2008 Annual Conference Grapevine, TX
If you haven’t started already, it’s time to plan to attend NSNA’s 56th Annual Convention, March 26-30, 2008 at the beautiful Gaylord Texan™ Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, TX. It’s a great opportunity to network, attend informative focus sessions, and visit a packed exhibit hall. Plus, the 2008-09 House of Delegates convenes to elect a new Board of Directors and Nominating and Elections Committee (see the Slate of Candidates on page 2), students celebrate program award winners, and attendees support the Foundation’s Mary Ann Tuft Scholarship Program at the Grapevine City Auction!
Seek the Adventure - Run for Office by Traci Ford, NEC Representative, Western Election Area, Saddleback College, Mission Viejo, CA It is an exciting time as the Nominating and Elections Committee (NEC) continues to search for new NSNA leaders. As many of you know, we have encouraged prospective candidates to “Seek the Adventure—Transform the Journey.” Activities have included direct outreach to interested candidates, attendance at State Conventions Traci Ford and most importantly, the Running for Office workshops held in Kansas City, MO in November 2007. Many of you may have made the decision to run then or you may have taken away information that allowed you to make a decision to submit your applications by the January 8, 2008 deadline. Candidates that submitted complete and qualified information prior to the deadline are the pre-slated candidates for NSNA elections at the Annual Convention in Grapevine, TX, March 26-30, 2008. (See the Slate of Candidates at left.) If you’re just reading this now and feel a tug at your heart telling you to run for office, fear not – your journey is about to be transformed! It is not too late to “Seek the Adventure” by running from the floor of the House of Delegates. Running from the floor can be accomplished two ways: 1) you can come to the Convention in Grapevine where you will have a tight time line to complete your application, be credentialed, and organize your campaign; or 2) you can contact your NEC representative to receive guidance that will allow you to arrive in Grapevine fully prepared to run from the floor! By submitting your application by March 14, 2008, you will be mailed a candidates’ packet that will help you prepare for your campaign.
The inserted brochure has more information, including registration and housing forms. Don’t miss Major General Gale Pollock, Deputy Surgeon General for Force Management and the 22nd Chief of Army Nurse Corps. She draws on her years as an Army nurse and her leadership experience to inspire and challenge her audiences to aspire to high goals and achievements.
Either way, your next step is to contact your NEC Representative to obtain more information about the office of interest and/or to request an application packet. The NEC is dedicated to taking the fear out of running for office by offering navigation assistance as you read through the checklist, Getting the Pieces to Fit, and the Digest of Information for 2008 NSNA Candidates, which include NSNA position descriptions and bylaws. (Continued on page 2 F)
Editor: Larisa Mendez Downes President: Jennifer Davis Executive Director: Diane J. Mancino, EdD, RN, CAE
NSNA Logo Policy The use of the name National Student Nurses’ Association, Inc. (NSNA) may be used only by official NSNA school and state constituents with the following wording: {Insert name of school or state association} is an official constituent of the National Student Nurses’ Association, Inc. No other wording is acceptable without NSNA’s permission. The NSNA logo may not be used by anyone, including members or school or state chapters. Copyright NSNA.
© Copyright 2008, National Student Nurses’ Association, Inc. NSNA is a membership association representing Baccalaureate, generic Masters and generic Doctoral programs preparing students for Registered Nurse licensure, as well as RNs in BSN completion programs. Address all submission and correspondence to Larisa Mendez Downes, National Student Nurses’ Association, 45 Main Street, Suite 606, Brooklyn, NY 11201.
For advertising information, contact Larisa Mendez Downes, 718-210-0705, ext. 104, or e-mail larisa@nsna.org. The next issue is Fall 2008, which closes September 1, 2008.
2008 NSNA Slate of Candidates Announced
Jenna Witt
The National Student Nurses’ Association Nominating and Elections Committee (NEC) is pleased to announce the 2008 Slate of Candidates for Board of Directors and Nominating and Elections Committee. Delegates will vote for the candidates at the upcoming NSNA Annual Convention in Grapevine, TX, March 26-30, 2008.
