Mary Mahoney Professional Nurses Organization

November 27, 2001

Lois Price Spratlen, University Ombudsman
Ombudsman’s Office
University of Washington
301 HUB, Box 352238

Dear Lois,

Congratulations on the publication of your book, African American Registered Nurses in Seattle: The Struggle for Opportunity and Success.

Over the past months I have read and reread the oral histories of the Mary Mahoney founders and members. The accounts of their lives have been moving and have helped me see the importance of the Mary Mahoney Professional Nursing Organization as a support for African American nurses and nursing students as they confronted racism in their daily lives, their educational experiences, and in nursing practice.

I could respond to your accounts by celebrating the individual resilience shown by the MMPNO members and their community’s support, but your words have challenged me to do more. As I reviewed the practices of the School of Nursing, described at several points in your oral histories, I see evidence that we discouraged African Americans from applying to the School. Indeed, it was not until 1949 that Lela Duffel Morris, our first African American graduate, completed her B.S.N. There are also instances in which we failed to support students adequately in their efforts to complete their education, observed the segregation practices in area hospitals and residence halls, and engaged in everyday activities that neglected to change the status quo in the broader society.

For this part of our history, I offer you my apology. There is no justification for these behaviors.

For tomorrow, I offer you my promise to work to strengthen the relationships we have with the African American community and the Mary Mahoney Professional Nursing Organization. Our school has outlined a Diversity Climate statement, a vision of what we aspire to be. I will count on continuing collaboration with the MMPNO to help us live up to that vision.

In your accounts, there are examples of some faculty, staff and students who challenged the status quo, who endeavored to improve the situation for African American nursing students and nurses. They stand out as courageous individuals who were willing to embrace a diverse student body, seeking justice and equality. I sense that we continue to have that spirit among us today.

Thank you for your account, Lois. I think it will be transformative of how we think and what we do here in the future.

Respectfully,

Nancy Fugate Woods, PhD, RN, FAAN
Dean and Professor