How did you get into nursing and nursing academics?

I wanted to become a doctor after graduation from high school, but we were poor, and, with my circumstances, I thought that nursing would propel me toward my desired direction. My mother did not want me to attend segregated schools and specified that they had to be Catholic. When St. John's had an open house, I attended and the Mother Superior said I could attend, thinking I wouldn't take her up on it.

When it came time for admission, she told me they had no single rooms and I couldn't enroll because parents of other students would be upset if I roomed with their white daughters. The Mother Superior suggested that I claim Mexican heritage. I said, "I've been a Negro for 17 years and my parents would be very upset to find out I was something else." I then enlisted the help of some other nuns and they petitioned for my acceptance. Getting into nursing school was hard, even with my excellent grades.

I integrated St. John's and became the first African American to graduate. Blazing new ground as "the first" became a usual occurrence in my life. Later, I became the first female and first African-American academic dean at Ohio University.

When I graduated from nursing school, I relocated to New York City. My career planning revolved around a boyfriend at the time. I did not marry him, but pursued my education. I was in Harlem in the '60s and there were such exciting things happening. I helped to open a center in the heart of Harlem with Dr. June Jackson Christmas that brought outpatient psychiatric care to Harlem. Later, I helped open Medgar Evers College, The City University of New York and ended up as associate dean of academic affairs.

My mentor and boss then told me I needed other experiences to broaden my horizons. He was very encouraging of my educational growth and pushed me to complete my doctorate. This prepared me to become dean at Ohio University. My next step was to become provost and academic vice president of Indiana University of Pennsylvania and, ultimately, chancellor of Indiana University Northwest.

What is your favorite part of teaching?

One of the joys is to see my students move into pivotal positions. I've always loved mentoring and supporting students. A faculty member at a university in New York City was a student of mine at Medgar Evers College.

Tell us about the National Black Nurses Association.

The NBNA was established in 1971 and I have been a member since 1972. Today, there are 74 chapters. This organization represents more than 150,000 members.

We started with two chapters and I was a member of the New York chapter. For 14 years, I edited the NBNA Journal. This was a refereed reference research journal.

What are the challenges facing the association?

All the health care issues we have today are also concerns of the NBNA. The nursing shortage is critical. If we don't replace ourselves soon, there'll be no one to take care of us in the future. The average age of the nurse today is 45. The average age at graduation is 30 to 33. The average turnover for a nurse in a hospital is three years.

Our mission, according to Millicent Gorham, NBNA executive director, is to provide a forum for collective action by African-American nurses to "investigate, define and determine what the health care needs of African Americans are and to implement change to make available to African Americans and other minorities health care commensurate with that of the larger society."

The NBNA is concerned about the health care disparities that continue to exist in African-American communities and other communities of color.

I believe that nurses have to come to grips with their own powers and get into those places where decisions are made. There is enough information available that demonstrates that good nursing care makes a major difference in the rapidity of healing.

We nurses need advocates that speak for us rather than speaking for ourselves. Working as our own advocates doesn't have the same impact that other voices have. We have to get the message to the stakeholders, the decision-makers.

Anything you'd like to add?

I have surgery scheduled in two months and I want to make sure that I have someone with me as my advocate. I will be in an excellent major health center, but I still will find out about the nurse-patient ratio and the preparation of the nurses. I know that this will be critical to my progress on the road to wellness.

Contact Bree LeMaire at peraltap@aol.com