Candidates may also be nominated from the floor of the House of Delegates. If you would like information about running from the floor, send an e-mail with your name, complete mailing address, phone number, e-mail address, NSNA membership number, and position you are planning to run for to www.nsna.org. An application and packet of information will be mailed to you. The Nominating and Elections Committee urges those who are planning to run from the floor to have their completed application to NSNA no later than March 14, 2008. 2008 Slate of Candidates President: F. Jordan Colwell, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Scottsbluff, NE Jenna Sanders, University of Saint Francis, Fort Wayne, IN Vice President: Laura Chapman, University of Alabama at Huntsville, Huntsville, AL Brent Straley, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH Courtney Truax, Mississippi University for Women, Columbus, MS Secretary/Treasurer: David Horner, Golden West College, Huntington Beach, CA Imprint Editor: Lauren Brewer, Clemson University, Clemson, SC Kassandra Combest, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ Emily Little, University of Maine, Orono, ME Breakthrough to Nursing Director: Fikile Mpofu, Piedmont Technical College, Greenwood, SC Director (North): Grant Tyler, University of Saint Francis, Fort Wayne, IN Director (South): Bonnie Kluttz Hill, Cabarrus College of Health Sciences, Concord, NC Director (East): Vacant Director (West): Candace Biberston, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT Nominating and Elections Committee (North): Vacant Nominating and Elections Committee (South): Melissa Snow, Charity–Delgado School of Nursing, New Orleans, LA Nominating and Elections Committee (East): Vacant Nominating and Elections Committee (West): Kimberly Root, Saddleback College, Mission Viejo, CA
Board of Directors Meeting Highlights The NSNA Board of Directors met Nov. 13-14, 2007, during the MidYear Conference in Kansas City, MO. The following highlights their actions: • Accepted reports from the following: Finance Committee, Imprint and Image of Nursing, Legislation/Education, Membership, Convention and Program Planning, Breakthrough to Nursing, Community Health, Bylaws and Policies, Disaster Task Force, and the State Presidents’ update. • Approved the 2008 Operating Budget. • Approved the topic for the Board of Directors resolution to be submitted to the Resolutions Committee. • Approved changes to the NSNA Campaign Regulations. • Appointed Dr. Cheryl K. Schmidt as the ANA-appointed Consultant to NSNA. Dr. Schmidt will succeed Dr. Anne Manton when the latter’s term expires on March 29, 2008. • Approved making the Disaster Task Force a permanent NSNA Board of Directors Committee, effective beginning for the 2008-09 term. • Accepted to select Pittsburgh, PA, for the Annual Convention site for April 2012. • Accepted proposal to implement “greener” environmentally friendly practices into the workings of the organization. • Appointed Kelley Wilson to the Spirit of Nursing Selection Committee. • Approved a motion to encourage NSNA members to join the International Council of Nursing Students Network. • Approved a Professional Conduct Policy for NSNA Elected and Appointed Officials and candidates. (See the February/March issue of Imprint for the full policy.) In February, the NSNA Board of Directors accepted the resignation of Devyn Denton, Breakthrough to Nursing Director, and determined to leave the position vacant. The next meeting of the Board of Directors takes place on March 24, 2008 at the Gaylord Texan ™ Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, TX.
Seek the Adventure - Run for Office (Continued from front cover)
An important part of the preparation process for this new adventure is to make sure you understand the requirements and the process for nominations from the floor, which can be found in the Eligibility Section of the Digest of Information. It is time to get excited about your potential as an NSNA leader! Candidates now serving on the current board and the NEC (including myself) may not have been pre-slated at the time of election. We successfully ran from the floor. In fact, I knew that I wanted to move forward as a leader in the nursing world, yet I was not sure of the next steps. The amazing support of the NEC team educated me, streamlined the process, and made it possible for me to be here to serve you today! Be encouraged! If you are still contemplating, or your decision has been made to take the next steps please contact any one of the NEC Committee members at nsna@nsna.org (ATTN: NEC). Send in an application to NSNA by March 14, 2008 and you will receive a candidate’s packet in time for the Convention. In the meantime, be sure to check out the Campaign Regulations online at www.nsna.org under Elected Officials/How to Run for National Office. The Nominating and Elections Committee is available to answer your questions. We look forward to hearing from you and to helping you transform your journey in nursing!
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Supporting the Future of Nursing -FNSNA donation envelopes now available! The Foundation of the National Student Nurses Association (FNSNA) now has donation envelopes available. Help fund nursing education through scholarships and grant with these convenient envelope. FNSNA donation envelopes will also be inserted in various issues of Imprint. For more information about FNSNA and programs supported by FNSNA, please visit www.nsna.org and click on FOUNDATION. To make a contribution to the FNSNA online visit www.nycharities.org/donate/c_ donate.asp?CharityCode=1971
Did You Know?* • 20,000 NSNA members are graduating in 2008! • We have 20,000 more members than we did 10 years ago. And we’ve recently exceeded over 50,000 members! • 60 percent of NSNA membership is between the ages of 18-28. • 30,000 members found out about NSNA through other members!! • According to MinorityNurse.com, only 5.4 percent of RNs are men – but 10 percent of NSNA members are men! *From a September 30, 2007 NSNA Membership Statistics Report.
NSNA Member Donates Half of First RN Paycheck to FNSNA At the annual Foundation of the NSNA Challenge at the 55th NSNA Annual Convention in Anaheim, CA, Melanie Miller addressed then president D. Todd Uhlman and said, “Mr. President, I’ve been a broke Miller nursing student for the last three years, what’s another couple of months?” She then pledged half of her first paycheck as an RN to benefit the Foundation of the NSNA.
Ms. Miller credits Ms. Rogers with being one of her foremost supporters. She’s also found help in unexpected ways throughout her nursing career. She reconnected with former NSNA Secretary/ Treasurer Kenneth Dion (who currently serves as FNSNA Treasurer and whom she’d met in 1987) at the 2006 Annual Convention in Baltimore and has found him to be a constant ally. “He’s always been available,” she said. “He’s always been a mentor and a champion, helped to keep me motivated, and given me advice and served as a sounding board.”
