TUCSON, ARIZ. ? Three nursing professors killed in a shooting rampage by a student who was flunking out were remembered at a memorial service Monday for giving their lives to protect the standards of their profession.

The nearly 90-minute University of Arizona ceremony in honor of Cheryl McGaffic, Barbara Monroe and Robin Rogers drew about 1,500 people.

The three professors were gunned down at the College of Nursing on Oct. 28 by Robert S. Flores Jr, 41. He shot Rogers in her office and McGaffic and Monroe in a classroom where they were administering an exam. He then killed himself.

Dr. Raymond Woosley, vice president of the Arizona Health Sciences Center, said the women courageously gave their lives defending the standards of nursing and, by extension, the lives of their patients.

“Their skills as teachers enabled them to detect an individual who could not meet the high ethical, moral and academic standards of their profession,” he said. “By standing firm and upholding the values of nursing, they protected future patients from possible harm.”