Ida Spruill, PhD (deceased): 1992-1996
Patricia Mack: 1997 - 2000
Mary Brown, BSN, RN: 2000-2004
Rosalye Strickland, BSN (deceased): 2005-2007
Earline Kinloch, BSN: 2008-2011
Debbie C. Bryant, DNP: 2012-2014
Jannie Brown, BSN: 2014-2018
Wanda J. Brown, MS, RN: 2018-2020
Vivian Frasier-Gathers, BSN, RN: 2020-2022
Fharen T. Grant, MSN, RN-BC, CNL: 2022-2024
Vanessa Gant-Clark, MSN, RN: Current President
In 1991, Tri-County Black Nurses Association (TCBNA) became a chartered member of the National Black Nurses Association. The organization was founded by a group of 12 nurses representing the Tri-County area of South Carolina. These courageous women came together out of a need to share their day to day experiences of working at a majority academic medical center and local hospitals, and to engage in collective opportunities to build relationships and develop strategies to respond to the health needs of underserved communities. The founding members are: Vermenia Aiken, Beatrice Burch (deceased), Debra Stoney Cohen, Susan Cook, Ada Golson, June Law, Denise Reed, Fairlyn Thompson, Laura Williams (deceased), Sharon Williams, Yolinda Zorn and Ida L. Johnson Spruill, PhD, RN, LISW, FAAN (deceased).
Pictured: Dr. Debbie Bryant, Earline Kinloch, the late Dr. Ida Spruill and Patricia Mack (L to R).
The National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) was conceptualized on December 18-19, 1971. More than 40 years, later, NBNA has grown into a thriving non-profit organization representing more than 150,000 nurses and 83 chapters in the USA, Eastern Caribbean and Africa. NBNA provides a forum for collective action by minority nurses to investigate, define and determine the health car needs for minority communities, Our goal is to implement change and to make healthcare accessible and equal in minority communities to that of the larger society.
Pictured: Patricia Mack, Mary Brown, Earline Kinloch, Wanda J. Brown, Vivian F. Gathers and Fharen Grant (L to R)