The Foundation of the NSNA received half of that first paycheck in late December 2007. Ms. Miller noted that she’s been thinking about that pledge ever since she made it. “It was important for me to keep my word,” she said in a January interview with Imprint. “It’s my word when I’m charting a patient, and it’s not any different in this situation – it’s a commitment that I made.”
Additionally, he’s served as a different sort of motivation. Ms. Miller said that it meant a lot to see him involved with the organization 15 years after he had graduated and to see him attached to the organization. “He is an inspiration to existing members and to sustaining members,” she said. “I think many nurses forget what it was like to be a new nurse. We need to bridge that gap.” It is people like Ken Dion and Michelle Rogers who help to close that gap, she noted.
More than that, Ms. Miller was also aware that she was giving back to the very support system that had helped her get to Convention. “You realize that money had to come out of budgets to send me [and others] to Convention and put us up at hotels.” “I had people who believed in me, and supported me,” she continued. “How can I not give back?” In fact, Ms. Miller has been giving back since she started nursing school in January 2005. After almost 20 years of working with Estēe Lauder and Lancôme, with no medical experience or background, she became a second-career nursing student. She became involved with her school NSNA chapter, after helping fellow student Michelle Rogers (now Resolutions Committee Chair) run for state office at the Florida Nursing Student Association (FNSA) Annual Convention in 2005. Ms. Miller was also part of the first group of representatives that her school, Lake-Sumter Community College, Leesburg, FL, sent to an NSNA Annual Convention. She left the NSNA Convention in Baltimore motivated to write a resolution to present to the Anaheim 2007 House of Delegates. While the resolution, “In Support of Awareness and Promotion of the Importance of Constant Supervision of Children,” was defeated, it didn’t stop Ms. Miller. In fact, in addition to pledging half of her first paycheck, she challenged the House of Delegates to pledge $1 for every “nay” vote the resolution received. The FNSA previously adopted the original resolution at its Annual Convention in October 2006 – which she coordinated and organized – as part of Florida’s “Never Leave a Child Unattended®” campaign.
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Ms. Miller herself is on the same path as her mentors. She wants to encourage others to realize that getting involved is crucial to being a nurse. “In a job like nursing, you don’t stop being a nurse – it has to be a part of who you are,” she emphasized. It is something she hopes fellow nursing students and other nurses embrace. She wants other nursing students to realize that being a part of an organization like NSNA provides students with a united voice. “We need to use that,” she said. “Beyond school and state [chapters], this is such a huge organization, and such an opportunity to be heard is important.” Plus, she added, “What if there’s another great nurse out there that just didn’t get a chance? People need to support these causes – whatever they can spare is crucial.” Ms. Miller is now a Registered Nurse, and works at Winnie Palmer Hospital, Orlando, FL. She continues to work with children outside of her work as well. She volunteered at Camp Boggy Creek in Florida for seriously ill children, logging in 300 hours as a student nurse. She now plans to go back during weekends this summer – this time offering her RN services. Ms. Miller said she will go back to school to pursue an RN to MSN degree; in the meantime she’ll continue to give back to her nurses’ association, her patients, and other future nurses.
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NSNA Member Benefits NSNA works hard to ensure that members reap benefits and rewards and has partnered with several organizations to ensure that members receive great discounts and products. Be sure to check them out and make the most of your membership dues. Plus, when you purchase and use services from NSNA Alliance partners, a portion of proceeds go to fund NSNA programs and keep dues affordable. Go to www. nsna.org under Membership and Alliance Partners to see what alliance benefits are available to you.
Tell Us What You Think! You may have noticed that NSNA News has changed! Write to us at nsna@nsna.org, ATTN: NSNA News Survey and tell us what you think about the following: 1) 2) 3) 4)
Do you like NSNA News’ new look? How long have you received the publication? Is the News useful to you? Would you like to see different content added? If so, please specify.
Congratulations NIWI Winner! Congratulations to the Nurse in Washington Internship (NIWI) Essay Contest winner: Zennoma Richardson, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ. Ms. Richardson was selected as winner of the essay contest for her excellent response to the question: How would you explain the relationship between patient advocacy and voter participation to nurses and nursing students who do not think their vote will make a difference?
Richardson
Ms. Richardson will be recognized at NSNA’s 56th Annual Convention in Grapevine, TX, and will be attending the NIWI conference in Washington D.C. from March 9-11, 2008 with NSNA Legislation/Education Chair Jenna Sanders. Look for the winning essay in a future issue of Imprint and on www.nsna.org.
The Nurse in Washington Internship (NIWI) is sponsored by the Nursing Organization Alliance and provides nurses and nursing students with the opportunity to learn how to influence health care through the legislative and regulatory processes. Participants learn from health policy experts and government officials, network with other nurses, and visit members of Congress.
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