools first five doctoral students. There will also be a special presentation honoring one of the schools key benefactors, Anne Thomas of Gainesville. Tours of the school of nursing will follow the presentations.

At first, the School of Nursing offered a non-collegiate diploma of nursing, said Dr. Sandra Greniewicki, interim director of the School of Nursing. Although Brenau did not officially take over the school until 1978, Brenau partnered with the school to offer some of the academic courses required for the diploma.

Ten students were part of that first class of nurses. About 80 undergraduate nurses are expected to graduate this year.

Today the Brenau School of Nursing is a diverse, state-of-the-art program designed to prepare students to provide health care that is "sensitive to the unique health needs of individuals, families and communities."

The program, which comprises both online and classroom instruction, includes an undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Nursing and graduate programs for Family Nurse Practitioner, Nurse Educator and Nurse Leader Manager. The school also has a popular RN-to-BSN program for nurses with two-year degrees to earn a four-year undergraduate diploma. Since 2010, the university has offered a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree.

Todays modern program is a far cry from what the students in the first class in 1963 experienced.

From 1960 to 1978 the Hall School of Nursing was completely owned and operated as a part of Hall County Hospital (now Northeast Georgia Medical Center), which had total control over the nursing program, including its rules and regulations on student behavior and expectations.

It was believed that nursing was a full-time endeavor and a dedicated calling that occupied all of the students time and effort, said Greniewicki. During this period, the rules were modified, but nursing education continued to expect full dedication from its students.

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Brenau nursing school celebrating 50th anniversary