National Black Nurses Association (NBNA)
The National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) is a professional association for Black nurses and nursing students in the United States. 1 In addition to its work in promoting public health and the nursing profession, the association also engages in activism promoting a left-of-center model it describes as “good public policy through the lens of social justice.” 2 3 1
Contents
Background
The NBNA was created in 1971 by Black nurses who had been either formally or informally excluded from representation by the American Nurses Association. 1
As of 2026, it claims more than 300,000 members in 114 chapters in 33 states. 4
NBNA chapters and individual members are encouraged to operate community-level preventative health screenings and health education programs for conditions including high blood pressure, high blood glucose, high cholesterol, HIV, COVID-19, cancer, sickle cell, and mental illnesses. 4
It is a founding member of the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurse Associations, along with the Asian American/Pacific Islander Nurses Association, the National Alaska Native American Indian Nurses Association, the National Association of Hispanic Nurses, and the Philippine Nurses Association of America. 4
Advocacy and Activism
The National Black Nurses Association’s advocacy is left-of-center, especially in areas related to health care policy and racial issues. 1 One of its first supporters in Washington, D.C. was civil rights activist and former Democratic presidential candidate Jesse Jackson, and his son, U.S. Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-IL), continues to be closely aligned with the NBNA on matters of federal policy. 5
The NBNA supports “Medicaid and Medicare access for all”; increased governmental spending on primary, preventive, and community-based health care programs; and efforts to align the health care workforce with the racial and ethnic makeup of the communities in which they work. 3
In 2020, NBNA members led protests affiliated with the Black Lives Matter movement, calling for “Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.” 1
The National Black Nurses Association is a member of the Nursing Collaborative on Climate Change and Health, a coalition “formed as an avenue to elevate nursing leadership in addressing and responding to climate change” that was organized by the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and EcoAmerica. 6 In 2018, the NBNA co-signed a position paper that committed it to “prioritize climate change and its impacts as a nursing issue,” educate nurses and patients about climate change, and promote left-of-center environmentalist policies at the local and national level. 6
Financial Statistics
Total Assets
Total Revenue
Total Expenses
Revenue Detail
Expenses Detail
Employee Compensation
- Number of Employees: 5
Highest Earning Employees
| Employee | Title | Total Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Julius Johnson | DIRECTOR | $7,500 |
| Sheldon D Fields | 1ST VICE PRESIDENT | $7,500 |
Grant Activity
All-time grants received statistics from Candid dataset:
- Total Grant Value: $2,311,122
- Number of Grants: 52
- Number of Funders: 27
Selection of highest value grants received from the last seven years: