College of Nursing designated again as an Apple Distinguished School

The University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Nursing has once again been recognized as an Apple Distinguished School. The three-year designation was announced by Dean Greer Glazer, PhD, at the annual State of the College address on Wednesday, Oct. 10, at Procter Hall.

The College of Nursing’s iCoN Initiative, which began in 2012, has steadily incorporated iPad into teaching and learning, earning the college previous Apple Distinguished designations. The initiative is designed to transform traditional nursing education to meet the educational needs of the next generation of nursing students and redefine how students learn, interact and collaborate.

"The iCoN initiative has expanded far beyond what we could have imagined,” says Glazer. "As our support for the transformation in teaching and learning grows and our model for sustainability improves, our end goal remains the same: to graduate nurse leaders who are critical thinkers and competent in the latest technologies to ensure the best and safest care possible. These are exciting times for nursing and for the college, the only nursing college to receive this designation three times.”

Apple Distinguished Schools are centers of innovation, leadership and educational excellence that use technology to inspire creativity, collaboration and critical thinking. They showcase innovative uses of technology in learning, teaching and the school environment.

"iPad and amazing apps and platforms have provided an opportunity to transform education,” says Matt Rota, PhD, assistant dean of technology for the College of Nursing. "For the College of Nursing, this transformation has not occurred in a vacuum. It has been fostered by an organizational culture that embraces technology in the classroom, along with committed leadership and a partnership between information technology, instructional design and subject matter experts.”

In the fall of 2013, all Bachelor of Science in Nursing and Doctor of Nursing Practice students were required to use iPads. In fall 2018, the Accelerated Direct-Entry Master of Science in Nursing program also implemented iPad requirements. Faculty evaluation includes measures of how well they incorporate active learning strategies and technology to enrich teaching in their classes. The college is also working to use emerging virtual and augmented reality, as well as implementing smart glasses in its simulation laboratory.

With technology playing a critical role in UC’s new strategic direction, "Next Lives Here,” the College of Nursing educates students who are open to change and innovation, prepared to join the workforce ready to make a difference and create what’s next.

To learn more about how the UC College Nursing is transforming nursing education, see the Apple Distinguished School application iBook.