FAIRFIELD, Conn. — Tatum Nordin ’25 and Taylor Walker ’25, nursing students at Fairfield University’s Austin Campus, were honored with Flower Bud Awards by St. David’s North Austin Medical Center. The prestigious award recognizes exceptional students who embody the core qualities of compassion, empathy, and professionalism during their clinical rotations.
Nordin and Walker are in their third semester of the Accelerated Second Degree Nursing program at the Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies. They were assigned to St. David’s as part of their Medical-Surgical Nursing II course.
“The qualities for which Tatum and Taylor received recognition are fundamental to Fairfield’s Jesuit identity and the Egan School’s vision, mission, and purpose,” said Christina Trezza, MSN, RN, CNE, CCM, instructor of the practice and clinical coordinator in Austin. “It is no surprise that these exceptional students are turning heads with their outstanding and compassionate care for patients. I am so proud of them.”
The Flower Bud Award draws inspiration from the DAISY Award, an international nomination-based award given to registered nurses who demonstrate extraordinary compassion and outstanding clinical skills. The DAISY Foundation recognizes the Flower Bud Award as a companion award for nursing students.
“Nursing school is incredibly challenging, so this recognition is a sign that all my hard work is paying off,” said Walker. “I am genuinely grateful for the acknowledgement and support from St. David’s.”
Modest and sincere, Walker was quick to recognize her friends and faculty at Egan Austin. “I would not be at this point without my classmates, clinical instructor, and nursing professors,” she said. “This award honestly belongs to everyone!”
Fairfield University is a modern, Jesuit Catholic University, rooted in one of the world’s oldest intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students from 44 states, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and 46 countries, are enrolled in the University’s five schools. In the spirit of rigorous and sympathetic inquiry into all dimensions of human experience, Fairfield welcomes students from diverse backgrounds to share ideas and engage in open conversations. The University is located in the heart of a region where the future takes shape, on a stunning campus on the Connecticut coast just an hour from New York City.