College of Nursing | The University of New Mexico

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Fall 2005

By Karen Jarnagin

Fifty years ago, the University of New Mexico’s first bachelor’s-educated nurses began their studies at the newly created College of Nursing (CON). The program enrolled just 12 students and employed only a handful of faculty working out of six offices in Marron Hall.

A half-century later, the College has grown into a vibrant, diverse and nationally recognized program that expects to graduate more than 230 bachelor’s- and master’s-degree students next year.

With its wide range of degrees and academically challenging programs, the College of Nursing continues to build upon the strong foundation laid 50 years ago. Two years ago, for example, the College added an accelerated bachelor of science degree program for students who have already earned their degree in another field. That same year, the College launched a Ph.D. program to help educate future nursing professors. The RN-to-BSN completion program is now offered completely over the Internet, along with the nursing education, community health and administration graduate programs. And the graduate program continues to grow; acute-care nurse practitioner courses began in 2001, and a pediatric nurse practitioner concentration will be implemented next year.

But with growth—enrollment has doubled since 2000 alone—often comes challenge. As the CON expands and the number of its faculty nearing retirement age increases—in New Mexico, the average age of nursing faculty is 54, compared to 49 nationally—how can the College expect to keep up with growing student demand?

One solution is the creation of the Carter-Fleck Professorship, named in honor of Mary Jane Carter and Marion Fleck, two remarkable women who helped launch the CON in 1955. The professorship rotates for one- to two-year periods among oncology, medical, surgical and neonatal care, and provides for an even broader scope of training at the College.

This year, the endowed professorship has been awarded to Dr. Clarann Weinert, a professor at Montana State University and an internationally known scholar in the areas of chronic illness in rural women and in social support (see “Clarann Weinert Named Carter-Fleck Professor” article.

Endowed at $250,000 in 1999 by lead donors Presbyterian Healthcare Services, Lovelace Sandia Health System (formerly St. Joseph Healthcare System), Rufus Carter, husband of Mary Jane Carter, and the Fleck family, the professorship has since grown to $315,000. However, the College hopes to increase that amount to $500,000 during this, its 50th-anniversary year, through additional public and private donations.

“By increasing the endowment, we can do more with the award to recruit and retain permanent faculty,” says Rosemary Gregory, the College’s development officer. “And that’s the answer to being able to educate more students, increase the number of graduates, and encourage more nurses to become teachers.”

Adds Dean Sandra L. Ferketich, “With the increasing number of new and expanded roles for nurses, it is important that the College of Nursing continue to provide the education and development for today’s and tomorrow’s health care nurses and leaders.”

The endowment’s purpose is three-fold: it provides an opportunity for visiting professors to share their expertise with local faculty, thus deepening the knowledge base at the University; it raises the College’s prestige, which helps in landing new, permanent faculty members; and, finally, it allows even more students to enroll at the College, thereby helping ease local and national nursing shortages as these individuals graduate.

“One of the great needs is for faculty,” notes Marion Fleck, Ph.D., RN, former CON dean and one of the College’s founders. In the 1950s, Fleck used her legislative know-how to urge nurses to go to their legislators and the public to lobby for the nursing education program, which, until that point, did not exist.

While much is known about student scholarships and government educational subsidies, not as much attention has been placed on the need for funding additional teachers at the university level, she says. “We have not really looked in the other direction, in that there needs to be somebody there to bring an understanding and skills to the students,” Fleck says. “They need to have a basic background to build upon as they go on in the profession.”

And that’s where endowed professorships come in.

“One of the greatest needs is for additional faculty,” Fleck reiterates, “so we can accept additional students, meet their needs, and help them have a truly superb experience.”