The JMU Nursing faculty is committed to nursing education grounded in the arts, sciences and humanities, meeting professional standards for nursing education and practice. Nursing is a humanistic profession that enhances the quality of life by promoting health and preventing illness through the effective delivery of coordinated health care. Nursing knowledge is advanced through thinking critically, engaging in scholarship, and applying knowledge to the delivery of nursing care. The values of altruism, autonomy, human dignity, integrity, and social justice are the foundation for professional nursing practice. Through community collaboration graduates are prepared to assume multiple roles to impact the profession, health care systems, and communities.

The graduate of the JMU baccalaureate nursing program will be able to demonstrate:

1. Knowledge for Nursing Practice: Attain, develop, and critique theoretical and empirical knowledge specific to the discipline of nursing through ways of being, knowing, choosing, and doing. Engage relationally with complex and dynamic personal, social, cultural, ethical, and political concepts to endeavor to support the well-being of persons and populations. 
2. Inquiry & Critical thinking: Develop a spirit of inquiry to contribute to innovative contributions to nursing practice.  Critically appraises current practice, and actively seeks to find and translate best evidence into practice.  Makes judgments and uses problem-solving skills in practice that synthesize nursing science and knowledge.  
3. Population Health: Engage in community and population assessment, health promotion, disease prevention, care coordination and interdisciplinary efforts to improve outcomes.  Assess determinants of health and respond to health disparities at the individual, family, community, and population level, across all levels of prevention, and over the entire healthcare continuum. 
4. Healthcare systems collaboration: Communicates and effectively utilizes technology to achieve high quality, safe, evidence-based, and cost-effective care at the individual and systems level. Collaborates with individuals, families, community stakeholders, and the interdisciplinary health care team to assess, implement and evaluate the safety and quality of both patient and population-centered care across health care settings and systems. Develops and advocates for policies across the healthcare continuum. 
5. Professional Identity and development:  Demonstrate responsibility as a life-long learner. Utilizes self-care to practice in a mindful and resilient manner. Reflects on and modifies professional practice according to ethical, moral, humanistic, and legal principles. Contributes to the profession through mentorship, leadership, and advocacy.