Student trust relates to affect, engagement, and performance, yet the literature lacks a process model that links events to downstream outcomes. Affective events theory was applied to focus group data from 77 baccalaureate nursing students who described events that led them to trust or distrust an instructor and their subsequent affective reactions, attitudes, affect-driven behaviors, and perceived impact on performance. Two models emerged. The Trust Pathway and Distrust Pathway Models provide a temporal depiction of how instructor actions are appraised and translated into learning‑relevant behaviors that influence performance. The models identify leverage points for building or repairing trust.

Given the academic and clinical demands faced by nursing students, mental health is a critical component of their well-being. To promote a culture of wellness, Mental Health Bulletin Boards were implemented at a large, multicampus nursing college to provide an interactive space for students to share mental health strategies. A thematic analysis of 339 individually posted bulletin board notes revealed five overarching categories: physical health, connectedness, mental and emotional health, leisure and creative outlets, and personal management strategies. The findings inform nursing education wellness initiatives, including curriculum integration, faculty messaging, and community outreach.

This study used a descriptive phenomenological design to explore nurse educators' perceptions of leadership support and examine how such support influences their job satisfaction and intent to leave. Virtual interviews were conducted with 14 nurse educators representing seven US states. Findings indicated that leadership support plays a meaningful role in shaping both job satisfaction and intent to leave for nurse educators. The results align with existing literature and reinforce the idea that leadership support is not merely beneficial but essential for retaining qualified faculty in nursing education. Therefore, leadership support within nursing education programs warrants further investigation.

A healthy clinical environment enhances nursing students' learning, safety, recruitment, and caring skills. To reduce first-day stress and promote students' sense of belonging, an intentional orientation program was developed and piloted in eight inpatient units with several schools of nursing. The 3T approach - tour, talk, touch - involved a comprehensive unit tour, patient communication, and hands-on care. Feedback from 25 students showed increased confidence and sense of belonging after the intervention, highlighting informative tours, supportive preceptors, and practical communication as main benefits. The initiative provides an example of a successful orientation that builds student belonging, self-efficacy, and collaboration.

New nurse faculty often face challenges with role clarity and cultural integration during the transition from clinical practice to academia, underscoring the need for effective onboarding. A public, urban school of nursing piloted a competency-based education (CBE) onboarding program designed to support novice faculty. The program incorporated asynchronous modules, mentorship, and CBE-aligned assessments, fostering organizational culture through role clarity and community-building. Although the sample size limited statistical significance, trends indicated improved teaching confidence and modest gains in sense of belonging and mentor support. Findings suggest that CBE-based onboarding may enhance faculty transition and cultural integration, warranting larger scale evaluation.

The Center for Future Faculty is an innovative, multi-institutional model addressing the nurse faculty shortage through a collaborative, competency-based approach. Four regional universities partnered to prepare aspiring nurse educators via graduate coursework, mentored fellowships, and seminars aligned with National League for Nursing CNE® competencies. Seven students completed the inaugural year; most planned to pursue educator roles, and course evaluations showed high satisfaction and skill development. Partners benefited from strengthened faculty pipelines and shared academic resources. Early outcomes suggest that regional partnerships can sustainably expand nursing education capacity and advance health equity by cultivating a diverse, well-prepared future faculty workforce.

Nurse anesthesia students face high rates of burnout, anxiety, and depression that can impair learning and clinical readiness. Between June and November 2024, a university nurse anesthesia program implemented trauma-informed wellness initiatives, including flexible scheduling (condensed on-campus days, excused absences, virtual attendance for distant sites), a pass/fail reflective wellness assignment, regular cohort town halls, weekly community emails, a final-year professional course with mindfulness/provider-wellness content, and a program-specific career fair. Following implementation, first-time national certification examination pass rates rose from 83 percent (2023) to 91 percent (2025). A trauma-informed, multilevel wellness approach was associated with improved program outcomes.

New graduate nurses experience high stress during the transition to practice, increasing risk for burnout and early workforce attrition. This educational project evaluated a Caritas-based training and mentoring protocol grounded in Watson's theory of human caring within a nurse residency program. Using a quasi-experimental evaluation design, residents participated in three structured mentoring sessions emphasizing caring behaviors, reflective practice, and self-care. Outcomes included high participant satisfaction, perceived applicability of Caritas principles, and engagement with reflective learning activities. Findings suggest that integrating caring science into nurse residency education is a feasible strategy to support nurse well-being, professional identity development, and retention-related factors.