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September 7, 2022 | XXVI, Issue Number 14
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Colleagues, there is nothing more satisfying than recognition from one’s peers. Well, imagine how we felt last month when the ASAE – the American Society of Association Executives – honored the NLN with its Power of a Gold Award for our Taking Aim Initiative: Addressing Structural Racism, Diversity, Equity, Implicit Bias and Social Justice. After much celebration among staff and thanking our generous supporters – AMN Healthcare and Elsevier Nursing and Health Education – I had a realization: There are aspects of our work at the NLN that I do not tout enough in my biweekly Member Update. I want our members to take advantage of all we have to offer.
Our Taking Aim Initiative is a series of free, interactive educational offerings, training opportunities, and online resources developed and presented by thought leaders and scholars in nursing to address the impact of structural racism on social determinants of heath. This is of huge importance to nursing education, and it is our goal at the NLN to give you as much support as possible as you instruct your students and work to prevent bias in the classroom.
For example, take a look at the Resources page. Under the headings Articles, Interviews, Commentary / Blogs / Podcasts / Ted Talks / Toolkits / Videos / White Papers, we provide a fantastic bibliography that will give you the background information you need as well as strategies to prepare your students, as future nurses, to defuse structural racism they encounter. There is a place to sign up to receive the latest news and updates about the Taking Aim Initiative. Please do it today and save the date. A new workshop is scheduled for October 13 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST with details to be announced soon.
The Taking Aim Initiative is a product of the NLN Institute for Diversity and Global Initiatives, led by NLN Chief Program Officer Dr. Janice Brewington, who along with Dr. Sandra Davis, deputy director of the NLN/Walden University Institute for Social Determinants of Health & Social Change, co-chair the Taking Aim Committee. Several members of the committee are graduates of our outstanding LEAD program, which reminds me – the deadline to apply to the NLN Leadership Institute for 2022 is coming up on October 10. |
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Build Your Skills
LEAD is one part of the two-part NLN Leadership Institute. The other is our Leadership Development for Simulation Educators, for those wishing to assume leadership roles in simulation. I cannot tout this double program enough. LEAD graduates can be found bringing their leadership skills to numerous NLN endeavors and are making an impact in all areas of nursing education and health care. If you are curious about whether one of these two programs should be part of your leadership trajectory, please visit NLN.org and apply.
There are a couple of other deadlines I will mention. For example, September 20 is your last day to apply for Faculty Intensives: Good Teaching Doesn’t Just Happen. These online hybrid courses are designed to help faculty entering the academic environment develop a contemporary approach to teaching and learning with models that address critical thinking, clinical decision-making, and clinical judgment. You will work independently and then take part in a series of synchronous sessions, opportunities to experience excellence in teaching and engage with other nurse educators nationwide. Learn more and register at NLN.org. |
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Finally, the deadline for another exceptional NLN initiative is just around the corner. This Friday, September 9, is the deadline to apply for our fall 2022 Scholarly Writing Retreat, which will be held virtually over several days and led by Dr. Leslie Nicoll, editor of CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing and Nurse Author & Editor. We are proud that many published nurse authors are graduates of this program, founded in 2008 by Dr. Marilyn Oermann and the NLN Foundation for Nursing Education.
New Research Award
And that, colleague, brings me to another bit of news. This year, we are instituting a brand new award, the NLN Marilyn H. Oermann Award for Distinguished Research in Nursing Education, to recognize an individual or team that has generated an evidentiary base for the science of nursing education. Aside from having a significant impact on students, faculty, systems, or the environment, this individual or team must have served as a mentor and leader in developing and influencing the next generation of nurse educator scientists.
The award will be presented at the closing plenary of the 2023 NLN Nursing Education Research Conference (NERC), which takes place in Washington, DC, March 30-April 1, 2023, with the theme “Regenerating Research in Nursing Education: Moving the Science Forward.” |
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Dr. Oermann, by the way, will deliver the keynote address at the first plenary session: “Building the Science of Nursing Education: What Will It Take?” I cannot say enough about her contributions to nursing education. Her dedication as a teacher and researcher, her numerous publications, her generosity as a mentor, all have served to advance the science of nursing education.
Her most recent article in Nursing Education Perspectives, with faculty colleagues from Duke University and Fudan University in China, is an example of her dedication to the scholarship of teaching: “Nursing Students from China and the United States: Learning Together Through Virtual Simulation.” |
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The second edition of her book, A Systematic Approach to Evaluation of Nursing Programs, is about to be published by the NLN. And, of course, her research with Dr. Suzan Kardong-Edgren on the effectiveness of quarterly practice to improve nurse performance of high-quality, lifesaving CPR formed the foundation for our innovative partnership with the American Heart Association and Laerdal Medical: Resuscitation Quality Improvement® (RQI®).
Dr. Oermann is an outstanding role model for nurse researchers, educators and for me personally. An award named for her is very fitting indeed. Just so you know, registration for NERC is open now.
Let me close with a report from the NLN staff who are planning this month’s spectacular NLN Education Summit, September 28-30 in Las Vegas. Our registration numbers are now exceeding pre-pandemic numbers, and that is an enormous thrill. But there is always room for more, so you can register today or even onsite. The excitement is building at NLN headquarters, with materials on their way to Las Vegas and all details in their final stages.
I am so looking forward to this Summit, whose theme is “Healthy Planet, Healthy People: Leading the Way through Education, Practice, and Policy.” I am especially looking forward to meeting with you face to face to address today’s challenges and opportunities as a nursing education community. After our collective pandemic experience, I believe we all appreciate the chance to be together.
Be well, take good care, and see you at the Summit.
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