A Beaufort County Community College student has been chosen to receive a scholarship from a statewide organization whose mission is to recognize North Carolina’s outstanding nurses.

Rachael Miller, a student in BCCC’s Associate Degree Nursing program, was recently chosen by the nursing faculty at the college to receive the scholarship, awarded by The Great 100 Nurses of North Carolina, school officials announced recently.

Miller, a native of Louisiana, is a graduate of Acadiana High School in Lafayette, La., and studied in the forensics program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.

She moved to Beaufort County after her husband, Brian, a native of Washington, ended his service with the U.S. Navy.

After moving to North Carolina, Miller chose to continue her studies with the goal of becoming a nurse.

“I hope to be one of those nurses who can affect a person’s life in a positive way,” she said, adding that the most meaningful part of her job is “spending time with the patients.”

The Great 100 Nurses in North Carolina is a grassroots peer recognition organization that honors the nursing profession in North Carolina by annually acknowledging 100 North Carolina nurses who demonstrate excellence and commitment to their profession.

As part of its mission, The Great 100 Nurses includes a scholarship program to support registered nurse education with funds for the scholarships provided by the organization’s governing board and contributions from alumni.

The scholarships are distributed to students at schools throughout North Carolina on a rotational selection for associate, bachelors, masters and doctoral students.

The faculty at each school chooses a recipient for the scholarship using suggested criteria provided by the governing board of The Great 100 Nurses.

“Our nursing faculty is extremely proud of such an astute, well deserving, and compassionate student,” said Kent Dickerson, director of BCCC’s nursing programs. “Rachael strives for excellence in all she does and puts forth the required effort to be highly successful in our profession. We wish her all the best as she continues to exemplify our nursing programs here at BCCC.”

Miller is active in BCCC campus and Beaufort County civic and religious life. She is vice president of her Associate Degree Nursing class at BCCC, a member of the Beaufort County Association of Nursing Students and has helped organize campus visits by the American Red Cross Bloodmobile. She was also recently chosen as an alternate ambassador by the BCCC Foundation Board of Trustees.

She is a member of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Washington and is active in Stop Hunger Now, an international hunger relief organization.

After completing her studies at BCCC, Miller hopes to work as a nurse in a local hospital, preferably in the emergency department. She also hopes to continue her studies and pursue a bachelor’s degree in nursing.

Miller and her husband, a systems administrator with Carver Machine Works, have two children, Audrey, 5 and Louis, 3.