Black, Latinx Leaders to Nursing Students: 'You Belong Here'
Two new groups are creating buzz in the School of Nursing
“There are a lot more people like me here than I’d realized.”
Annalisa Cintron, BSN `25, co-founder of the Latinx Nursing Student Union
bringing students of color together around learning and advocacy and creating warm, community spaces as they do.
Though the Black Student Nurses Alliance (BSNA) and the Latinx Nursing Student Union (LNSU)—created, operated, and led by students—were founded by undergraduates, there’s been solid interest from graduate nursing students, faculty, and staff, too—both surprising and affirming to group leaders.
“At our first general body meeting, we had a lot of people there, which gave us great momentum,” said Morgan Allen, president of the BSNA and a third-year BSN student from Goochland, Va. “We could tell everyone there was excited, too, to have this new club, a way to come together, and be part of this new community.”
“We want to show the nursing school who we are and create spaces for Black alumni and others to really feel like they belong.”
Morgan Allen. BSN `24, president of the Black Student Nurses Alliance
The same was true for LNSU, established in fall 2022, founders Annalisa Cintron and Ana Aguirre said. “A lot of us didn’t even know who was here,” said Cintron, of Houston, TX. “There are a lot more people like me here than I’d realized.”
Activities so far have been wide-ranging and designed to build community and promote activism: a discussion on breast cancer and Black women, a forum on medical translators led by Michelet McLean, who teaches Spanish for Health Professionals class, a bake sale fundraiser for local doulas who care for mothers of color—even a kickball tournament against Black UVA students from the McIntire School of Commerce.
And while most events are targeted specifically to students of color, both BSNA and LNSU hope their reach spans even further. LNSU’s catered Thanksgiving luncheon, for instance, became a community forum that gathered dozens Nov. 16 still reeling from the tragic shooting that left three UVA students dead and two wounded just three days before. BSNA’s roster of activities for February and Black History Month—including a romcom movie night and a Feb. 22 Black Roundtable featuring faculty, staff, and alumni who will share stories about their careers—aim to also connect with Black nursing alumni who, Allen said, “might not have had the same welcoming place during their time at UVA.”
“We want to show the nursing school who we are,” Allen added, “and create spaces for Black alumni and others to really feel like they belong.”
