The white coat rested neatly across Lina Morales’ lap as the first-year nursing student sat seven rows from the Bass Performance Hall stage.
Her eyes stayed on the stage, where pharmacy student Zoe Leal stood at the podium in her own white coat and asked hundreds of future health professionals: “What is your drive?”
Leal was 7 when she watched coverage of Hurricane Katrina, heartbroken and wishing she could help. The desire led her to become a paramedic. Passion brought her into healthcare, she said, but that alone would not carry students through long lectures, difficult exams and moments of doubt. Drive would…