College of Nursing History

Gordon Keller Memorial Hospital, opened in 1905 on Lafayette Street, was named for Gordon Keller, a native of Georgia who moved to Tampa in 1883. The School of Nursing, established in 1910 and offering a three-year diploma, held its first formal graduation in 1915. The program was absorbed by Hillsborough Community College in 1972, however, the archives were donated to USF and the College of Nursing became the "home base" for Alumni. The hospital, which moved to Davis Islands in 1927, became known as Tampa Municipal Hospital (shown in photo) and, in 1956, as Tampa General Hospital.

In 1965, the USF College of Nursing was authorized by the Florida Legislature as part of the Health Sciences Center complex with Medicine and Public Health. Although it would be 9 years before students were admitted to the program, work began on preparing the university for the eventual launch of the college.

 Until the College of Nursing began admitting students, USF joined with Florida State in providing nursing degrees. Students attending USF for their first two years. could then transfer to FSU to complete their bachelor's degree in nursing. There was a similar USF/FSU collaboration with the home economics program.

Dr. Alice Keefe was appointed as founding Dean of the College of Nursing. Along with Dr. Donn Smith, who became Dean of the College of Medicine in 1969, they decided to conduct clinical instruction in local hospitals under cooperative agreements. Dr. Keefe designed the original program emphasizing styles of learning and preparing students to interact with people in different professional roles. Early USF Historian, Dean Russell Cooper, reported that Dr. Keefe made the USF Nursing program broader and stronger in theoretical foundations than most collegiate nursing programs, emphasizing links between practice and theory.

In 1968 the Florida Board of Nursing provided accreditation to begin implementation of a BS in nursing. A few months later, Dr. Keefe received a personal letter from one of the board members indicating that her curriculum plan was exceptionally impressive. Admitting students, however, was still several years away.

Dr. Gwendoline MacDonald served as Dean of the College of Nursing from 1973 until 1987. She greeted the first cohort of students with 9 faculty. Under her leadership, the college received its first accreditation from the National League of Nursing in 1975, ensuring the school was accredited prior to the first graduating class.

In 1980, she initiated master's level programs in Adult Health Nursing, Gerontology, and Nurse Education. Prior to becoming dean at USF, Dr. MacDonald was Dean of Nursing at Michigan State University and the University of Miami. During World War II, she served in the Army Nursing Corp and was stationed in England.