July 7 - A New Era Begins for the CNEA

Well, we have had our first East Coast hurricane, just in time to spoil plans for some of us on the 4th of July - so much for those hazy, lazy days of summer we all wish for. Let’s hope your holiday was perfect in every way. Now to the business at hand.

For some time, I have used this forum to introduce you to new staff at the NLN. Well, today I would like to introduce you to the newest member of our staff. You know her name well. I am excited to report that effective July 1, Dr. Judith Halstead has joined the NLN to lead the C-NEA - the NLN Commission for Nursing Education Accreditation.

Judy has had a remarkable career in nursing education. A former president of the NLN (for the period September 2011 to September 2013), she is known to nurse educators everywhere for her classic Teaching in Nursing: A Guide for Faculty, now in its fourth edition. This widely referenced text is co-authored by her colleague at Indiana University School of Nursing, Dr. Diane Billings.

July 31 Early bird pricing for pre- and post-Summit workshops ends August 8 Fall Scholarly Writing Retreat Applications Due August 28 Taking the Angst Out of Test Construction & Item Analysis Workshop September 17-20 NLN Education Summit September 30 Leadership Institute Applications Due October 15 Centers of Excellence Initial Applications Due October 24-26 9th Annual NLN/Elsevier Technology Conference Find out how telemedicine is changing the way patient care is handled and what that means for the health informatics job market. Looking to stay up-to-date on the most pressing issues in nursing ethics? Subscribe to the free Berman Institute Nursing Ethics newsletter and receive weekly updates, news articles, and resources. Listened to #LawrenceOdonnells testimony about his accident & healing. His tribute to Nursing & his nurses was incredible. Wow! Anxious children have bigger 'fear centers' in the brain.

Judy was at IU for most of her career, as executive associate dean for academic affairs and founding director for the Center for Health Professions Interprofessional Education and Practice. Most recently, as professor of nursing, she served as director of IU's Office for Online Education. Indiana University appreciated the outstanding, innovative work Judy was doing in the School of Nursing and wanted to export it (her) to the entire university.

When the NLN launched the C-NEA in September 2013, we were incredibly pleased that Judy agreed to lead a strategic steering committee to develop the new accrediting agency. Can you imagine how excited we were when she agreed to join us in DC as its director?

As we start a new era for the NLN's new and autonomous accrediting division, there are a couple of things I want to emphasize. First, the C-NEA will provide accrediting services for all nursing programs, including practical, associate, baccalaureate, master's and doctoral, with standards and policies based upon the NLN's core values: caring, integrity, diversity, and excellence. As a Category 2 accrediting body, it will not serve as a Title IV gatekeeper.

Judy will continue to work with the steering committee appointed and charged with overseeing the formation of standards, criteria, policies, and procedures. The members of this distinguished group are as follows: Anne Belcher, Donna Boland, Pat Castaldi, Joan Darden, Cole Edmonson, Betsy Frank, Betty Horton, Donna Meyer, and Cathie Shultz (another one of our incredible past presidents).

Detailed information regarding the C-NEA is available online as a series of frequently asked questions. This page is updated regularly. As standards and criteria are developed, stakeholder feedback will be solicited. For additional information, or questions that pertain to your specific nursing program, please contact accreditation@nln.org.

I am truly excited about this new endeavor - excited, proud, and optimistic that the C-NEA will have a profound and positive effect on the quality of nursing education at all levels, throughout the United States and even overseas. With the anniversary of our move to Washington approaching - we moved during those the hazy, hot, and humid days of August 2013 - we can all agree that a new era is well under way.

I will be talking about our vision for meaningful change as the keynote speaker for the NLN Education Summit 2014, September 17-20 in Phoenix. Although I always speak at the Summit, I haven't given the keynote address since my very first Summit as NLN CEO. This year, with so much happening to create the NLN Home for Transformative Excellence, I believe it is time to speak in depth about our vision for nursing and health care and the work we do - and will continue to do - on behalf of faculty, scholars, schools of nursing, students, and the patients for whom they care.

The summer NLN Report will provide a preview of my remarks, but I truly hope you will join us at the Summit this year. Our seven Centers for Excellence in Nursing Education, which make up the NLN Home for Transformative Excellence, are in various stages of development, but each is already exhibiting great promise. Our centers provide the structure for strategic partnerships and member involvement that allows for an expanding universe of great ideas for the future of nursing education.

The Summit is about 10 weeks away, but as I plan my keynote address, my mind is swirling. Do join us at the Summit. Come early and take advantage of an excellent array of pre-Summit workshops, and stay on for the post-Summit. (Register for these by July 31 and save.) But most important, immerse yourself in the conversation. And plan to bring your excitement home to your classroom.

And colleagues, please join me in welcoming Dr. Judith Halstead to the NLN family.

All best wishes,


Beverly Malone, PhD, RN, FAAN
Chief Executive Officer

Next Issue of the NLN Member Update: July 21, 2014. View previous issues of NLN Member Update »