Committed To Becoming the Premier Hispanic-Serving School of Nursing in the Nation

The mission of the School of Nursing is to offer educational opportunities through Baccalaureate, Masters and Doctoral programs that prepare professional nurses to address multiple complex human needs, to compete in the workforce through life-long learning, and to improve the quality of life in a bi-national and multi-cultural community along the United States-Mexico border region.

The University of Texas at El Paso is dedicated to the advancement of the El Paso region through education, creative and artistic production, and the generation, interpretation, application and dissemination of knowledge. UTEP embraces its role as an intellectual, cultural and socioeconomic asset to the region, offering programs to meet human resource needs and contribute to the quality of life.

As a public university, UTEP is committed to providing access and opportunity to the people of the El Paso region and the State of Texas. UTEP’s mission of ensuring access is coupled with a commitment to excellence reflected in rigorous programs, which prepare students to make significant contributions to their professions, their communities and the world.

As a research/doctoral institution, UTEP fosters a climate of scholarly inquiry, with a special focus on applying innovative interdisciplinary approaches to explore and address major issues that confront the multicultural, U.S.-Mexico border region.

The University of Texas at El Paso School of Nursing views nursing as a professional service discipline grounded in the arts, sciences, humanities, and the application of knowledge obtained through scientifically based inquiry. The Nursing Faculty promote and adhere to a paradigm of caring that addresses holistic human responses throughout the age continuum. This paradigm includes education, practice and research that encompasses provision of care, coordination of care, and professionalism. While the faculty subscribe to a variety of theoretical frameworks reflecting adaptation, self-care, transcultural, and humanistic aspects, we believe that the essence of nursing is caring.

The Nursing Faculty view “Caring” as the basis for nursing. Caring involves recognizing client diversity, potential, autonomy, and universal needs. Further, caring involves understanding and acceptance; it promotes egalitarian relationships and has as its ultimate goal the empowerment of all individuals. The concept of caring permeates nursing education, practice, research, and all three of these entities are intertwined in the delivery of health care. Nursing Faculty draw upon their collective cognitive, clinical, and creative abilities to prepare nurses for the delivery of safe and effective nursing care that is in compliance with established Standards of Practice. We believe that both faculty and students have a responsibility to each other to create a learning environment that is conducive to: learning, freedom of thought, scholarly inquiry, affirmation of beliefs and skills, critical thinking, critical decision-making, ethical practice, facilitative communication, and leadership. Graduates assume roles as care providers, care coordinators, and professional leaders. They promote the health of individuals, families, and populations, the enhancement of society, and the nursing profession in the 21st century. Health care provides a dynamic environment in which there exists potential for physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being for all individuals. Health Care Professionals practicing in this environment need to work in partnership with each other and the communities they serve. Both independent and collaborative nursing strategies are necessary components of practice. To this end, the faculty is committed to role-modeling a multi disciplinary and interdisciplinary approach to education, practice, and research, and to developing in students a sense of awareness of fiscal and outcome aspects of the current health care market place.

The UTEP Nursing Faculty believe that the practice of Professional Nursing requires a commitment to life long learning. We believe that the professional nurse has the responsibility to be visionary in the promotion and improvement of caring in current as well as future health care delivery models.

Rev 10/2009