Breakthrough to Nursing

​ Committee

Rethink What's Possible: Eradicating the Stigma

Brooke Budniak
BTN Director
Widener University
Chester, PA
Connect on Social Media

What is the Role of the
Breakthrough to Nursing Committee?

Breakthrough to Nursing® (BTN) is NSNA’s® project to increase the number and diversity of students choosing nursing as a career. The project was established because of NSNA’s® concern over the inadequacy of health care delivery to minority group members and the lack of minority group health care providers. The objectives of the project are to promote career opportunities in nursing, with a focus on substantially increasing the number of students from groups who traditionally have been underrepresented in American nursing. The project has been supported by NSNA since 1965. Its effectiveness seems due, in part, to the peer relationship that can be established between nursing students and minority group elementary, middle and high school students. In addition, through the Foundation of the NSNA, scholarships support is available for diverse nursing students to increase the number of registered nurses from ethnic minorities in the profession. 

BTN also teaches nursing students to be culturally competent in their care of all patients.  Resolutions passed by the NSNA House of Delegates has expanded the Project to include the recruitment of students from all underrepresented populations. 

​Brooke Budniak, BTN Director and Chair,
​Breakthrough to Nursing Committee, Winter-Spring Memo

Hi NSNA Members!
 
I hope the Spring 2023 semester is off to a great start for you! Many of you are graduating this semester and joining the profession of nursing. This is an incredible milestone in your journey as a nurse and I wish you immense congratulations!
 
The 40th MidYear Conference was a success, from our panels to webinars. Most importantly, you were attentive and flexible throughout the conference. The BTN committee gave an update on the various things we have completed thus far, and we shared some tips and tricks on how to increase student engagement in the digital age. We have so many great opportunities ahead planned for you to learn more about BTN. The BTN Toolkit discussed during the roundtable meeting remains the best way for great ideas from across the country to be placed in one convenient location.

​Read More

"Rethink What's Possible: Eradicating the Stigma"

Brooke Budniak, NSNA 2022-2023 BTN Director, speaks on the Breakthrough to Nursing Committee during the 2022 NSNA Leadership U Summer Summit.

​BTN Monthly Winner (February 2023)
Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA

Throughout the month of February, we celebrated the impact of black nurses in nursing and our community. We posted multiple posts about different influential black nurses that were leaders, educators, and advocates for nursing and health for all. These posts highlighted the work of these nurses and the perseverance they had to reach their goals. The nursing leaders posted about included Adah Belle Thoms, Lawrence C. Washington, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Mary Elizabeth Carnegie, and Estelle Massey Osborne. Through this social media project, we aimed to increase the knowledge and awareness of black nurses and Black History Month. We aimed to foster a space of diversity and inclusivity by highlighted these influential nursing leaders.
 
Multiple students mentioned how they learned more about black nursing leaders. Many did not know the influence these nurses had on the nursing we know today. This social media project encouraged students to learn about nursing leaders as well as diversity and inclusivity.

BTN Resources
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​How to Establish a Mentor-Mentee Program At Your School ​
​BTN Video
Nursing—The Career for a Lifetime
This inspirational program presents accomplished nurses sharing their career journeys and new nurses revealing their dream careers. The DVD includes a main feature with bonus tracks on a variety of nursing career paths, to order, visit the NSNA Store.
The BTN Project
Nursing students from all over the country share their thoughts on becoming nurses. Video created by Jennifer Kalenkoski, Breakthrough to Nursing Director (2016-17).