Inclusive Excellence, Belonging, and Sustainability in Nursing Education Award

• Established an organizational culture with an extraordinary and unfailing commitment to inclusive excellence and belonging. 
• Outcomes show an organizational commitment to the recruitment, development, retention, and belonging of faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds and identities.
• Developed and implemented effective initiatives that create a staff, student, and faculty community that is representative of all backgrounds and identities. 
• Cultivated and promoted initiatives that establish and foster a learning environment of belonging and inclusive excellence. 
• Demonstrated outstanding advocacy for inclusive excellence at the institutional levels.

Success in leading and enhancing inclusive excellence efforts can be demonstrated in many ways. Nominations should be based on leadership in one or more of the following areas:

• Organizational commitment to key areas of inclusive excellence such as mission, vision, policies, culture and climate, research, clinical practice, or community outreach.
• Demonstrate the impact of activities designed to attract, recruit, retain, and professionally develop students, staff, and faculty from a variety of backgrounds and identities.
• Activities that demonstrate inclusive excellence within the curriculum and teaching practices.
• Collaboration with campus or community groups in the creation, sponsorship, and implementation of programs, initiatives, or projects in inclusive excellence.
• Evaluation and quality improvement of inclusive excellence strategies.

The winners will demonstrate excellence in nursing education in both of the following areas:

• Creating Change – Influencing change and adapting academic environments, and/or raising awareness of the need to promote inclusive excellence nursing education. Nominations must:
  
  
  • Clearly articulate the focus of the nomination
  • State the impact of actions taken by the school
  • Identify scope of change, i.e., partners, community engagement
  • Address sustainability
    
    
• Influencing Others – Serves as an opinion leader and recognized advocate for inclusive excellence, belonging, and sustainability resulting in significant organizational or community impact.
  Below are examples of how the awardee might influence others and create change.

• • Continually Learning – Develops educational programs, professional development opportunities, and/or awareness events that support this award’s triple aim.
  • Cultivating Inclusive Teams – Creates inclusive teams of faculty, staff, students, mentors, and other constituents representing and welcoming unique identities and promotes safety for sharing ideas.
  • Risk Taking – Advances innovative solutions and decisive actions that break new ground in the drive to champion inclusive excellence, belonging, and sustainability.
  • Accountable for Inclusive Excellence – Sets standards, advances strategies, and/or implements measures to ensure that goals related to inclusive excellence are met.
  • External Leadership Involvement – Plays a leading role in advancing inclusive excellence, belonging and sustainability in the nursing profession in addition to local efforts.
  • Belonging - A feeling of security and support that allows a person to bring their authentic self and is welcomed and celebrated so they can thrive, contribute, and see themselves reflected in the culture.

Belonging
A feeling of security and support that allows a person to bring their true authentic self and is welcomed and celebrated so they can thrive, contribute, and see themselves reflected in the culture.

Inclusion
Authentically and respectfully recognizing, welcoming, supporting, and valuing the talents of all members of the nursing school’s community and integrating them into processes, activities and decision/policy making in a way that shares power. 

Inclusive Excellence
The operational definition of Inclusive Excellence, as introduced by the Association of American Colleges and Universities, includes four primary components:

1. A focus on student intellectual and social development. Academically, it means offering the best possible course of study for the context in which the education is offered.
2. A purposeful development and utilization of organizational resources to enhance student learning. Organizationally, it means establishing an environment that challenges each student to achieve academically at high levels and each member of the nursing school to contribute to learning and knowledge development.
3. Attention to the cultural differences that learners bring to the educational experience and that enhances the whole nursing school.
4. A welcoming community that engages all its diversity in the service of student and organizational learning.

Call for applications for this award is now open. To apply, please fill out the online application. The deadline is May 15, 2026.

Applicant nursing schools must be an AACN member institution. The application letter should not exceed five pages in length and be single-spaced, 12-point font, with one-inch margins. All applications should be electronically submitted via the online application.

Letters of application must include the following:

• How the nursing school has been instrumental in achieving diversity, inclusion, and sustainability in nursing education.
• Description of the school’s diversity-related programs, initiatives, and/or projects that fulfill the award criteria using concrete examples.
• The impact of the nursing school’s efforts. Please include numbers of affected individuals; programs or policies implemented; and any other relevant measurements of successful diversity efforts. The evidence can be both quantitative and qualitative.

Reference letters: Two external letters of reference, outside the nursing academic unit, must accompany the application. Both letters must address the nursing school’s contributions towards advancing diversity and inclusion, including their diversity efforts, their impact and sustainability.

The winning school will receive a $1,000 award and plaque. The award and presentation opportunity will be presented annually at the AACN ACE Symposium.