8th Annual White Coat Ceremony

Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School’s Biomedical Sciences Department celebrated a major milestone on campus with its 8th Annual Biomed White Coat Ceremony, honoring the newest cohort of Senior Medical Interventions students.

With Thanksgiving just days away, the program opened in a spirit of gratitude and reflection. Two Biomed seniors, Kayla and Isidora, led the community in a prayer of thankfulness, setting a thoughtful tone for the morning.

Recognizing Support and Partnership

Biomed Department Chair Mr. Orlando Santiago welcomed students, families, faculty, and guests, emphasizing the tremendous support that has allowed the Biomed program to thrive. He offered special thanks to:

• Biomed teacher Ms. Lamarque, for her dedication and countless hours of training and preparation.
• School Administration – Brother Dennis, Mr. Bolan, and Mrs. Gottsegen – for their ongoing encouragement of the program.
• Deans Mr. Montes and Ms. Randall for their assistance with ceremony setup, with Ms. Randall also representing as a former Biomed teacher.
• Alumnus Don Judge, whose generosity helped fund both the white coats and the ceremony itself.
• The parents and families of the Biomed students, whose steady support makes their accomplishments possible.

Mr. Santiago then turned his attention to the Medical Interventions class, Loughlin’s 8th cohort of Biomed seniors to complete the PLTW Biomedical Sciences sequence. He praised their hard work, resilience, and academic success, while reminding them that new challenges and opportunities await as they move into the remainder of senior year, college, and beyond.

Student Reflections and Presidential Remarks

The ceremony continued with personal reflections from two Medical Interventions students, Morgan Johnson and Carter Regis, who shared their experiences in the Biomed program—highlighting the rigor of the coursework, the hands-on lab work, and the strong sense of community among Biomed students.

Following their remarks, Brother Dennis, President of Bishop Loughlin, addressed the recipients and guests, offering words of encouragement and affirming the school’s commitment to forming students who are prepared not only for academic success, but also for lives of service, leadership, and faith.

Honoring an Alumna: Guest Speaker Nurse Halle Primus ’19

A highlight of this year’s ceremony was the return of alumna and guest speaker, Nurse Halle Primus, Class of 2019—a true “full-circle” moment for the Biomed program.

Halle is a Registered Nurse and Aesthetic Nurse Injector, and a proud member of Bishop Loughlin’s very first PLTW Biomed cohort. As a student, she completed three Biomed courses (PBS, HBS, and Medical Interventions), served as Vice President of the National Honor Society, held leadership roles in student government, and managed Loughlin basketball teams to multiple freshman city and CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens varsity championships.

After Loughlin, Halle studied at Virginia Commonwealth University, then earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Chamberlain University in Chicago, where she was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society and served as Student Government Association President.

Halle now works as a Cardiac Post Intensive Care Registered Nurse at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital – New Brunswick, part of the largest academic health care system in New Jersey and the state’s only Level-One Trauma Center, and as an Aesthetic Nurse Injector at Diverse Aesthetics Medi-Spa.

In her keynote address, Nurse Primus shared insight into her journey through nursing school and professional practice, reflecting on how her time in the Biomed lab at Loughlin helped prepare her for the challenges of healthcare. She encouraged current students to embrace rigorous learning, support one another, and recognize the profound impact they can have on patients and communities. 

The Presentation of the White Coats

The ceremony then moved into its central moment: the presentation of the white lab coats to the Biomed seniors.

Mr. Santiago reflected on the three key meanings of the coat:

1. Practical Protection – A functional lab coat that will keep students safe as they work with chemicals and conduct experiments.
2. Symbol of Academic Achievement – A visible sign of their dedication, discipline, and success in completing demanding biomedical coursework.
3. Commitment to Community & Responsibility – A reminder that they are part of a team, with a responsibility to support one another and to use their skills in service of the broader community.

As Ms. Lamarque called each name, students made their way to the stage to receive their coats, marking an important milestone in their Biomed journey.

The Biomedical Student Oath

With all coats presented, the newly coated seniors stepped to the front of the room to recite their Biomedical Student Oath—a pledge modeled in spirit after the Hippocratic Oath, but tailored to their role as students. In it, they committed themselves to:

• Pursue knowledge with integrity.
• Use science to help and not harm.
• Show respect, empathy, and compassion for others.
• Support their peers and serve their communities.

This moment underscored that the White Coat represents not just achievement, but also ethical responsibility.

Closing and Celebration

Mr. Santiago concluded the ceremony by thanking everyone who contributed to and attended the event, and reaffirming the school’s pride in its Biomed students and alumni.

The program closed with:

• A group photo of the newly coated Biomed seniors.
• An invitation for all guests to continue the celebration with brunch and photos by the backdrop downstairs.

The 8th Annual Biomed White Coat Ceremony not only honored the accomplishments of this year’s seniors, but also celebrated the strength and growth of the Biomed program itself—now robust enough to welcome back its own alumna, Nurse Halle Primus ’19, as a keynote speaker and role model for the next generation of Loughlin scientists and healthcare professionals.