NLN to Convene Intensive Faculty Development Conference

“Immersion in Evidence-based Nursing Education” 2008 “Immersion Experience” Sunday, June 8 to Friday, June 13 at University Place Conference Center and Hotel on the Campus of Indiana University Purdue University-Indianapolis

New York, NY – May 16, 2008 – Committed to excellence in the scholarship and practice of evidence-based nursing education, the National League for Nursing will provide an opportunity this spring for nurse-educators to retreat from their daily teaching responsibilities and refocus their energies in a dynamic, week-long workshop experience.

“At the NLN we appreciate how difficult it can be on a day-to-day basis to step back from the hectic pace of the classroom and clinical settings to really understand and evaluate the efficacy of our teaching methods, whether they are in tune with the learning styles of our students and whether we are truly guided by the best practices our profession has to offer, based on a sound body of evidence,” said Dr. Beverly Malone, PhD, RN, FAAN, the League’s CEO. “The NLN Immersion Experience” was a great success last year and we are pleased to offer it again in 2008.”

The absorbing and innovative “Immersion in Evidence-based Nursing Education” is designed to help participants achieve goals and objectives in their roles as classroom and clinical instructors, designers of curricula, and education scholars . Through intensive workshops and study sessions, a distinguished roster of master faculty will role model active teaching/learning strategies, discuss concept-based curricula designed for 21st century practice, and examine the science of nursing education and issues related to its development.

Participants will select one of three tracks of intensive study to pursue for the week: classroom and clinical teaching (led by Karen Pardue, MS, RN, BC, CNE; Theresa Valiga, EdD, RN, FAAN); curriculum development (led by Judith Halstead, DNS, RN; Jean Giddens, PhD, APRN-BC); or nursing education research (led by Marilyn Oermann, PhD, RN, FAAN; Diane Billings, EdD, RN, FAAN). Everyone will engage in collaborative dialogue as well as individual and group projects.

The conference will open with registration on Sunday, June 6; the keynote address, scheduled for Monday morning at 10:00 am, will be delivered by Dr. Eileen Zungolo, dean and professor of nursing at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. With more than 30 years experience in higher education, as well as years in clinical practice, in 1975, Dr. Zungolo established the first, and what remains the sole, master’s program in nursing in the state of Idaho. She was also responsible for developing one of the nation’s earliest comprehensive, community-based curricula, in collaboration with the city of Boston, at Northeastern University, beginning in 1989. A past president of the NLN, Dr. Zungolo recently co-chaired the NLN/NLNAC Task Force on Global Nursing Education and now serves as chair of the NLN Awards Committee and the NLN Certification Committee. A Fulbright Scholar, in 2007, Dr. Zungolo was inducted as a fellow in the NLN’s newly-established Academy of Nursing Education.

Complete information on the Immersion Experience including the program schedule, faculty bios, and registration, visit www.nln.org/facultydevelopment/immersion/index.htm.

Editors and reporters: For interview opportunities, please contact NLN chief communications officer, Karen R. Klestzick, at 212-812-0376 or kklestzick@nln.org.

Dedicated to excellence in nursing, the National League for Nursing is the premier organization for nurse faculty and leaders in nursing education. The NLN offers faculty development, networking opportunities, testing services, nursing research grants, and public policy initiatives to its 25,000 individual and 1,200 institutional members who represent all types of nursing education programs.