CONTACT - Volume 9, Number 2
Undergraduate Program in Nursing

Linda K. Perkel, Ph.D., RN
Associate Dean

Summertime at Barry is usually spent "finishing out" and reflecting on the accomplishments of the academic year and planning for the year ahead. This year, the undergraduate faculty have much to brag about.

Our new community-based curriculum was implemented for first year nursing students. This implementation provided many challenges and rewards for faculty and students. Our students learned about health assessment and experienced learning opportunities in the community at nursing homes, pediatric clinics, and elementary schools. The new combined pathophysiology / pharmacology course, according to student feedback, was a resounding success. Students recognized the value of learning the pharmacology directly associated with specific physiological disorders. The most innovative and challenging of our new courses in the curriculum, Nursing Care of Individuals, Families, and Communities , provided the content and structure to allow students to learn concepts of wellness for individuals, families, and communities. Clinical experiences occurred in the clinics, schools, and adult living facilities of selected communities where students practiced the theoretical concepts discussed in class. Faculty members were innovative and creative in developing these new clinical arrangements and students reaped the benefits.

Two grants were submitted and awarded to support the undergraduate nursing program. The Helene Fuld Foundation awarded $100,000.00 to support the development of a Resource Center for Community-Based Nursing Education. Marcia Hacker, MSN, chair of the curriculum revision project, has been appointed Director of the Center. Marcia has already begun meeting with faculty groups to identify ways in which she can support and assist in the further development of the community-based curriculum. We anticipate a site visit from our consultant, Dr. Gail Spencer from SUNY Binghamton, in early August. Dr. Spencer will assist us in identifying community resources and strategies that can be used as student learning sites within the new curriculum.

The second grant awarded is a Health Resources and Services Administration grant under the workforce diversity initiative of the federal government. This is a $650,000.00, three-year grant designed to support minority and/or disadvantaged students through the nursing program in order to improve their chances to successfully complete the nursing program. Margaret Bagnardi, MSN, has been appointed as the lead faculty member for this project. Students accepted into the new Learning Achievement Program (LAP) will participate in a four-week bridge program beginning July 22, 2002.

Finally, it has been extremely rewarding to see that our NCLEX-RN exam passing rates have risen to 86% as of the last reporting period. This is the highest in the South Florida area and is significantly higher than the pass rate in the state of Florida. I am convinced this is the result of the strategic decisions made by faculty, their dedication and commitment to their students, and to the hard work of our Barry nursing students.

We look forward to the further implementation of the new curriculum, the Fuld and HRSA projects, and the continued success of our students. We also look forward to a year of change. We have a new dean on board, Dr. Pegge Bell. Dr. Bell brings her own experiences, perspectives, and vision of nursing education. We will be challenged to change and move forward. Dr. Kathleen Long, newly installed president of AACN recently wrote ".marching in place will not get us where nursing needs to go".* She further exhorts us to be unafraid as we consider new approaches to nursing education. If we are afraid and stuck in place, we will be unable to adequately prepare and provide the nursing services needed for the future. I am optimistic that, working together with our new dean, our students, and faculty, we will all be able to face the future courageously, to create the momentum we need to create a bright future for our graduates and our profession.

*Long, K. (2002, Summer). Message from the Dean. The Gator Nurse , p. 2.