School of Nursing Receives CCNE Accreditation
Lee University School of Nursing has been extended full membership in the national accrediting body for nursing, the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The action of the CCNE came during its annual Board of Commissioners meeting in May.
The action is effective immediately and extends to June 2021, according to a statement by Dr. Susan Ruppert, Chair of the Board of Commissioners of the CCNE.
“We are thrilled,” stated Lee president Dr. Paul Conn. “Receiving this certificate of accreditation from the CCNE is a huge accomplishment for the entire administrative and faculty team. We could not have better news; it’s what we have worked toward and hoped for during these past three and a half years, and to now have our program officially certified in this way is such a great step forward.”
Lee was authorized to launch a B.S.N. (bachelor’s degree in nursing) program by action of the Tennessee Board of Nursing in early 2013. The program opened with its first freshman class in August 2014, under the leadership of its first Dean, Dr. Sara Campbell. A third freshman class will begin studies in the upcoming fall semester, and the first graduating group of nurses is scheduled to earn degrees in May 2017.
Lee has a $10 million building for the nursing school currently under construction on its campus. The 41,000-square-foot building is nearing completion, according to Conn, and will open for classes in the fall semester. “The timing of the new building with the achievement of national accreditation has been the key to our strategic plan,” Conn said. “The pieces are all coming together, and we are coming closer to our dream of having a School of Nursing which can be a leader in health education in this region.”
Lee will be required to submit a Continuous Improvement Progress Report at the mid-point of the five-year accreditation term, as is required of all accredited programs. The Commission of Collegiate Nursing Education serves higher education institutions and acute care hospitals throughout the United States. Its public information website is www.aacn.nche.edu/ccne-accreditation.
