PhD student awarded National Black Nurses Association Scholarship

Six people stand together on stage holding a large check for $10,000 made out to Sponsoring recipients. A man stands at a podium behind them, smiling. The group appears happy and celebratory.

Latesha K. Harris, BSN, RN, has been awarded the National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) 2024 United Health Foundation Diversity in Healthcare Scholarship. The scholarship, which provides $5,000 annually and is renewable for 1.5 years, was presented at the NBNA’s Annual Institute and Conference, held this year in San Francisco, California. Harris is an active member of the Central Carolina Black Nurses Council.

A nonprofit since 1972, NBNA advocates for Black nurses and works to ensure access to high-quality healthcare for persons of color. The organization provides continuing education programs for healthcare professionals and offers annual scholarships to its student members, supporting the next generation of nursing leaders.

“This is a highly competitive scholarship which is evidence of the outstanding academic performance of Latesha,” said Shielda Rodgers, PhD, RN, Associate Dean for Collective Well-Being and Professor at Carolina Nursing.

Harris’s emerging program of research focuses on women’s cardiometabolic health, health inequities, and the structural and psychosocial determinants of cardiometabolic disease. She is committed to addressing structural racism and conducting data-driven research to inform policy changes. By using an interdisciplinary approach, she aims to create healthier and safer communities.