<p> Nurse educators are barraged with competencies, standards, outcomes, and initiatives to consider when developing, evaluating, or revising curriculum. The constructivist grounded theory study discovered and compared the perceptions and processes of faculty related to their preparedness and confidence in evaluating, developing, and revising nursing curriculum. Faculty&rsquo;s constructions were used to develop a middle range descriptive theory <i>Challenged and Overwhelmed.</i> From further faculty recommendations on strategies <i> Supported and Empowered: a Model of Understanding to Support Faculty&rsquo;s Growth and Competence in Curriculum Development, Evaluation, and Revision </i> was created to support faculty&rsquo;s growth and competence in curriculum development, evaluation and revision. Findings such as the low confidence found in most faculty, including the very experienced when it came to assessing curriculum, and the inadequate knowledge of curriculum as well as strategies discovered to benefit faculty are shared that assist faculty&rsquo;s growth and competence in curriculum development, evaluation and revision. These strategies can be used to improve faculty development, educational strategies, and graduate education, resulting in better nurse educator preparedness. Improving educational strategies through better competency will improve the nursing profession. Educator competency, preparation, the faculty shortage, standards, initiatives, and educational competencies and curriculum reform were reviewed. Quality information for educators is provided for evaluating and improving current nursing curriculum, and to guide strategic planning and facilitate nurse program success. Faculty perceptions of how to increase competence, and improve preparation for their role developing, evaluating and revising curriculum were shared.</p>

<p> This quantitative correlational, descriptive study examined what relationships exist, if any, between clinical design and implementation of nursing clinical curriculum with National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN&reg;) pass rates in Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) programs in the northeastern United States (U.S.). The population for this quantitative correlational, descriptive design included all ADN programs (N =132) located in this geographic. The sample for this study was all ADN accredited programs who willingly completed this survey (N=24). Dr. Martha Tanicala&rsquo;s questionnaire was used with permission and was renamed Clinical Experiences in Associate Nursing Programs (CEANP). The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (IBM SPSS Version 21.0) was utilized to complete the descriptive and correlational statistical procedures. A point-biserial correlation revealed significant relationships between NCLEX-RN&reg; success and the following independent variables: accreditation standards and recommendations on the design of the clinical curriculum (<i> r</i>pbi= .419, <i>n</i> = 24, <i>p</i> = .041, administration influence on the design of the clinical curriculum (rpbi = .415, n = 24, p = .044), and assessing clinical faculty competency (rpb= -.555, n = 24, p = .005). The findings of this study indicate that accreditation guidelines and nursing program administrators&rsquo; significantly correlate with curriculum design and NCLEX-RN&reg; pass rates. The findings also show a significant relationship between assessment of clinical faculty competency and NCLEX-RN&reg; success. The findings demonstrate that a more even distribution of the type of clinical hours across the curriculum may assist students with readiness for practice and first-time NCLEX-RN&reg; achievement.</p>