Mission, Vision, & Values

• Our Mission

  To improve the health and well-being of society by preparing compassionate, courageous, and competent nurses who advance nursing through leadership, scholarship and practice. 

• Our Vision

  The University of Northern Colorado School of Nursing will be known for excellence in the preparation of exceptional practitioners and nurse educators.  Through leadership in practice and education, our faculty and students will transform the healthcare landscape to meet the needs of society and advance our discipline.

• Our Values

  Excellence: being outstanding; fostered through intentional decision-making and development of high standards and processes for ensuring quality.

  Professionalism: consistent demonstration of and adherence to accountability, competence, responsibility, dependability and a commitment to life-long learning.

  Caring: an integral component of nursing practice requiring ongoing development of empathy, conscience, compassion, resilience, and confidence in interactions with patients, families, communities, other healthcare professionals, and ourselves.

  Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: acknowledgement of human dignity and autonomy, privacy, equality, freedom, and inclusivity as central to cultivating deep understanding of people in the betterment of health and well-being of all members of society.

  Student-Centered Teaching and Learning: Evidence-based, innovative teaching and learning is critical to meeting the changing demands in healthcare, nursing practice, and nursing education. 

  Community Engagement:collaboration with community-based partners to enrich learning, foster equitable decision-making processes, and deepen relationships and trust to meet the healthcare needs of the region.

Statement on Anti-Racism

The UNC School of Nursing has a strong history of educating nurses to provide compassionate care to others.  “We acknowledge that institutional racism exists in American society, of which the SON is a part. We oppose racism and strive to promote an inclusive and equitable environment. We are committed to increased awareness and continued efforts to prevent racist acts.” Our overall mission is to improve the health of our society; including ALL members of our community.  We value Inclusivity of diverse human identities and expressions in nursing education and nursing practice.   We can achieve a just and equitable health care system for all by recognizing and combating racism in healthcare, becoming aware of implicit bias and its effects, and working to achieve greater diversity in nursing education and the nursing workforce.

We strive to take action in both professional and personal ways to eliminate systematic racism, promote diversity and reduce bias. We will:

• Examine our curriculum to eliminate racist assumptions or content and increase student dialogue and awareness of racism and bias affecting nursing care.
• Engage in approaches to removing racism or bias from admission, progression and retention for diverse students including students of color.
• Actively seek ways to increase the diversity of faculty and staff by examining application, hiring, promotion, tenure and support practices.
• Plan for anti-racism education and skills building for faculty, staff and students.
• Commit to working together in this common effort.

We are steadfast in our belief that every individual should work and learn in an environment that embraces diversity and Inclusivity.  There is no tolerance for racism within our school.