ALUMNI AND STUDENTS nowadays often show their school pride with a T-shirt or a hoodie emblazoned with their university logo.
When Claudia Dille ’69 worked as a nurse, she showed her school pride with her Texas Woman’s nursing cap.
“The cap was a way to express pride in your university,” says Dille, whose career as a nurse, educator and healthcare professional spanned 43 years.
When Dille began her nursing career, the traditional uniform consisted of a white cap, white dress, pantyhose and white shoes. The uniform evolved to a pantsuit in the 1970s and the more comfortable medical scrubs in the 1990s.
Each nursing school had its own unique cap. The caps came in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some were small; some were round; some had frills. Dille says the TWU nursing cap was a more traditional design. It had a wide front with a black stripe and crossed in back to form the cap.
Students put the caps together, starching and folding the piece of white cotton into a cap.
“It was quite an art to get the cap ready to wear,” says Dille. “The cap was a distinguishing characteristic, letting people know that you were a nurse,” says Dille.
Dille held onto her cap. “It is a symbol of my career.”