The dean of Washburn University’s School of Nursing Associate said the nursing school went through a lot of preparation before the days of Sept.24th through the 26th. It was time for the School of Nursing to have their accreditation visit by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

According to the CCNE official Web site, CCNE is an autonomous accreditation agency contributing to the enhancement of public’s health. The commission ensures the quality and integrity of baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs.

CCNE accreditation is highly sought after by baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs. The program’s standards focus on mission and governance of the school, institutional commitment and resources, curriculum and teaching-learning practices, student performance and faculty accomplishments.

“Everyone had a hand in it ,including the faculty and students,” said Association Dean of the School of Nursing Marian Jamison. “Students provided feedback on multiple aspects of the nursing program.”

The CCNE sent four of its members to evaluate the nursing school because Washburn’s School of Nursing has both graduate and undergraduate programs. At the same time, the Kansas State Board of Nursing brought three of its members and visited the nursing school’s clinical sites. KSBN did their evaluating at the same time because they thought they would be disrupting even more if they came at a different time than the CCNE, according to their Web site.

“CCNE requires for the School of Nursing to do an extensive overview of the program,” said Jamison. “The process made our new faculty see why we do the things we do.”

The CCNE members met privately and did intensive interviews with students and faculty to ensure the school of nursing gets the support from the university and that the qualities of standards are met.

“I didn’t actually meet with or got interviewed by any of the commission members, but I thought the process went smoothly,” said Laura Girton, a Washburn nursing student.

Washburn’s School of Nursing won’t know until April if they receive official accreditation because CCNE won’t look over the reports until the spring. The nursing school anticipates that they will get the full 10 years of accreditation.

“The site visitors were impressed by the nursing school’s advisory board, students, faculty, the president and vice president,” said Jamison. “It was a great and positive experience.”