Gov. Tony Evers has approved new changes to Wisconsin’s faculty approval process for nursing schools, allowing for qualified Registered Nurses (RNs) to teach clinical courses if they meet certain criteria.
Previously, a master’s degree in nursing was generally required in order to teach clinical courses in nursing programs. Now, under this new pathway, qualified faculty must:
- Hold a bachelor’s degree in nursing;
- Be a current, active, and unencumbered RN with license or privilege to practice in Wisconsin;
- Have at least two years of clinical experience relevant to the specific clinical area that they would be teaching;
- Be enrolled in a graduate program and maintain steady progress towards completion, have completed graduate-level courses or education in clinical best practices, or have a national certification in a nursing field specialty relevant to the assigned clinical field they would be teaching; and
- Practice under the supervision of an RN who meets traditional qualifications.
The new emergency rule change follows suit with at least twelve other states’ nursing faculty accreditation requirements, including Michigan, and is supported by the dean of the Marquette University College of Nursing, the Wisconsin Hospital Association, the dean of the College of Allied Health & College of Nursing at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College, the Association of Nursing Education of Wisconsin, and the Wisconsin Nurses Association.
