Texas A&M College of Nursing named Center of Excellence

The Texas A&M College of Nursing has earned the National League of Nursing’s (NLN) prestigious designation as a Center of Excellence in Nursing Education™ (COE) in Creating Environments that Enhance Student Learning and Professional Development, for the years 2016-2020. The COE designation acknowledges the outstanding innovations, commitment and sustainability of excellence of the College of Nursing.

“I am so proud of our dedicated faculty and staff for their commitment to providing our students with exceptional learning opportunities both inside and outside of the classroom,” said Sharon A. Wilkerson, PhD, RN, CNE, ANEF, dean of the College of Nursing. “Since the college was established in 2008, we’ve had a bold vision of transforming health care in our region and across Texas through preparing the next generation of nursing leaders. This recognition serves as an important indicator of our success.”

The college is one of 15 schools that achieved COE designation in 2016. The program was inaugurated in 2004 and, with this year’s awardees, there are now 56 schools and organizations that have attained COE status.

“The NLN is proud to recognize those schools and organizations that are doing the outstanding work that sets them apart from others,” said NLN president Dr. Anne Bavier. “By publicly acknowledging these best practices,” added NLN CEO Dr. Beverly Malone, “we promote the preparation of a diverse, culturally competent nursing workforce to deliver safe, effective patient care in our complex, dynamic health care environment.”

The College of Nursing offers a dynamic curriculum incorporating an innovative approach to traditional coursework, resulting in graduates consistently achieving the highest first-time pass rates on the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN) in Texas (ranging 95-100 percent). Graduates from the college’s baccalaureate and master’s nursing programs are heavily recruited into leadership positions across the state.

The Texas A&M College of Nursing and other 2016 COEs will be formally recognized at the NLN’s Annual Education Summit held in September.

In keeping with the NLN mission to continually advance quality nursing education, throughout the four years that awardees carry the COE designation, they are expected to be available to other applicants seeking to move their own programs toward distinction.

Dedicated to excellence in nursing, the NLN offers professional development, networking opportunities, testing services, nursing research grants, and public policy initiatives to its 40,000 individual and 1,200 institutional members. NLN members represent nursing education programs across the spectrum of higher education, and health care organizations and agencies.