Nursing Program Celebrates 50 Years of Excellence
February 27, 2026
More Than 5,000 Registered Nurses Are Alumni
Walters State Community College is marking 50 years of nursing education this year.
The program has become synonymous with nursing excellence since its first students
enrolled in 1975.
“The Walters State Nursing Program has grown to serve areas within and beyond our
10-county service area,” said Dr. Saul Reyes, president of the college. “You’ll find
our alumni working at all levels of nursing.”
“In the coming year, we will celebrate what has made our nursing program successful:
our dedicated faculty members, our outstanding students and alumni, and our clinical
and committed community partners,” Reyes said.
That celebration will include an open house for alumni and others connected with the
nursing program, planned from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, April 16 in the “Z” Buda Assembly
Hall and Gymnasium on the Morristown Campus. The event is free, but preregistration
is encouraged before March 16. You may RSVP at https://go.ws.edu/4quASAO.
While now a well-respected and vital part of the East Tennessee health care community,
the nursing program was just a dream when Dr. Jack Campbell became the college’s second
president in 1974.
Campbell met with R. Jack Fishman, then publisher of the “Citizen Tribune,” and the
late Jean Keener, president of Morristown Federal Savings and Loan, on his first day
on the job.
“I met them at the Morristown Chamber of Commerce, and both stressed the importance
of a nursing program,” Campbell recalled. “The community had even collected a starter
fund of $20,000. I did not think it would be a problem as the school I had worked
at in Alabama had started a nursing program.”
Then, he learned Tennessee had a moratorium on new nursing education programs.
“We knew the need was here. I contacted Dr. Emogene (Jasper) Dotson, whom I had worked
with in Alabama,” Campbell said. “She agreed to move here, and she spent the next
year documenting the need for nursing in this area. Dr. Dotson talked to every health
care provider and facility. We presented our information to the Tennessee Board of
Regents and the Tennessee Higher Education Commission. They backed us, and the program
opened in 1975.”
Fifty-nine students enrolled in that first program. In the 2024-25 academic year,
120 students graduated.
The program flourished over the next five decades, with strong support continuing
through former presidents Dr. Wade McCamey and Dr. Tony Miksa, and the current president,
Reyes. Dotson served as dean of health programs until her 1994 retirement and was
followed by other strong nurse administrators and faculty, including Dr. MaryLou Apple
and Marty Rucker.
Over 5,000 students have graduated from the program, which is now offered at the college’s
campuses in Greeneville, Morristown and Sevierville. Classes start in both fall and
spring semesters.
“We have grown both in the number of students and the skills we teach,” said Dr. Sheila
Williams, current dean of health programs at Walters State and a graduate of the nursing
program.
“Our clinical sites are spread throughout our service area. Students leave with well-rounded
training in all areas of nursing. Nursing education has improved in many ways, specifically
with the introduction of simulation training. This allows students to experience high-stress
situations. Our nursing simulation laboratories provide a safe and realistic learning
environment in which faculty support students’ development of clinical skills, critical
thinking, and growth in confidence,” Williams said.
Williams said opportunities for nursing graduates have increased throughout the years.
Most students are passionate about pursuing the traditional role of a bedside nurse,
giving crucial care during critical moments of life.
“Those are really the heart and soul of nursing,” Williams explained. “Those are the
people who are going to meet you or your loved one when you arrive at the emergency
room, as you come out of surgery, or as you need specialized care at home.”
Other graduates continue their education to become primary care providers as family
nurse practitioners, a role that wasn’t very well recognized when Walters State’s
program began. Others become managers, serving as directors of nursing at health care
facilities or supervising home health care agencies.
Current and former faculty members and administrators will attend the April open house
and look forward to connecting with former students. For more information, call the
college at 423-585-6981.