The 28 nursing programs at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) face several common challenges. Many of their students are low-income, enter with academic deficits, have children, and/or hold minimum-wage jobs, leading to weaker student retention, graduation and nursing-board passing rates. As institutional support has dropped in recent years, faculty and administrators have less time and resources to strengthen their teaching, leadership and student-preparation skills. HBCU nursing schools could benefit greatly from sharing successful teaching practices and student-support tools, yet no organization has ever brought them together. They have rarely collaborated simply for lack of resources and a mechanism. The National League for Nursing (NLN) represents 1,234 nursing programs and 40,000+ nursing faculty. It is the only entity whose senior executives have served as HBCU deans and faculty. NLN provides extensive training and coaching in academic leadership development, faculty development, and student performance. We propose forming the first ongoing coalition of HBCU nursing programs. At its first annual conference, we will introduce best practices and tools developed by successful schools and NLN to 5-person teams of key faculty and administrators from six schools in greatest need. For faculty participants, we will share resources to build pedagogical and clinical teaching skills. For deans and administrators, we will provide training on basic leadership skills; funding; budgeting; internal/external advocacy; and faculty performance. We will introduce PASS, a toolkit and guidance for faculty to better prepare their students for the nursing licensure exam (e.g., by providing students with NLN pre-test exams). Teams will collaborate in crafting a leadership and faculty development action plan tailored to its school's specific needs. Through periodic mentoring over 12 months, a follow-up local action group meeting, and a virtual follow-up meeting, NLN will help the schools complete and implement their action plans, deliver PASS to students, trouble-shoot problems, and evaluate and improve the coalition's programming. In the Year 2 conference, 2-3 schools will join the original six to craft action plans and build PASS into a model Student Success Support Center (SSSC). NLN will likewise support them with periodic mentoring and two mid-year follow-up meetings. The third annual conference will bring 2-3 more schools into this group to draft action plans, receive mentoring and mid-year support, and finalize the SSSC. Each year, we will evaluate key metrics, including student retention, graduation and nursing-board passing rates; faculty development activities; and curriculum changes. Finally, NLN will disseminate the resulting training program, SSSC toolkit and guidance, best practices, tools, and outcomes data throughout our nationwide membership. For the first time ever, this 3-year conference series would bring change agents from HBCU nursing schools together with experts to improve HBCU leadership skills, faculty skills, and student performance.
Increasing Diversity in Nursing through an Action Coalition of HBCU Nursing Education Programs Project Narrative The U.S. faces a growing shortage of nurses, yet 40% of baccalaureate nursing programs turn qualified candidates away due to institutional constraints. Of those admitted, 30-50% at some schools fail to complete their studies. This ?loss? rate is even higher for minority students. African-Americans and Hispanics make up 30% of the population but only 9% of RNs. Low workforce diversity has significant health impacts. For example, minority nurses are much more likely to work in underserved areas. The 28 HBCU nursing programs have prepared more nurses of color than the other 680 schools combined, yet five have closed and nine others have been suspended or placed on warning or probation. This is due in large part to their graduates' low passing rates on the nursing licensure exam, which have gotten worse over the past three years.
