An Invitation to Apply: La Salle University School of Nursing and Health Sciences Chair of the Undergraduate Nursing Program

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1 An Invitation to Apply: La Salle University School of Nursing and Health Sciences Chair of the Undergraduate Nursing Program THE SEARCH The Chair is empowered by departmental colleagues, by the Dean, and by the Associate Dean for Nursing Programs. The Chair reports to the Associate Dean for Nursing Programs and leads the department in a manner consonant with the University's mission and objectives, and reinforces the department's pursuit of academic excellence. The Chair is responsible to both the Associate Dean, Dean, and department colleagues in these pursuits. The Chair shall encourage effective teaching; shall maintain an administrative environment conducive to the work and collegiality of the department; and foster other professional activity by the faculty. The Chair shall represent the department in all dealings with University officials and committees, and may delegate appropriate duties to faculty or committees within the department. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE POSITION The Chair is responsible for the development, implementation, promotion, and daily operations of the baccalaureate prelicensure nursing program in accordance with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, State Board of Nursing regulations, and the Commission of Collegiate Nursing Education standards. QUALIFICATIONS OF THE IDEAL CANDIDATE The ideal candidate will possess the following qualifications: An earned doctorate in nursing or a related discipline is required. A minimum of five years demonstrated teaching experience in baccalaureate education. Demonstrated administrative leadership abilities and a collaborative and consultative working style. Experience in undergraduate curricular development, implementation, and evaluation. Knowledge of current educational requirements, trends, and issues in undergraduate education, including simulation. -1-

2 TO APPLY: The executive search firm The Hollander Group has been retained by La Salle University to assist in this recruitment. Applications, comprising cover letter and curriculum vitae, as well as nominations and inquiries, should be submitted electronically to Review will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. For full consideration, interested persons are encouraged to apply early. Requests for further information should be directed to: Clifford R. Hollander, PhD, or Sharon M. Flynn Hollander, MSN, MBA Phone: La Salle University is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer committed to excellence through diversity. ABOUT La Salle University La Salle University was established in 1863 through the legacy of St. John Baptist de La Salle, the patron saint of teachers, who founded the Christian Brothers teaching order in 17 th Century France. The Christian Brothers, known for their dedication to teaching and devotion to students, operate more than 1,000 educational institutions worldwide that educate more than 900,000 students. La Salle University is one of six Lasallian colleges or universities in the United States. While La Salle is owned and governed under Pennsylvania non-profit law by a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees, the University maintains a close relationship with the Brothers of the Christian Schools. La Salle University is dedicated in the traditions of the Christian Brothers to excellence in teaching and to concern for both ultimate values and for the individual values of its students. La Salle is a private, Roman Catholic university committed to providing a liberal education of both general and specialized studies. As a Catholic university, La Salle strives to offer, through effective teaching, quality education founded on the idea that one s intellectual and spiritual development go hand in hand, complementing and fulfilling each other. The University has, as its basic purpose, the free search for truth by teaching its students the basic skills, knowledge, and values that they will need for a life of human dignity. The programs of the University also aim to prepare students for informed service and progressive leadership in their communities and to fulfill the immediate and long-term goals of their lives. The University strives to meet students where they are by offering challenging academic programs, experienced faculty, and caring support. The University is committed to pursuing excellence in teaching and learning, fostering a sense of community, cultivating close mentoring relationships between students, faculty, and staff, and providing a global perspective. The integration of these values into all aspects of University life helps students to be prepared for successful careers and fulfilling lives after graduation. -2-

3 ABOUT La Salle University Nursing Programs History and Facilities La Salle University has been associated with nursing education since the late sixties and seventies. In 1980, La Salle University developed an RN to BSN Program. Subsequently, in 1987, the Graduate Nursing Program was launched with two tracks, Clinical Nurse specialist and Nursing Administration. In 1996, a full-time Undergraduate Prelicensure Program began preparing students for professional nursing practice. In 2001, an evening/weekend option was started. The Nursing Programs are situated within the School of Nursing and Health Sciences (SONHS), which also offers undergraduate majors in Speech-Language-Hearing Science, Nutrition, and Public Health. The SONHS offers direct outreach programs to the community through two Speech-Language-Hearing Community Clinics and the La Salle Neighborhood Nursing Center. The La Salle Neighborhood Nursing Center has offered health education and health promotion services for more than 20 years. Staffed by nurses and social workers, the center contributes resources and expertise to local health fairs, offers immunization programs and screenings to the community, and provides information resources and referrals to connect children, adults, families, and senior citizens with an array of services in the community. The SONHS occupies four of five floors in St. Benilde Tower on the west campus. Nursing occupies approximately 60% of that space. The space was completely renovated beginning in 2007 through 2008, specifically for the SONHS. The renovated space includes classroom, faculty and administrative offices, Nursing Learning Resource Center (LRC) sites, conference rooms, kitchens and workrooms, computer labs, storage, and student meeting room spaces. The main Nursing LRC was created on the third floor of Benilde Tower and consists of three separate, but connected, rooms. The large main floor of the LRC encompasses 3,554 square feet of space. Additionally the University renovated space on the third floor of Benilde Tower when the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program first enrolled students in This space included an office for the Director of the Program, a DNP Program office for the Administrative Assistant, two additional faculty offices, and a student lounge. In the fall of 2013, the DNP Program moved into newly acquired space on the fourth floor of St. Benilde Tower. Space was also allocated on the third floor of Benilde Tower in the fall of 2012 to create a Center for Student Learning Success. Additional space is designated for Nursing Programs at La Salle s Bucks County Campus, located in Newtown, Pennsylvania, that has classroom space that is shared with other University academic programs and two Nursing Learning Resource Center laboratories designated solely for the Nursing Programs. Academic Programs The Undergraduate Nursing Prelicensure Program is a four-year, full-time, 126-credit program leading to a BSN. The program provides the nursing students with a strong foundation in the liberal arts and biological sciences in preparation for 14 nursing major courses, nine of which include clinical practice components in a variety of health-care settings. Students are formally admitted into the nursing major in their junior year after meeting all pre-requisite academic requirements. The ACHIEVE Program is an evening/weekend option to complete the prelicensure program with a schedule of classes that are offered on both the Main campus and -3-

