About the Andy & Barbara Gessner College of Nursing
Our Mission
The Mission of the UH Andy and Barbara Gessner College of Nursing is to provide innovative, dynamic, and nationally competitive nursing education to a diverse student population that builds professional leaders and clinical experts. The Gessner College of Nursing is committed to serving educational needs, supporting lifelong learning, advancing excellence in regional and global healthcare through strong inter-professional collaborations and partnerships while advancing scholarship, research, leadership, and service.
Shared Values of the Mission
As its primary goal, the College of Nursing is dedicated to promoting nursing excellence. We uphold the values of nursing:
- Integrity
- Honesty
- Accountability
- Compassion
- Respect for all people
Vision
Nursing. Excellence. Period.
Gessner College of Nursing Strategic Plan Goals
- Student Success: Prepare valued nurse leaders for the communities served.
- Scholarship/Research: Advance the nursing profession to impact our region and the world.
- Social Responsibility: Develop excellent clinical partnerships, interprofessional collaborations, and community engagement where the College of Nursing resides and serves to promote health equity.
- Sustainability and Growth: Secure resources to support the College's mission, values, and goals.
Philosophy and Conceptual Framework
The nursing student is diverse, creative, and enters the academic environment with expertise and experience from an educational background. Students have the capacity for self-directedness: to function optimally in the environment, to move toward fulfillment of their academic and professional goals, to become skilled practitioners and innovative leaders.
Learning is a response to innovative and evidence-based pedagogy that is delivered in a high-technology environment. When learning occurs, nursing students are able to apply clinical reasoning in a variety of practice areas and exemplify the essentials, competencies, and characteristics of the differentiated nursing role for which they are preparing. Learning is highly relational and a personal responsibility.
Nursing faculty members collaborate and care deeply for each other, their students, and the community. Faculty members engage in meaningful scholarship and service to the university, community, and the nursing profession. The highest priority of faculty is excellence in nursing education for students through evidence-based pedagogy. Nursing faculty maintain a focus on patient care through their associated roles with research and clinical practice.
The academic environment is a place where learning happens and ethical standards are upheld. It is safe, collaborative, and supportive. The strength of the environment lies within the faculty and student commitment, the high technology that expands beyond geographical boundaries, and the opportunity to apply nursing standards to clinical practice. Nursing faculty members and students relate and interact in the academic environment to achieve learning and promote the nursing profession.
It is by these relevant ideals that the College of Nursing faculty live and model the legacy of caring. It is through this legacy that we embrace the spirit of excellence.
