Wake Tech nursing grads joining fight against COVID-19

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- They're going from the classroom to the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19.

Wake Technical Community College held a curbside pinning ceremony Friday for its students graduating from the school's Martha Mann School of Nursing. The 72 new graduates will be ready to enter the workforce as early as next week.

The North Carolina Board of Nursing recently instituted a "graduate registered nurse" status which allows nursing graduates to go straight to work to support the healthcare community while waiting to take their licensure exam.

Testing during the pandemic is expected to take longer because of a reduction in testing sites. Wake Tech has one of the largest nursing programs in the region with 300 students and 150 graduates each year.