Welcome to this episode of Nursing EDge Unscripted Saga where we journey through the history of nursing education using stories that connect the past to the present and then our future as we reimagine our teaching and learning. June is the birth month of the National League for Nursing.
On June 15, 16, and 17 in 1893 at the Chicago World's fair 16 superintendents of training schools for nurses met in the Hall of Columbus in the Women's Building to form the American Society of Superintendents of Training Schools for Nurses. The birth of the society as the organization was called marked the beginning of organized nursing
in the US. This is part one of that story: a monumental gathering a story that tells the saga of how organized nursing in the United States shaped a new world of reform and professional transformation over the next century. To fully understand the importance of the society, let's go back to 1873 when nurses training began in
America. In that year three Nightingale-influenced schools opened: the Bellevue Training School for Nurses in New York, the Connecticut Training School for Nurses at New Haven, and the Boston Training School of Nurses at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. For the next two decades there was tremendous growth in nursing education. The value of trained nurses caring for the sick was recognized by hospitals who welcomed the free labor of "pupil"
nurses. By 1890 there were 35 schools and 1500 pupil nurses in the United States, but despite Ms. Nightingale's influence, training schools were being opened without consideration for standards and curricula lacked rigor and criteria. Isabel Hampton, superintendent at the Johns Hopkins Training School in Baltimore, was asked to gather a group of superintendents of training schools to come to Chicago and discuss their common experiences and the need for reform.
These leaders developed bylaws and set three objectives to guide their inaugural work: one - to promote fellowship of members; two - to establish and maintain a universal standard of training; and three - to further the best interests of the nursing profession. During the early years the society faced opposition from physicians who objected to nursing's
growing self-governance. The belief at that time was that nursing, often considered to be a role women were born to, did not require formal training or education. By forming the society, the superintendents collectively worked to counteract the external control exerted by those who inhibited the profession's growth. Power through organization remained a central unifying theme. They organized so that each superintendent did not face this opposition
alone. Through their efforts, the society worked to overcome the tarnished image of untrained, unkempt, and uneducated nurses, a belief that was widely embraced in the early 20th century. An advertisement to recruit trainees for admission to the newly formed schools of nursing proclaimed "sentimental women need not apply." In this way, the superintendents hoped to emphasize discipline and rigor, which was integral to the new training
curricula. As they experimented with new universal standards of conduct and practice, the training school sought women who were willing to devote their energies to nursing study and professional
growth. The training schools were interested in the quality of life for students and graduates and sought better conditions for both and in doing so, made significant contributions to the growth of the nursing profession and its acceptance by the American public as a worthy and noble role for women. These early pathfinders led with purpose and tenacity to co-create a transformative future for the nursing profession. Just listen to how
their work shaped modern nursing. In 1897, members of the society recognized the need for an organization of graduates of training schools. They formed a second organization, the Nurses Associated Alumnae of the United States, with the primary goal to improve the practice of nursing. As early as 1900 the Associated alumnae recognized the need to disseminate clinical practice standards and the American Journal of Nursing was founded
in 1911. The Associated Alumnae changed its name to the American Nurses Association with the focus on leading the profession to shape the future of nursing practice and health care simultaneously. Members of the society recognized the need to focus their work on curriculum reform. They opened membership to faculty in schools of nursing and in 1912 renamed the society
the National League of Nursing Education. The name would change again to the National League for Nursing in 1952 as members acknowledged the need to broaden membership to practice partners in the pursuit of quality education standards that are fully informed by clinical standards. Extraordinary leadership is the essence of this
story. Throughout the history of the society, the influence of innovative and thoughtful leaders in accomplishing transformative change in building a solid future for professional nursing cannot be minimized. We are truly in their debt. In part two of this story we will expand on the history of the National League of Nursing Education and focus on the emergence of contemporary nursing education.
For more information about the history of the NLN please visit the NLN archives at the Bates Center for the History of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania. Additionally, go to "About the NLN" on the NLN website and look for the section on "History of the NLN." And so the saga continues and may our saga continue as we bring to a close this episode of Nursing EDge Unscripted Saga. Thank you for joining us