Transforming nursing education
Keynote speaker Kechi Iheduru-Anderson spoke on anti-racism in nursing education at Loyola Nursing's 2024 Inclusive Excellence Conference.
The Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing held its second annual Inclusive Excellence Conference on Oct. 9-11, convening leading experts on anti-racism in nursing education to share ideas on how to promote equity and inclusivity in the nursing profession.
That work, according to keynote speaker Kechi Iheduru-Anderson of Central Michigan University, starts in academia. By prioritizing anti-racist education and mentorship of students of color, nursing schools can help those students graduate and ultimately improve care for marginalized communities.
She noted that there are “barriers for under-represented groups to graduation, then when they enter profession, there are more barriers. We all have a responsibility to make the path less burdensome for people to get into our profession.”
The consequences of underrepresentation in academic nursing include limited perspectives and curricula, along with loss of innovation, she said: Increasing faculty diversity—and supporting faculty of color—challenges narrow viewpoints and provides role models for students.
“What we are trying to do is transform,” said Iheduru-Anderson, inaugural nursing program director and associate professor at Central Michigan’s The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions.
Earlier in the week, Melissa Gomes, associate dean for diversity, equity, and inclusion at the University of Virginia School of Nursing, spoke to the Loyola Nursing community about the impact of racial trauma on health outcomes.
“How do we explain how social and economic factors can impact one’s ability to present as healthy?” she said, noting that the impact of racism on mental health is often overlooked.
Marc Guerrero, associate dean of academic and student affairs at the Morgridge College of Education and a scholar of multiracial student development, gave a presentation on “Why Multiraciality Matters: Learning from Mixed Race Perspectives in Higher Education.”
The conference concluded with a photo gallery viewing by Jasmine Harris, BSN ‘25, a photography minor, who documented the lives of fellow nursing undergraduates of various backgrounds in her “Reflections on Nursing” exhibition.
Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is central to Loyola Nursing’s social justice and health equity mission. The school launched its Inclusive Excellence program in 2019 and has since created the award-winning CARE (Collaboration, Access, Resources, and Equity) Pathway to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing, which aims to increase the diversity of the nursing workforce.
The school has received back-to-back Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Awards for Health Professions Schools in recognition of its commitment to DEI. It also received the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s (AACN) 2024 Inclusive Excellence, Belonging, and Sustainability in Nursing Education Award, the only school nationwide to receive the honor. AACN called Loyola Nursing a “model” for other nursing schools thanks to its “efforts to develop a diverse cadre of nurse leaders and sustain a culture of belonging.”