By Holly Gainer
UAB News
Martha Dawson, DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice), assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing, has been elected to serve as the president of the National Black Nurses Association, Inc. She will serve a two-year term.
The NBNA’s mission is “to serve as the voice for black nurses and diverse populations ensuring equal access to professional development, promoting educational opportunities and improving health.”
“I am prepared, ready and willing to serve and guide NBNA into the future and place the organization on the global stage as knowledgeable, professional nursing leaders,” Dawson said. “I firmly support NBNA’s commitment to serve African American communities, increase the number of African American nurses, and improve equity, equality and inclusivity in health education, service, practice and research.”
Dawson will be the organization’s 13th president. She will be sworn in at the annual NBNA Institute and Conference in New Orleans in late July. Dawson is also a member of the Birmingham Black Nurses Association chapter of NBNA.
Dawson’s career spans more than 40 years in nursing and health services; she is a two-time graduate of the UAB School of Nursing, earning her bachelor of science in nursing in 1976 and her master of science in nursing in 1984. A member of the UAB School of Nursing faculty since 2008, she has led the highly ranked graduate nursing administration specialty track and served in a number of roles, including principal investigator for a Health Resources & Services Administration workforce investment grant.
The NBNA was organized in 1971 by Dr. Lauranne Sams, former Dean and Professor of Nursing, School of Nursing, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama. NBNA is a non-profit organization incorporated on September 2, 1972 in Ohio and represents 150,000 African American registered nurses, licensed vocational/practical nurses, nursing students and retired nurses from the USA, Eastern Caribbean and Africa, with 92 chartered chapters, in 35 states.
