Meet the nursing students who have supported one another since the beginning of the program – and their lives

At Piedmont University, our students, faculty, staff, and alumni make up our “Piedmont family,” but for some, that term is very literal. This year, there are two pairs of students related to one another: sisters Ashlyn McEntyre and Courtney Miller, and mother and daughter Marlene and Skyler Seeber. They share not only a major and classes, but also strength and support through the program.

Sisters Ashlyn and Courtney push each other to be their best, says the former. Having her sister by her side is both a comfort and a motivator. “We are both going to be first generation graduates, and it makes me so proud that we did not give up on our dreams,” Ashlyn says.

Marlene, Skyler’s mom, also says she enjoys the opportunity to support her daughter through the program. “I'm a year ahead of her in the program and have been through all of the things that she is going through now, and that is something I wish I had when I first began nursing school,” she says. Skyler concurs, “I am grateful that my mom was there to encourage me because she has been through that herself and knew exactly how I was feeling.” Skyler even got to share her very first day of clinicals at the same hospital as her mom, tackling one of the biggest days of a nursing student’s education with her biggest supporter.

Ashlyn, Courtney, Marlene, and Skyler all chose Piedmont for its nursing program, among other perks. Skyler, a cross country runner, wanted to continue her running career and do nursing school at the same time; Piedmont was the only university that offered that. Her mom, meanwhile, says that the nursing program reached out to her directly. After touring Piedmont, she “just knew that it was where [she] was supposed to be.”  Skyler jokingly retorts that she chose Piedmont first, and her mom copied her.

As for the future, each of these students looks forward to helping others through their work and being fulfilled in turn. “Becoming a nurse has always been in my heart but I put that on hold to take care of my family first,” Marlene says. “Now it’s my turn to take care of me.”

To learn more about Piedmont’s nursing program, visit piedmont.edu/nursing.