4 Bucks County Center. In December 2012, the PASBON notified the La Salle University Baccalaureate Nursing Program that it was placed on a provisional approval status based on a first time pass rate of 76.76% for the period of 10/1/2011-9/30/2012. The provisional approval status was continued for a second year in late fall 2013 when the annual first time pass rate for test-takers was 71.26% for the period of 10/1/2012-9/30/2013. The average first time NCLEX-RN pass rate for the three most recent years was 78.35% (n = 438/559). The Nursing Program has implemented measures to improve NCLEX-RN outcomes. We expect that the strategies launched in 2012 and the additional measures that have been implemented in the current academic year, will result in both short- and long-term achievement of the state-required 80 percent pass rate. In the fall of 2013, the Nursing Program instituted a new NCLEX Success Plan that integrates evidenced-based strategies throughout the curriculum to: Assess content mastery level and critical thinking abilities of the individual student and the group as a whole; Identify areas of strength and weakness in academic testing performance; and Provide structured remediation to raise the level of test performance. The plan also includes a mid-curriculum examination that assesses content mastery in nursing fundamentals, health assessment, pharmacology, and selected medical-surgical nursing concepts. Students must meet a benchmark score in order to progress in the nursing major. The program is also evaluating admissions policies and clinical learning experiences. In addition, La Salle s Nursing Program is the recipient of a three-year $960,000 Nursing Workforce Diversity grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which provides funding for academic support services to improve retention, graduation, and NCLEX-RN pass rates. The RN to BSN Program is designed for registered nurse graduates from Associate Degree and diploma programs with nursing courses offered in an online format. The goals of the RN to BSN program are to: prepare diploma and associate degree nurses as leaders to effect change in health care and community systems; instill the value of lifelong learning as a hallmark of the professional nurse; and serve as a foundation for graduate study. In response to the growing need for BSN completion programs that are innovative and accessible, the nursing courses have been offered in an online format since At the master s level, there are 10 graduate nursing tracks and four post-master s APRN certificate options. The Nurse Anesthesia Program is offered in partnership with the Frank J. Tornetta School of Anesthesia at Einstein Medical Center-Montgomery. An academic partnership with La Salle University School of Nursing and Health Sciences, formed in 1998, provides a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree upon program completion. Students complete 21 graduate credits at La Salle s Nursing Program and 36 credits at the Frank J. Tornetta School of Anesthesia to earn the MSN. MSN and Post Master s APRN Certificate Programs Program Focus Specific Master s Program Offerings (Post Master s APRN certificate options where applicable *) Administration Nursing Administration track -4-

5 Program Focus Anesthesia Clinical Nurse Leader Clinical Nurse Specialist Nurse Practitioner Public Health Specific Master s Program Offerings (Post Master s APRN certificate options where applicable *) Nursing Administration/MBA track Nursing Administration (Prior MBA) track Nurse Anesthesia track* Clinical Nurse Leader track Adult Gerontology CNS track* Adult Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner track* Family Primary Care Nurse Practitioner track * Public Health Nursing track Public Health Nursing/MPH track The Doctor of Nursing Practice Program was developed in 2010 in response to the call for health care improvement and innovation. This post-master s program is a practice-focused doctorate with a strong clinical component in health care environments, providing opportunities for expert knowledge and skill development through completion of courses, clinical hours, and a clinical capstone project. Faculty Profile The Nursing Programs have 33 full time faculty members who teach across the Undergraduate, Master s, and Doctoral Nursing Programs. Approximately 65 adjunct faculty assist full-time faculty in delivering the programs. The number of adjunct faculty is a reflection of accreditation, facility, and regulatory requirements that stipulate a faculty: student ratio in clinical practice settings for patient safety and optimal teaching and learning. Faculty Rank Number of Faculty/Rank Professor 2 Associate Professor 7 Assistant Professor 17 Instructor 7 Total 33 Staff Profile Staff that support the Prelicensure Nursing Program include: the Assistant Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences, an academic advisor, Director of Clinical Education, Compliance Officer, and three administrative Assistants. Student Profile Nursing Program Number of Students Enrolled Baccalaureate Tracks Generic 497 RN to BSN 69 Baccalaureate Total Enrollment

6 Nursing Program Number of Students Enrolled Master s Tracks Nursing Administration 20 MSN/MBA 0 Adult-Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist 11 Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner 90 Family Primary Care Nurse Practitioner 115 Clinical Nurse Leader 15 Nurse Anesthesia 82 Public Health 9 MSN/MPH 1 Master s Total Enrollment 354 Post-Master s DNP Track 16 Nursing Total Enrollment 936 Accreditation The Prelicensure, RN to BSN, and Graduate Nursing programs were granted initial accreditation in 2004 by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) for a period of 10 years. In 2010, the Doctor of Nursing Practice Program commenced as a post-master s program and all programs completed a successful site visit in April 2014 from CCNE with a final report on accreditation status due in October