Good News and Bad News for the Nursing Program at North Carolina Central University

About 82 percent of the students in the nursing program at North Carolina Central University, the historically black educational institution in Durham, passed the state licensure examination in 2006. The good news is that the passage rate increased significantly from 65 percent in 2005. The bad news is that the licensure examination passage rate is still below the 85 percent threshold required by the University of North Carolina system’s board of governors. As a result, the school will have to admit 15 percent fewer students next year. Under the board of governors guidelines, the mandatory reduction in admissions should lead to lower class sizes and increased student performance.

The only other nursing program in the state that did not meet the board’s requirement for an 85 percent passage rate was North Carolina A&T State University, the historically black educational institution in Greensboro. There the licensure passage rate has remained the same at 69 percent for the past two years.

Copyright © 2007. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.