On October 20 and 21, 2017, the School hosted 54 eager learners who were interested in pursuing health careers.
The “Nursing Leaders of Tomorrow Conference” was supported by a grant from the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD), which aimed to provide programming to encourage traditionally underrepresented and disadvantaged groups to explore these careers. Our overall goal is to develop a more culturally and linguistically competent healthcare workforce for California.
This program allowed participants from across the state, and Howard University, to engage with NPs, CNSs, PHNs, and a multitude of our specialty faculty.
These Leaders of Tomorrow also took part in discussions about nursing research, and met the faculty and current students who were involved in health disparities research, culturally responsive care, and psych/mental health in communities of color, among other projects.
The panel with current graduate nursing students provided a rich backdrop of that critical ‘first person account’ of what it’s really like to be in advanced study, and set up avenues for future mentorship.
The faculty joined the conference members for a special evening on October 20, to network, make connections, and learn about each other’s goals.
Perhaps most importantly, the participants had time to discuss and write personal statements for review and critique, and took home ‘best practices’ tips for future enrollment!