Unit Standard
Title
School of Nursing: Standard On Licensure and Certification Requirements for Nursing Faculty
Introduction
Purpose
The School of Nursing (SON) Dean holds ultimate accountability and responsibility for verification of valid North Carolina Registered Nurse (RN) licensure and Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) certification of SON faculty members and delegates this responsibility to the Associate Dean for Administration, the SON Compliance Officer, and supervisors of nurse faculty.
The purpose of this Standard is to outline the expectation for each SON faculty member who is a RN or APRN to hold a current unencumbered North Carolina RN license or APRN certification and to detail the process.
Scope
This standard applies to each SON faculty member who is a registered nurse and to those who are certified APRN's.
Standard
Initial Licensure and Certification
How to obtain NC RN License/APRN Certification:
- If you hold a current unrestricted RN License recognized in North Carolina, please provide proof of licensure to the SON Human Resources Manager.
- In addition if you are a certified APRN recognized in North Carolina, please provide proof of certification to the SON Human Resources Manager.
- All APRN's must also hold an unrestricted RN license in the state of North Carolina and this is a condition of employment if required by position and teaching assignment.
- If you do not hold a current unrestricted RN/APRN recognized in North Carolina and have not made an application for one, please go to the North Carolina Board of Nursing (NCBON) website to apply for licensure/certification as an RN/APRN in North Carolina. The application process may require finger printing.
- Proof of licensure/certification should be provided to the SON Human Resources Manager as soon as it is received.
NCBON CV
- Newly employed SON faculty who are teaching in the pre-licensure program are required to complete a NCBON Vitae form, also known as the NCBONCV, located on the NCBON's "Resources for Program Directors" webpage.
- The completed NCBONCV form should be submitted to the SON Human Resources Manager prior to teaching in the pre-licensure program.
- Once the NCBONCV is received, the SON Human Resources Manager verifies the nurse faculty holds a current unrestricted RN license with the state of North Carolina. The pre-licensure program lead (Associate Dean, Undergraduate Program) determines if the faculty member meets the NCBON requirements for faculty teaching in the program.
- Once verification is completed, the SON Human Resource Manager or designee enters the information in the UNC-Chapel Hill Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Health and Safety Management Information System (HASMIS) for tracking compliance and licensure renewal.
Renewal of Licensure/Certification
- The Health and Safety Management Information System (HASMIS) for tracking compliance and licensure/certification renewal is maintained by the University's Employee Health System (EHS). It contains the faculty name, NC license/certificate number, license/certificate date, and expiration date for all nurses employed by the SON.
- Following initial validation of licensure/certification by SON Human Resources Manager, it is the responsibility of each faculty member to maintain and to upload verification of license in their individual EHS portal.
- Sixty (60) days prior to the license/certificate expiration date, the NCBON notifies each nurse faculty that their current license/certification will expire by a specific date, which occurs at the end of the nurse's birth month. EHS also sends the nurse a license/certificate renewal reminder 30 days prior to their license/certificate expiring. The NCBON has a webpage nurses may use to renew their licenses online.
- Each nurse is expected to show proof of license renewal through the NCBON database at least 15 days prior to the expiration date of their current license. If the NCBON or SON Compliance Officer records do not verify renewal of license 15 days prior to expiration, the SON Compliance Officer sends the nurse, the nurse's Division Head/Dean, the Associate Dean for Administrative Services, and the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs a notice explaining need to renew the license prior to the expiration date.
- Any nurse faculty who fails to renew their North Carolina RN/APRN license prior to the expiration date will be reported to the appropriate SON Division Head and/or UNC-Chapel Hill administrators for follow-up action. Failure to maintain current NC licensure will result in the nurse being withdrawn from any contact with students and any activity defined as nursing by the NC Nursing Practice Act (NC General Statutes Chapter 90, Article 9A).
Please contact the SON Human Resources Manager or the SON Compliance Officer for additional information or to answer questions you may have related to these requirements.
Exceptions
N/A
Footnotes
* There are some rare instances in which nurses may not need an RN license to perform the functions of their employment with the SON.
** free of any charges other than minor traffic violations
Related Requirements
External Regulations and Consequences
Unit Policies, Standards, and Procedures
N/A
Contact Information
Primary Contact
Lisa Miller, Associate Dean for Administration
Other Contacts
N/A
Important Dates
- Effective Date and title of Approver: 11/27/2001 by Administrative Council
- Revised: 9/20/2022 to include APRN
Approved by:
Lisa Miller
Associate Dean for Administration