FRANCES TERRY, MN, ARNP of Seattle received her Baccalaureate of Nursing Science from
Seattle University and after first raising her five children, she returned for her Master's of
Nursing from the University of Washington School of Nursing. She was the first African
American student to graduate from Seattle University's nursing program and the second to
graduate from any nursing school in the state.
When Frances graduated from nursing school, only a couple of hospitals would hire a
"colored" nurse. Some patients would not allow her to care for them. Over the years, she has
paved the way for many nurses of color to follow her example. During Frances' basic education,
she received inspiration and support from the few African-American registered nurses who came
to Seattle from other states. One registered nurse from out of state, Ann Foy Baker, influenced
the other African American nurses to form the Mary Mahoney Professional Nurses Organization.
Frances' contributions to Mary Mahoney with its scholarships to over 70 students during the past
50 years will provide a lasting influence on nursing care, as will her tutoring for nursing students
and participation in Seattle University's and the University of Washington's fund raising.
Frances joined the Washington State Nurses Association right after graduation and has
been an active member for over 49 years. Since that time, she has Chaired, Co-Chaired or served
as a member on various committees for both WSNA and for KCNA. She's attended conventions
at the national, state, and county levels as an elected delegate and served on WSNA's Cabinet of
Nursing Practice and Education and on the Ethics and Human Rights Committee. She
represented WSNA at the International Congress of Nurses in Madrid, Spain. She worked many
hours during the attempted raid by other unions in 1989, helped draft a definition of nursing, and
has supported the PAC and the Foundation.
Frances arrived in Washington State with her parents as a twelve
year old child. She graduated from public high school at age 16 and
finished her five years of nursing education at
age twenty-one. She believes that she has represented hope and
achievement for the youth of our
state who wish to become nurses. She has opened doors for all nurses
through her professional
work in the various health care settings: hospitals, community health,
public school, non-profit
agency, community mental health agencies, and advanced educational
institutions. She received
her education and advanced her career from staff nurse to Advanced
Registered Nurse
Practitioner with prescriptive authority over a span of forty-eight
years.
Frances Jefferson Terry's career as a professional nurse encompasses four decades.
During that time she demonstrated her ability to adapt to many different nursing situations and
responsibilities. As Director of Health Services at Northwest Center for the Retarded, she
modeled excellence in patient care, leadership, education, public service, nurse advocacy, and
patient advocacy. Working with these special needs people was one of the most challenging and
rewarding positions that Frances held. This care required compassion, devotion, and professional
excellence-to keep the environment safe by following established nursing standards and
Occupational Safety and Health Agency guidelines, to use therapeutic communication skills, to
do health appraisals, to monitor and administer medication so that clients maintained or
increased their functional level, to keep accurate records, and to work effectively with parents,
teachers, staff, University faculty and students-all while remaining open to constant and
significant changes in health care delivery and the cultural and political environment.
Frances demonstrated excellence in leadership at the Northwest
Center for the Retarded
by establishing health care policy for the Center, by organizing and
leading therapeutic groups for
females, males, and co-ed clients to help them learn self-help skills,
improve self-esteem, and to
maintain and improve their health. She helped parents organize a
support group and convened an
interdisciplinary group for treatment planning. She obtained a grant
that established an after-school program for the special needs children
whose parents did not get home from work until
later in the day.
In her work with the mentally ill population at Harborview Medical Center and a nurse
consultant and Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner with prescriptive authority at Community
House Mental Health Agency, Frances continued to demonstrate excellence in her field. In May,
1993, she was recognized as one of three outstanding nurses at Harborview Medical Center
during National Nurses Week.
Frances places a high value on education and continues to study and learn. Her trip to
China in an exchange nursing program was a special learning opportunity for Frances and will
have a lasting effect on the treatment of physical and mental illnesses in that country.
