Miami-Dade Community College issued the following news release:
Enrique 'Rick' Carlos Garc�a came home on Monday, Oct. 9. Home to the place where his dreams first found wings to take flight.
Home for Garc�a is Miami Dade College's (MDC) Medical Center Campus. And Garc�a has grown eagle-sized wings since he received an Associate in Science degree in nursing from MDC back in December of 1993. Today he is the newly-appointed executive director of the Florida Board of Nursing.
During his visit to MDC Garc�a counseled soon-to-be nurses on the nuances of applying for the licensure by examination test, the final stage future nurses make before becoming licensed.
'It's all about giving back and not forgetting your roots and where you started,' said Garc�a, who also taught a pediatrics and obstetrics course at MDC in 1995.
The nursing students Garc�a addressed took notice. Mostly, they noticed that Garc�a was once like them, aspiring to launch a career centered on caring for others.
'We should be very proud that he was one of us,' explained Izabella Waldo, who is scheduled to graduate in December.
Garc�a, who has also earned a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from the University of Miami and a Master of Science in integrated health systems from Georgetown University in Washington D.C., said the nursing students should enjoy these moments.
'Find your passion and love what you do,' Garc�a said. 'Be passionate with your career.'
Miami Dade College has the largest nursing program in the country with more than 600 students earning nursing degrees each year.
