Welcome to the School of Nursing at Western Carolina University. We have grown significantly over the last several years, and offer many exciting education options at the undergraduate and graduate level.
A career in nursing is challenging and rewarding. Now more than ever, nurses prepared at the baccalaureate and master's level are in great demand by healthcare employers. Our faculty members are invested in nurturing students as they prepare for their roles as clinicians, teachers, researchers, leaders, life-long leaders and responsible members of society. The School of Nursing was established at Western Carolina University in 1969 under Dr. Mary K. Kneedler, a nationally recognized leader in healthcare who helped develop the Head Start program under President Lyndon Johnson. The first class of BSN students graduated in 1973. The School now has well over 2,000 alumni who practice in clinical and leadership roles nationwide.
Students who graduate from our programs perform well on their licensure exams with pass rates well above national averages. They also have the opportunity to engage in clinical experiences at many different types of healthcare institutions in rural and urban western North Carolina.
Educate nurse leaders who are dedicated to caring and participating with individuals, families, and communities to meet health needs.
To be recognized for excellence in the transformation of healthcare through the scholarship of teaching, practice, and research.
The Philosophy of the SON reflects the beliefs and values of the faculty and gives direction to the baccalaureate, masters and doctoral curricula. The baccalaureate graduate is a generalist who designs, provides, manages and coordinates nursing care in a variety of healthcare settings. The masters and doctoral curriculum build on the baccalaureate education and prepares graduates to practice in advanced roles.
Nursing is a discipline of knowledge and professional practice. Nursing occurs in relationship with self and others and requires the intentional presence of the nurse. The focus of nursing is to improve health outcomes with individuals, families and communities through caring.
The professionalization of caring in nursing includes:
Competence – knowledge, wisdom, skills, judgment, experience and motivation.
Compassion – a shared awareness and connectedness with the experiences of others.
Commitment – a deliberate choice to act in accordance with beliefs and obligations.
Conscience – a state of moral awareness.
Confidence – the internal belief that one will act in a right, proper, or effective way which fosters trusting relationships.
Comportment – demeanor, conduct, personal bearing, behavior. (Roach, 1997)
Excellence in nursing requires a blending of science and art. Nursing science is the body of nursing knowledge derived from the integration of theory, research, and practice. The art of nursing is the creative integration of empirical, personal, ethical, intuitive, esthetic ways of knowing in practice. The art of nursing is that which humanizes the delivery of nursing care.
Learning in nursing occurs through the integration of multiple ways of knowing. Self-awareness, reflection, and ethical and critical reasoning are important aspects of the learning that occurs in practice situations and through interprofessional collaboration. A supportive environment for learning is one which respects and values the contributions of each person and is a collaborative relationship between faculty, and students. The completion of a nursing degree is not an end-point but the beginning of a life-long commitment to learning.
Roach, S. (1997). Caring from the heart: The convergence of caring and spirituality. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press.
Last edited 9/24/2012, 11/26/2012, 12/14/2012, and 01/10/2013
The undergraduate student is able to:
The master’s nursing graduate will:
Upon completion of the DNP program, graduates will: