NLN Urges Nursing Programs to Value Student Diversity in the Interest of Public Health
NLN Urges Nursing Programs to Value Student Diversity in the Interest of Public Health
Strongly Disagrees with Supreme Court Ruling Against the Limited Use of Race-Conscious Admissions Policies
Washington, DC — The National League for Nursing strongly disagrees with the Supreme Court ruling against race-conscious admissions, which reverses a 20-year-old precedent set by the Supreme Court itself recognizing student body diversity as a compelling interest allowing for the limited consideration of race in admissions. In the wake of this decision, the National League for Nursing urges nursing programs and other institutions of higher education to continue to find ways to value student diversity as part of the admissions process.
The Supreme Court does allow, under this new standard, for consideration of the adversity a prospective student has overcome when schools and programs consider qualified applicants. While the GPA and test scores must meet the appropriate requirements, programs can also consider the student’s lack of financial means and personal challenges, including racial discrimination and prejudice experienced in their lives.
The National League for Nursing will continue to lead on these issues by working with nursing programs to ensure a diverse workforce that provides equitable health care for all patients, families, communities, and populations. In fact, a strategic action group is currently working to update the Vision Statement, “Achieving Diversity and Meaningful Inclusion in Nursing Education,“ to include a greater emphasis on the LGBTQ+ population, structural racism, and societal inequities related to differences.
Additionally, a special September/October issue this year of Nursing Education Perspectives will be dedicated to educational research on diversity, equity and inclusion in nursing education. Along with research articles, this special issue will have several unique Innovation Center articles. The League also offers resources through the Taking Aim: Addressing Structural Racism, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Implicit Bias & Social Justice initiative.
Programs and educational opportunities devoted to increasing diversity, equity and inclusion among nursing students are essential to the task of safeguarding public health, including physical, social and emotional welfare. Nurses must be equipped to deliver, with cultural humility, equitable care in increasingly diverse communities and multiple clinical settings as part of a holistic, professional health care team. And it is the responsibility of faculty, administrators and staff to make sure that happens through the education of a diverse nursing workforce.
The National League for Nursing’s core values—caring, integrity, diversity and inclusion, and excellence—guide our mission of promoting excellence in nursing education to build a strong and diverse nursing workforce to advance the health of our nation and the global community. All of us in nursing must stand up and advocate for the right to quality care and make our voices heard, reaffirming our values.
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About the National League for Nursing
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 professional development, networking opportunities, testing services, nursing research grants, and public policy initiatives to its nearly 45,000 individual and 1,000 institutional members, comprising nursing education programs across the spectrum of higher education and health care organizations. Learn more at NLN.org.