FAMU's School of Nursing dean resigns from university, interim dean is appointed

Florida A&M University’s School of Nursing dean and professor Shelley Johnson has resigned from the university — a decision that was made effective last Wednesday.

Her resignation comes after serving for three years as she led Florida’s oldest undergraduate nursing degree program on FAMU’s campus while it struggles to increase its annual licensure passage rates.

Attempts to get comment from Johnson were unsuccessful.

The university’s Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Allyson Watson appointed Lisa Gardner, associate dean of graduate programs, to be the nursing school's interim dean in the meantime as a national search will be held during the upcoming 2023-2024 academic year for a permanent replacement, according to the university.

“What I’m looking to do is maintain the integrity of the program as well as continue to provide leadership and counsel to faculty, staff and students to continue a positive educational momentum,” Gardner told the Tallahassee Democrat Friday. “We’re in a very good place right now, so those are some of my goals.”

But the Bachelor's of Science in Nursing (BSN) program remains on probation for another year following its placement in 2021 by the state’s Board of Nursing due to low rates in the results of the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).

FAMU nursing students currently have an NCLEX pass rate of 70.37% for quarter one, with the 2022 cohort scoring 79.17%. Results for the NCLEX second quarter report are anticipated this month.

The rate comes after students in the program had a first-time NCLEX pass rate of 63.44% in 2019, 66.67% in 2020, 62.30% in 2021 and 64.71% in 2022.

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More: FAMU School of Nursing placed on probation by state board, accreditation maintained

Despite being on probation, FAMU’s undergraduate nursing program was granted continuing accreditation by The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing Board of Commissioners.

While nursing programs in the state are required to meet a national average pass rate of 80% for the NCLEX, Gardner believes the university’s BSN program will soon meet the goal.

“We should be in a very good space — in the mid 80% — when the final report comes at the end of this month,” Gardner said. “My goal is to increase test scores, so that’s something we will continue to use our resources to work on.”

Gardner is a FAMU alumna who graduated with her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the university before earning her master’s degree in nursing from Florida State University and a doctorate of nursing practice from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

She has worked at FAMU for 25 years, and her previous roles include being an assistant professor at the School of Nursing.

As Gardner replaces Johnson — an educator of over 20 years who has served on several university administration teams prior to joining FAMU — she becomes the fifth person to fill the nursing school’s dean position in the last six years.

Here is a list of some of the past deans of FAMU’s School of Nursing:

• Mary Ella Graham (2006 - 2007)

• Ruena Norman (2008 - 2017)

• Henry Clinton Talley V (2017 - 2019)

• Mary Ella Graham (interim dean; 2019 - 2020)

• Shelley Johnson (2020 - 2023)

Other recent FAMU appointments, upcoming searches

On top of Gardner’s appointment as interim dean, a few other FAMU appointments were recently announced.

Watson named Associate Vice President for Research Dale Wesson the interim dean for the College of Agriculture and Food Sciences — succeeding Dean Robert Taylor who will return to the faculty in the fall after 10 years.

Wesson will continue to serve in his current role while serving as interim dean.

“We are thankful for the outstanding work that both Deans Taylor and Johnson have accomplished during their tenure at the university and wish them well in their future endeavors,” Watson said in a prepared statement. “I extend my personal gratitude to the capable individuals who have accepted the responsibility to remain committed to achieving student success and academic excellence in programs of strategic emphasis.”

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Reginald Perry — associate dean for student affairs and curriculum in the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering — was named interim associate provost for academic and faculty affairs following Genyne H. Boston, who was recently named provost and executive vice president of Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Florida.

In addition, longtime Associate Vice President for Fiscal Management Herbert Bailey has been named chief of staff to the provost and vice president of Academic Affairs. He will serve in both roles.

Similar to the search for a permanent School of Nursing dean that is coming up, the university will also have a national search for the other interim positions during the 2023-2024 academic school year.

Contact Tarah Jean at [email protected] or follow her on twitter @tarahjean_.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU nursing school dean Shelley Johnson resigns, interim is appointed