02/06/2025
This Black History Month, we're sharing Chamberlain University's Notable Black Nurses in History article to celebrate trailblazers in our industry.
Here's one example: Mary Eliza Mahoney, the first Black woman to earn a professional nursing license in the U.S.
From their 2022 article: "While many African Americans served as nurses before her, Mary Ezra Mahoney often carries the distinction of being the first Black nurse in history to earn a professional nursing license in the U.S. and the first to graduate from an American nursing school. Born to freed slaves, she worked as janitor, cook, washerwoman and nurse's aide over the course of 15 years at the New England Hospital for Women and Children, according to the National Women's History Museum. At the age of 33, she entered the hospital's nursing program and graduated 16 months later. As the first professionally trained and licensed Black nurse, she championed increased access to nursing education and fought against discrimination in the profession throughout her career, supporting the creation of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses (NACGN) in 1908."
To read the full list and download the poster, click here:
https://www.chamberlain.edu/blog/a-celebration-of-10-famous-black-nurses-in-history
Happy Black History Month!
