UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Lexy Fortney and Helaine Pishotti, students in Penn State’s Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing, have been selected as the college’s student marshals for the spring 2026 commencement ceremony.
Fortney, of Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania, will graduate with a bachelor of science degree in nursing after earning a 4.0 grade-point average and being named to the dean’s list every semester of her collegiate career. Her academic honors include the President Walker Award, the President Sparks Award and the Evan Pugh Senior Scholar Award.
She said learning she had been selected as student marshal was both emotional and affirming.
“When I learned that I had been selected as one of the student marshals, I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude and honor,” Fortney said. “It was surreal. I was proud of myself, but also reflecting on how much support I’ve had from my friends, family and professors.”
During her time at Penn State, Fortney was an active member of the Student Nurses’ Association at Penn State and gained clinical experience at Geisinger Community Medical Center through a nurse internship on the Telemetry Unit and a nurse externship in the Cardiac Specialty Care Unit.
Fortney said her college experience was defined by learning to push through fear and grow in confidence. In clinical settings, she said, she learned not to hang back when a situation felt intimidating, but to stay close to her nurse, observe carefully and take every appropriate opportunity to learn.
“That feeling of overcoming something you struggle with and getting good at it is what I’ll carry with me,” she said.
One experience during a medical-surgical clinical in her junior year helped reinforce that lesson. Fortney said she felt nervous as she prepared to perform a bedside skill with a patient for the first time. Her first attempt was not successful, but the patient was understanding, and Fortney tried again.
“If I would have been afraid after failing, I never would have gotten it the second time,” Fortney said. “You really do gain confidence with practice.”
After graduation, Fortney will begin her nursing career in the Heart & Vascular ICU at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. She plans to build her critical care expertise and eventually pursue advanced practice training to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist.
Pishotti, of Cincinnati, Ohio, also will graduate with a bachelor of science degree in nursing after earning a 4.0 grade-point average and being named to the dean’s list for eight semesters. Her honors include the Evan Pugh Senior Scholar Award, Beta Sigma Student Award and the Bearacuda Nursing Student Scholarship from Children’s National Hospital.
Pishotti said being selected as student marshal was a meaningful recognition of years of hard work.
“It feels really great to be recognized for all the work I’ve done,” Pishotti said. “I’m very honored to be selected and to have a special role in graduation.”
Pishotti, whose parents met at Penn State, said she always hoped to attend the University. She said the close-knit nature of the nursing program, combined with the energy and pride of the broader Penn State community, made her experience especially meaningful.
“One of the best parts of nursing here is how easy it is to connect with instructors, professors and classmates,” she said. “It feels like a small community within a big university.”
During her Penn State career, Pishotti was active in Phi Sigma Sigma, the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing and THON. She also completed a nurse trainee experience at Children’s National Hospital on a pediatric acute care unit during the summer of 2025.
Pishotti said her clinical education helped her to understand how much meaning lies in the everyday moments of patient care. Assigned to a nursing home during her first semester of clinicals and still developing her skills, Pishotti did what she could — helping with hygiene, spending time with residents. One day, she painted a resident’s nails.
“She said, ‘Thank you, I finally feel like myself again,’” Pishotti recalled. “It was just a reminder of the little things that bring some sense of normalcy to patients and have a bigger impact than you would think.”
Following graduation, Pishotti will move to Washington, D.C., to begin her career at Children’s National Hospital on an acute care pediatric unit. She said working with children has long been her goal, and she hopes to one day become a pediatric oncology nurse.
The Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing will recognize Fortney and Pishotti alongside the graduating class during the spring 2026 commencement ceremony, which is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Saturday, May 9, at Eisenhower Auditorium.