Mission
The mission of The Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing is to demonstrate excellence in research, teaching, and practice founded on independent scholarship and collaborative interdisciplinary partnerships with university and health care colleagues, and with members of the multicultural and global communities it serves.

Vision
The Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing is committed to a trajectory that includes becoming an international leader in the advancement of nursing science, education, practice and policy. In 2012 we expect to be among the top five private schools of nursing in the world, attracting a top tier of faculty, students and postdoctoral fellows.

Core Values
The faculty, staff and students of the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing are dedicated to the values of scholarship, leadership and social responsibility in shaping our current and future work as members of a leading private school of nursing. The school is committed to promoting and nurturing an organizational culture in which all of its members are dedicated to the improvement of global health through the advancement of science, education and practice. We are dedicated to the development and support of interdisciplinary collaboration among our Emory colleagues as a vital mechanism for sustaining our work.

Scholarship is an imaginative and intentional process of reasoned inquiry that generates knowledge, disseminates that knowledge and affects education, practice, human health and science itself. Faculty and students alike engage in the process of discovery and the translation of evidence into practice. Scholarship permeates our practice no matter the role or setting in which we find ourselves.

Leadership entails the individual and collective responsibility to step forward with vision, courage, and integrity. Leadership is grounded in the voices and needs of the individuals, families, groups, and communities we serve nationally and internationally. Leadership is not vested in a particular role, but in understanding our own and others strengths and weaknesses in order to create a community of nurse leaders.

Social responsibility is the obligation to promote equity, access, and justice. It derives from the social contract between society and nursing. Social responsibility involves a dedication to civic involvement and environmental sustainability, and a respect for diversity, pluralism, and freedom of expression in an effort to optimize well-being.

Philosophy
We believe that nursing occupies a unique and privileged position of influence and trust in efforts to improve human health.  Our core values -- scholarship, leadership and social responsibility – provide us with the foundation to shape the future of caring and health. Faculty, students and staff are collaborative partners in this effort. Their uniqueness and diversity enable the creation of a dynamic and creative learning environment that fosters professional development of integrity, commitment and respect.

Through our commitment to scholarship, we engage in dynamic inquiry and teaching.  We advance knowledge that transforms health and health care in local, national, and international communities.  We create innovative learning experiences, grounded in evidence-based pedagogy focused on the development of the intellectual skills of engagement, reflection, inquiry and collaboration.

Through our commitment to leadership, we set the agenda for positive social change directed toward the improvement of human health. As leaders, we are guided by the historical roots of the nursing profession. We believe that our unique role at Emory is to develop innovative and ethical leaders in practice, teaching, science, and service who are well equipped to transform health care and the professional practice of nursing.

Through our commitment to social responsibility, we collaborate with a broad range of partners to advocate for equity, access and justice.  We work collaboratively across health care settings, disciplines and local, national and international boundaries to improve the health and well-being of the individuals, families, and populations we serve.

Strategic Goals for 2005-2010

Goal 1: Enhance the working climate of our people and the overall school community.
Goal 2: Become the leading private school of nursing in the world in the area of international nursing, including health workforce development, policy and global government nursing and health leadership.
Goal 3: Become a national and international model for integration of social responsibility into all school curricula.
Goal 4: Provide international and national leadership in faith-based and mission-related nursing programs.
Goal 5: Collaborate with university partners in curricular reform and research related to predictive health.
Goal 6: Become among the top three private schools of nursing in NIH funding.
Goal 7: Be among the top three private schools of nursing in educational rankings.