Honors and Recognition

As an institution of higher education and in keeping with the mission, vision, and goals of the college, the Good Samaritan College establishes honors and recognition consistent with academia’s historical and traditional methods that is recognizable by all institutions of higher education.

• The Medallion
• Academic Regalia
• Awarding of Academic Degree
• Awarding of Honorary Degree
• Awarding Undergraduate Academic Achievement (Latin Honors)
• Honor Societies/Auxiliaries
• Program Recognitions
• Individual College Awards

The Medallion

The medallion is worn by the college presidents as a symbol of authority and responsibility. It was presented to the college president at the investiture. It carries the college seal on the front. On the back is the Latin phrase, “Collegii praeses,” which means “President of the College.”

Academic Regalia

Academic costumes are as old as the universities themselves, recalling a time when all students in centers of higher learning were members of the clergy and wore garments that were considered proper by the Church.

American universities, unlike those of England and Europe, have adopted a standard code of academic costume. The custom of wearing a cap comes from the Roman usage of conferring upon slaves the right to wear a cap when they were granted their freedom. The Oxford-type cap or mortarboard is always black and may be made of any material except velvet, which is reserved for doctors. The tassel worn with the cap has three variations: black for any degree; the color of the faculty in which the degree was granted; or made of gold metallic thread, reserved for doctors and governing officials of institutions.

Each person who receives a degree wears the gown appropriate to the degree granted. The bachelor’s gown is closed at the throat and has long pointed sleeves; the master’s gown has oblong sleeves, open at the wrist, tapering at the back in a square cut, which ends in an arc cut away. The doctor’s gown is an elaborate one, marked by velvet panels down the front and around the neck as well as by three bars of the same material on the bell-shaped sleeves. It is cut much fuller than the other gowns, and unlike them, may be ornamented in color. Both the paneling and sleeve bars may show the faculty in which the degree was awarded.

The hood alone clearly shows the level of the degree, the faculty in which it was given, and the institution that awarded it. The level of the degree is shown by the size of the hood, the width of the velvet trimming, and in the case of the doctor, by the shape. The bachelor’s, master’s, and doctor’s hoods are three feet, three and one-half feet, and four feet long respectively. The velvet trimming in the same order is two, three and five inches, extending around the hood on the exposed edge. For each faculty, there is a corresponding color, so a glance at the trimming is all that is needed to identify the faculty. The institution, which awarded the degree, is indicated by the colored lining. Examples include but are not limited to:

Members of the governing body of a college or university, whatever their degrees may be, are entitled to wear the gown warranted by their degree or a doctor’s gown. The doctor’s gown is trimmed in black velvet or the color representative of their degree, but their hoods may be those degrees actually held by the wearer or those prescribed for them by the institution. The president’s gown is trimmed with a fourth stripe on the sleeve.

Awarding of Academic Degree

An award conferred by a college or university signifying that the recipient has satisfactorily completed a course of study. These degrees are authorized and approved by state and national authorities recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Good Samaritan College awards:

Awarding of Honorary Degree

An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa (hɒˈnɔːrɪs ˈkaʊzɑ Latin: “for the sake of the honor”) is an academic degree for which a college/university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations. The degree is typically a doctorate or, less commonly, a master’s degree, and may be awarded to someone who has no prior connection with the academic institution.

Usually, the degree is conferred as a way of honoring a distinguished visitor’s contributions to a specific field, or to society in general or to someone making a significant contribution to the success of the institution. The college/university often derives benefits by association with the person in question. Examples include but are not limited to:

Honorary degrees are usually awarded at regular graduation ceremonies, at which the recipients are often invited to make a speech of acceptance before the assembled faculty and graduates – an event which often forms the highlight of the ceremony. Generally, college/universities nominate individuals by resolution for honorary degrees; these nominees may go through a committee process before receiving approval of the President. Those who are nominated are generally not told until a formal approval and invitation are made to the recipient.

Recipients of an honorary doctorate may, if they wish, adopt the title of “Doctor.” The college takes a liberal view for this as a matter of personal preference for an honorary doctor to use the formal title of “Doctor” regardless of the background circumstances for the award. However, written communications of an honorary doctorate should include the letters “h.c.” after the award or a prefix of “Hon” to indicate that status. (i.e.: DSc (h.c.) or Hon DSc)

Awarding Undergraduate Academic Achievement (Latin Honors)

Undergraduate students in bachelor degree programs who have achieved a college cumulative average in one of the three categories below will receive “Latin Honors”:

Undergraduate students in associate degree programs who have achieved a college cumulative average in the category below will receive “Honors”:

Students who anticipate receiving Honors are entitled to wear gold honor cords along with their other regalia.

Honor Societies/Auxiliaries

• Good Samaritan Alumni Association
  The purpose of this organization shall be to foster in each graduate an ongoing commitment to Good Samaritan College of Nursing and Health Science and to the continuing experience of learning. Membership is granted to all graduates of Good Samaritan College of Nursing and Health Science, the former Good Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing, and the Seton School of Practical Nursing and to honorary members by appointment or the awarding of an honorary degree.
• Honor Society to be Determined

Program Recognitions

• Undergraduate Programs
  Graduation from an undergraduate program is awarded the discipline and degree-related symbols as appropriate.
• Associate Nursing
  Graduation from the Associate of Applied Science in Nursing degree program is awarded by historical tradition a school pin.
  Two awards are presented by the Good Samaritan Alumni Association, Outstanding Graduate, and Alumni Exemplary Service
  Proposed Alpha Delta Nu to be determined.
• Bachelor of Nursing
  Graduation from the Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program is awarded a symbol of the college to be determined.
  Proposed Sigma Theta Tau to be determined.
• Graduate Programs
  Graduation from a graduate program is awarded the respective academic regalia of the discipline and degree level as appropriate.

Individual College Awards

Greater Cincinnati Consortium of Colleges and Universities (GC3) award for Outstanding Teacher of the Year.

The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty recognizes the exceptional work of nursing educators.