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NURSING STUDENT SUES COLLEGE OVER LOST ACCREDITATION

Date: April 5, 2011
By: Davin White

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A student at Mountain State University sued the Beckley school on the same day it lost its national nursing accreditation and the nursing school dean resigned.

Nursing student Deanna Cernuto filed the 24-page lawsuit March 30 in Raleigh County Circuit Court, alleging that its accreditation problems could keep her from pursuing a successful nursing career.

Later that week, nursing students and faculty also received a letter from Roslyn Artis, executive vice president of the Beckley campus.

Artis wrote that as of March 30, the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission no longer accredits the School of Nursing. Also, she wrote that School of Nursing Dean Nancey France resigned her position that day "to pursue other opportunities."

Sheila Garland, who served five years as chairwoman of nursing for the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff, was named the new dean, Artis wrote in the letter.

Mountain State is a private, nonprofit university with campuses in Martinsburg, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C., according to its website.

John P. Fishwick Jr., an attorney in Roanoke, Va., represents Cernuto and issued a brief statement on Tuesday.
"Each student's career has been damaged as a result of Mountain State's loss of national accreditation through the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission," Fishwick wrote. "We look forward to moving this case forward."

Fishwick and Cernuto want to represent a statewide class of similar students in the bachelor of science nursing program.
Last summer, some students complained about the limited information that Mountain State officials gave them about accreditation problems. The students are training to become registered nurses.

Some of the lawsuit details those complaints.

"At the January, 2010 orientation session, students in the B.S.N. program asked questions and voiced their concerns regarding the accreditation problems," according to the lawsuit. "However, the students were informed by agents of MSU that there were no problems or issues with accreditation, and that anything the students had heard was just a rumor which the students should ignore."

In July, the bachelor of science in nursing program lost its National League for Nursing accreditation, according to an Aug. 9, 2010 letter from Artis. MSU officials appealed the decision and received temporary accreditation, but fully lost accreditation last week.

The university is now seeking accreditation from another organization, the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

However, the lawsuit details problems with NLNAC accreditation dating back to July 2008, and a full investigation of MSU nursing programs the West Virginia Board of Examiners for Registered Professional Nurses launched in 2009.

In November, the state nursing board's executive director, Laura S. Rhodes, wrote in a letter to France that MSU failed to maintain at least an 80 percent passing rate on the licensure exam for first-time registered nursing candidates.
At the time, the nursing board decided to place restrictions on new admissions at MSU for 15 months. Among other requests, it wanted Mountain State to maintain the number of full-time faculty and staff they had in November to help correct deficiencies, and also show evidence that the dean or her designee evaluates every faculty member.

Mountain State is required to file reports on their progress with the nursing board.

"All of the reports have been submitted on time," Rhodes said Tuesday. "They're working toward meeting those requirements."

Several students worry they could have limited job options, not be able to apply for graduate-level nursing programs and not qualify to take their registered nursing board examination, which is needed to become a registered nurse.
Rhodes, however, said Tuesday that MSU still has provisional approval by the state nursing board. Current nursing students can still take the West Virginia exam if they meet other requirements.

According to the lawsuit, the School of Nursing added a new requirement in February for bachelor of science students who want to take their nursing board exam.

The students now must take and pass an Assessment Technologies Institute exam as a requirement for graduation. In the past, that test has generally been taken to prepare for the board exam, but a passing score was not needed to graduate.

According to the lawsuit, Cernuto and her classmates believe that Mountain State will suggest that the students were unable to take the board exam because they failed the Assessment Technologies Institute exam, not because the School of Nursing lost its accreditation.

University spokeswoman Megan Constantino did not return a phone message seeking comment Tuesday afternoon.

Contact Davin White at davinwhite@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1254.

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