Richard and Lucille DeWitt School of Nursing

Tamara Harris, director
DeWitt School of Nursing Complex
Phone: (936) 468-7700
Fax: (936) 468-7701 or (936) 468-7752
5707 North Street
Nacogdoches, TX 75965
P.O. Box 6156, SFA Station
Nacogdoches, TX 75962
Email: tamara.harris@sfasu.edu
Web: nursing.sfasu.edu/nursing

Faculty

Associate Professors
Erin Bailey, Sara Bishop, Della Connor, Tamara Harris, Cindi McCarley, Karen Migl, Rose Powell

Assistant Professors
Susan Ballard, Kim Deaton, Angela Jones, Christopher Ryan

Visiting Professor
Chris Bray

Clinical Instructors
Carol Athey, Sheree Barrios, Kesha Becnal, Angel Brewer, Shelley Hunt, Dee Kimbrough, Michelle Klein, Laura Logan, Regina Low, Laurel Matthews, Debra McCarthy, Kelley McDonald, Vanessa Pacheco, Dorothy (Joanie) Selman, Celina Serna, Joy Shupak, Veronica Sjolander, Crystal Talavera, Katy Trotty, Jessica Williams, Allison Younger

Adjunct Faculty
Alysa Cummins, Debbie Ellisor, Violet Hart, Rhonda Tubbe

Mission/Philosophy

Our mission is to provide students a foundation for success as nurses who are ethical, competent critical thinkers by providing an educational environment that promotes holistic health care in an educational community dedicated to teaching, research, creativity and service.

Core Values for the School of Nursing

• Intellectual and Creative Engagement: The school’s faculty members encourage the student to investigate the health needs of a changing society and to think in creative ways to provide holistic healthcare to culturally diverse populations and engage the nursing profession.
• A Diverse Student Body: The unique individual student is engaged and valued as a partner in the diverse learning community and in the nursing profession.
• Teaching and Learning: The facilitation of transformative learning experiences will inspire innovation and excellence and foster life-long learning in the nursing profession.
•  Faculty Excellence: Faculty members will seek new ways to provide a collaborative, respectful, inclusive learning experience and serve as positive examples of nursing professionals.
• Partnerships:  The School of Nursing will demonstrate integrity and facilitate trust with community partners in the nursing profession in meeting the needs of culturally diverse populations.

The Nursing Metaparadigm

The school strives to equip all nursing students to embody the metaparadigm of nursing, person, health and environment in all aspects of health care delivery.

• Nursing: Nursing graduates at every level are expected to meet the academic and ethical standards of the profession. Nursing is a profession of arts and science dedicated to facilitating holistic care to all persons.
• Person: The individual, family, group or community that engages with the nurse in the health care delivery system. 
• Health: “A state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” (World Health Organization, 2019)
• Environment: The setting in which the student learns and practices nursing.

Program Learning Outcomes

The student will:

1. apply knowledge of the physical, social and behavioral sciences in the provision of nursing care based on theory, research and evidence-based practice
2. deliver nursing care within established legal and ethical parameters in collaboration with clients and members of the interdisciplinary health care team
3. provide holistic nursing care to individuals, families, communities and society as a whole while respecting individual and cultural diversity
4. demonstrate effective leadership that fosters independent thinking, use of informatics and collaborative communication in the management of nursing care
5. assume responsibility and accountability for quality improvement and delivery of safe and effective nursing care
6. serve as an advocate for clients and for the profession of nursing
7. and value continuing competence, growth and development in the profession of nursing.

Student Scholarships

Many scholarships are available to students entering the nursing program at SFA. These scholarships have been established through the generosity of individuals, family members and organizations that recognize and support the role of education in the advancement of the nursing profession. Further information regarding nursing scholarships may be obtained by contacting the SFA Alumni Association or the Office of Development. The scholarship list may be found on the nursing website at nursing.sfasu.edu.

Army ROTC also provides two-, three- and four-year scholarships to nursing students with an opportunity to attend specialized training while still in school. Contact the Department of Military Science  for further details.

The Richard and Lucille DeWitt Residency Scholarship for SFA nursing students is coordinated through Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital. Information about this scholarship can be found on the nursing website at nursing.sfasu.edu.

