Adelphi University Nursing Celebrates 70th Anniversary with Renaming of the School

Adelphi University’s College of Nursing and Public Health officially launched on Monday, June 10, 2013. Formerly known as the School of Nursing, the newly named college will “transform education, not just nursing education,” says Dean Patrick Coonan ’78, Ed.D., R.N., NEA-BC, FACHE. “This designation paves the way for a new vision which will be focusing on population health and its relation to the practitioner and nurse; it communicates an expanding slate of programs,” he adds.

The name change, approved by the University board of trustees, president, provost and faculty, “elevates the important individual contributions of Nursing and Public Health, as well as the emerging critical relationship between them,” Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Gayle D. Insler told the faculty.  “The change also reflects respect for the rich 70-year history of Adelphi’s School of Nursing.”

When the first class of 27 young women entered a 30-month war emergency course for New York State Registered Nurse certification at what was then Adelphi College in January 1943, they had no idea they were inaugurating a program that would become one of the largest nursing schools in the United States. Adelphi University’s School of Nursing has an illustrious history as the first central collegiate School of Nursing on Long Island, one of the largest college units of the United States Cadet Nurse Corps during World War II, and an institution that, for 70 years and counting, has offered rigorous training and advanced degrees to more than 8,000 dedicated and highly respected nursing professionals from all over the world.

At present, it thrives with more than 1,200 students enrolled.

This fall the University will break ground on its Nexus Building and Welcome Center, which will serve as the College of Nursing and Public Health’s new home, expected to open in 2015.

Along with building the literal foundation of the college’s new home, the opportunity to study towards a degree in the healthcare industry’s highly sought-after concentrations continues to grow at Adelphi University.  The nutrition master’s degree program is designed for the professional who already has a bachelor’s or graduate degree; it is offered as a fully online program. Graduates of this program will enhance the nutrition health infrastructure and the health of individuals as well as populations. Another degree available is the Master of Public Health which gives students a program with a wide range of skills and tools necessary to work in the field.

The comprehensive education in Adelphi’s College of Nursing and Public Health is grounded in practice, healthcare delivery, innovation and efficiency, with a goal to serve the community at large. It is dedicated to providing students with the skills, knowledge and specialized training to succeed as leaders in the field. “We are maintaining our high standards of nursing education as well as directing students in the changes of healthcare today and the future,” added Dean Coonan.

Experiential learning is at the heart of the College of Nursing and Public Health. Students can immerse themselves in various cultures during study abroad initiatives in places like Peru, Costa Rica and Ecuador as well as in serving on an American Indian reservation. The college will continue and grow its collaborative opportunities with community partners; “our students go everywhere,” Dean Coonan said. Students who practice in our nursing resource center will benefit by gaining additional practical experience necessary to become a leader in the field.

In celebration of the 70 years of nursing at Adelphi University, a special reunion was held for nursing alumni on Saturday, June 8, 2013 in the Ruth S. Harley University Center Thomas Dixon Lovely Ballroom. The reunion offered opportunities to network, reminisce and learn about the exciting future of the College of Nursing and Public Health from Dean Coonan and current students.

For more information visit nursing.adelphi.edu.