Dean: Ramona Benkert

The Wayne State University College of Nursing is regionally, nationally, and internationally recognized for educating graduate and undergraduate students as practitioners and scholars in the nursing profession. The College is committed to research and scholarly activity which contributes to the discipline of nursing and excels in the development, application, and dissemination of such knowledge to promote human health and well-being.

Nursing is an academic discipline and a profession. As a discipline, nursing develops knowledge concerning human beings, their care, health, and the environment. Concepts derived from such research order the discipline and profession of nursing as well as give identity to nursing practice and direct inquiry and theory development. As a profession, nursing creatively uses knowledge in response to the health care needs of society. Both of these functions are enhanced by the scholarly environment of the University and its multicultural urban setting as a context for professional nursing practice.

Consistent with this view of the nursing profession, the College supports the importance of the liberal arts, humanities, and the sciences in nursing education. The faculty believes that programs designed for the preparation of nurses must be composed of the intellectual, social, cultural, and technical components of liberal and professional education that are available to students within an institution of higher learning. The faculty also affirms the necessity and value of clinical practice within a professional nursing program. Experience within a variety of clinical and vulnerable populations is one of the primary modes for the development of nursing practice competencies.

Learners from diverse backgrounds enter the College to begin or continue their education and thereby add to the richness of this learning environment. The faculty supports the right of students to question, challenge and debate within the context of inquiry as an essential ingredient to their development. Continuing evaluation on the part of the students and the faculty is essential to advancing nursing knowledge and sustaining the integrity of the program.

The faculty of the College of Nursing, as members of the academic community, recognizes that its professional functions extend beyond contributions to formal teaching. Research, practice, and community service are important expectations of the faculty. The faculty views as essential, academic freedom, shared governance, opportunity to develop knowledge, and responsibility to incorporate new knowledge into teaching and nursing practice. The faculty assumes responsibility for enhancing the image of the College of Nursing and the University locally, nationally, and internationally through various avenues including research, scholarship, practice, consultation, and participatory decision making.

Accreditation

The baccalaureate program is approved by the Michigan State Board of Nursing, and graduates are admitted to the licensing examination for professional nurses in the State of Michigan. The baccalaureate, master's and doctorate in nursing practice programs of the College are accredited by the Commission for Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).