The idea for the The Black Student Nursing Association came when junior Chloe Jordan told her friend and roommate, sophomore Olivia Williams, that she wanted a place where Black nurses could meet each other.
“There is a good number of us in the college, and I told Olivia that if we could all come together, we could really do something great,” Jordan says. “She said, ‘Let’s do it.’”
Shortly afterward, the BSNA began welcoming dozens of Marquette students, with more than 100 putting their name down at the university’s annual Organization Fest. Originally conceived as an organization for nurses, the BSNA now also includes students from other health care professions in the College of Health Sciences and beyond.
The group provides a forum for health care professionals of color to mingle through events like “Visions and Vitals,” where students create vision boards displaying what they hope to achieve for the year. They also host study groups for courses such as pathophysiology around midterm and final exam periods. Recently, students made cards for patients at Froedtert Hospital and hygiene kits for the Milwaukee Rescue Mission during a “Give Back Gathering.”
Through it all, the organization aims to create a welcoming space.
“I want us to be the reason that at least one student decides to come to Marquette,” Jordan says.
“We want to build something on campus where Black nurses and other health care students feel like it’s for them,” Williams adds.
Both Williams and Jordan wanted to be pediatricians growing up. Williams switched to nursing to be more hands-on with patients. Jordan worked as a CNA in a nursing home. In both environments, they experienced burdens that they wanted to share with a broader support network.
“I remember getting my CNA license at 16 years old and being pressured to do things that I wasn’t necessarily trained or paid to do,” Jordan says. “Having other people I could go to who could relate would’ve been helpful.”
“There are times in my life where I’ve been overlooked, where I’ve not really felt important. This organization is for everyone who’s been there,” Williams says.
To learn more about the The Black Student Nursing Association, visit their Instagram page or contact organization president Chloe Jordan at chloe.jordan@marquette.edu.
