Maryland Association of Nursing Students

Each year, the National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA) hosts a summer leadership conference for all members who can attend. The agenda for the conference is designed to provide an understanding of NSNA’s mission, guidance on leading a state or school chapter, and opportunities for networking and professional development. On July 31st, members of Maryland Association of Nursing Students (MANS) board of directors attended this conference in representation of nursing students throughout Maryland.

Getting the Pieces to Fit

At the start of the conference, we were welcomed by NSNA’s executive director, Diane Mancino, EdD, RN, CAE, FAAN, and Mount Sinai Medical Center’s senior director of nursing education, Dr. Janice Smolowitz. Dr. Smolowitz gave a short history of the medical center. Afterward, Dr. Mancino dove into the burning topic of the day: leadership tools. She introduced the group to the NSNA magazine “Getting the Pieces to Fit”. The magazine is a fantastic resource for any NSNA member. Included in the issue is a summary of NSNA membership benefits, how to manage a state association and a school chapter, and more. The latest issue is available on the NSNA website here.

Financial Responsibilities

In addition to the general logistics of running a chapter, NSNA Director of Finance and Administration, Dev Persaud, discussed the financial responsibilities and obligations of all elected leaders. He stressed that the financial responsibilities do not solely belong to the treasurer. It is the responsibility of the board that all fiduciary decisions are made in the best interest of the organization. He described the essentials of finance being boiled down to three parts: budgets, financial reports, and financial controls. It’s safe to say that everyone walked away with a new understanding of financial responsibility.

Positive Image and Communications

Following the financial lecture, Staff Consultant, Larisa Mendez Downes, discussed the Image of Nursing and NSNA communications. She stressed the importance of a positive image of nursing. She also discussed how the misconceptions about nursing can be dispelled through re-education, nursing students learning how to project a positive self-image, and by helping students understand professionalism. The MANS’ Image of Nursing Chair, Sashay Brown, will be focusing on helping Maryland students project a positive image of nursing. During her talk about NSNA communications, she explained the many ways NSNA is making an effort to reach its members. As a part of their efforts, the NSNA is updating the look of their website to enhance interactivity and promote a more user friendly experience. Also valuable, their magazine Imprint is one of these ways and is distributed four times a year. The magazine is always looking for articles for publication. If you may be interested, e-mail nsna@nsna.org with the subject line “editorial query”. Finally, the NSNA has also created a strong social media presence. They can be found on most social media websites by searching for NSNAinc.