Student Organizations

• Student Nurses Association
• Nurses Christian Fellowship

Honor Society

Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, Omicron Eta Chapter

Bachelor of Science in Nursing Admission Requirements

A student requesting admission to the baccalaureate program in nursing must meet the following criteria:

Full Admission Requirements

1. Acceptance to SFA
2. Overall GPA of 2.5 in college work, including transfer courses
3. Science GPA of 2.75 in college work, including transfer courses. Courses calculated for science GPA are BIO 238 , BIO 239 ; CHE 111 ; NUR 304 ; BIO 308 . Students are encouraged to take the science classes at SFA.
4. Successful completion of the entrance testing. Scores to be submitted to School of Nursing. Tests may be scheduled through the SFA Counseling and Career Services office.
5. Grades for repeated courses will be averaged
6. Completion of the following Core Curriculum Requirements
   1. Communication (6 hours)
   2. Mathematics (3 hours)
   3. Life and Physical Sciences (6 hours)
   4. Language, Philosophy and Culture (3 hours)
   5. Creative Arts (3 hours)
   6. American History (6 hours)*
   7. Government/Political Science (6 hours)*
   8. Social and Behavioral Sciences (3 hours)
   9. Component Area Option (6 hours)**
   • *Not needed for admission to School of Nursing, required for degree
   • **ENG 132  required for admission to School of Nursing, remainder three hours required for degree.
7. Applicant must submit official transcripts from all colleges to SFA admissions office and to NursingCAS.
8. Applications are submitted to NursingCAS.

Degree Requirements

1. Core Curriculum Requirements (42 hours)
2. Foundation of Knowledge (22-23 hours)
3. Pre-Nursing Requirement (3 hours)
4. A nursing major of at least 51 to 55 hours, including three hours of nursing electives
5. Enough additional hours to make a total of at least 120 semester hours of acceptable credit
6. A minimum of 42 hours of residence work on SFA campus, of which 36 semester hours must be 300- to 400-level courses
7. A maximum of 66 hours may be transferred from a junior college.
8. A grade of at least C in each freshman English course, a C average in coursework completed at SFA, a minimum of C in each course in the major field and specified cognates. These required averages are based upon those courses in each category included in the student’s official degree plan.

Admission Process

Up to 80 students may be admitted each fall and spring semester based on completion of prerequisites and attainment of admission criteria. Admission is competitive based upon the applicant’s overall and science GPAs, as well as the nursing entrance exam. To be considered for admission review, the student must be admitted to the university and complete the following application steps:

• Complete application to NursingCAS
• Complete, official copies of transcripts from all previous colleges and SFA transcript to be submitted to NursingCAS
• Copies of accepted or denied petitions or petitions being submitted to be uploaded in NursingCAS
• Copy of nursing entrance test (Test of Essential Academic Skills, scheduled through the testing office) to be sent to the School of Nursing or uploaded to NursingCAS
• Student essay submitted to NursingCAS
• All science courses must be taken within the past seven years prior to admission to the nursing school.

Application Deadlines - The deadline for application for admission to the fall class is Feb. 1 each year. The deadline for the spring class is Aug. 15 each year. Applications received after these deadlines may be considered only if vacancies still exist in the incoming class. The School of Nursing recommends that applications be completed and submitted four to six weeks prior to the deadline. It is the responsibility of the student to make sure that all application materials are received by NursingCAS prior to the stated deadline. When students apply, prerequisites must be completed by the end of the semester in which the application is submitted. Applications are not retained from semester to semester. For a student to re-apply, she or he must request that NursingCAS roll over the application to the next application period.

Eligibility - Any applicant who is not in good standing at another nursing program and is not eligible to continue or return to that program will be ineligible for admission into the SFA School of Nursing program. If a student from another program has failed two or more nursing courses, that student will not be considered in good standing for admission. Criminal background checks will be conducted on all nursing students upon being accepted into the program. A positive background check shows the student was arrested, charged and/or convicted of a crime. A positive background check may result in a student’s inability to start in the nursing program. A declaratory order from the Texas Board of Nursing will be required for admission consideration. If a student knows of a possible problem, the student should contact the Board of Nursing prior to or concurrent with application to the program.

Transfers - Students who have completed courses at other institutions may transfer credits under the policies of SFA. Nursing hours will be evaluated individually for transfer. Nursing courses are to be taken in order or concurrently within their block. Any exception will be the decision of the Student Affairs Committee and the director.

Other Expenses

Uniforms, shoes, stethoscope and health insurance are all purchased prior to the first nursing course. A student must submit documentation of the following to the School of Nursing prior to beginning the program: urinalysis for drug screening, current TdaP immunization, MMR immunization, HBV immunization (or serological confirmation of immunity), two doses of varicella vaccine (unless first dose was received prior to age 13) or serologic confirmation of immunity of varicella disease, annual TB screening, meningitis vaccine, polio vaccine, annual flu shot, and current American Heart Association BLS Healthcare Provider certification. If necessary, random drug screen costs will be incurred by the student. Traveling accommodations and expenses to clinical sites are the student’s responsibility.

The DeWitt School of Nursing is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.
3343 Peachtree Road, Suite 850
Atlanta, GA 30326
(404) 975-5000

All School of Nursing information is available online at nursing.sfasu.edu/nursing.

Programs

• Nursing, B.S.N.
• Nursing, RN-BSN Online Transition Track, B.S.N.