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History
The College of Nursing (CON) has been in the forefront of educating African-American nurses for more than 87 years. Established in 1918, it was structured like a 2-year diploma nursing program in a higher institution of learning for Blacks in Texas. The first degree granted by the university was in nursing. In 1928, the program was lengthened to three years and the first off campus affiliation began in 1930. The nursing program was transformed into a professional baccalaureate program in 1952. The first baccalaureate degrees were awarded in 1956. Fourteen years later in 1968, the college developed an upper (professional) and lower division (liberal arts). This division was aligned with total concentration of nursing in Houston and affiliations at some of the most prominent hospitals in the world; while all pre-clinical or general studies courses continued to be offered on the main university campus. This division also provided opportunities for students from other general studies programs to apply for admission to the upper division. Initial accreditation was granted from the National League for Nursing (NLN) in 1973; the last accreditation was reaffirmed in 1998, resulting in a full continuing accreditation with an interim report.
In 1983, the CON moved to 6436 Fannin Street in the Texas Medical Center and became a participating member of 61 member institutions of the Texas Medical Center. The former building at the above location has been demolished and a new state-of-the-art facility is under construction and scheduled for completion by January 2006. The CON’s temporary location is 1801 Main Street, occupying 46,000 square feet of leased space.
The RN-BSN Program was established in 1978. In addition to offering courses at the CON campus, this program option was expanded via telecommunication to distance sites at Bryan-College Station, home of the Texas A&M University , to the University Center in Montgomery County and to Huntsville Medical Center in Huntsville, Texas. Students enrolled in the RN-BSN Program complete the program in three semesters or 12 months of upper division clinical studies.
In 1999, the College of Nursing added the Master of Science Degree in Nursing offering the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Program to meet the demand to increase the number of ethnic minority health care providers to underserved and vulnerable populations. This initiative was funded by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The FNP Program consists of three regular semesters and two summer semesters. Graduate clinical experiences vary from private practice sites to public clinics and hospital-based experiences in urban and rural communities.
In January 2005, the LVN-BSN Program admitted the first cohort of 12 students. This program is offered at the College of Nursing (CON) campus and the three distance sites. This program is structured to be completed in four academic semesters. In Fall 2005, 20 additional LVN students were admitted. Both the baccalaureate and masters programs are accredited by the Board of Nurse Examiners for the State of Texas and the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission. Also, the baccalaureate program has preliminary approval from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.
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