ORANGEBURG, S.C.--Facing the threat of closure, the nursing program at South Carolina State University is searching for a cure to its problem of low passing rates among graduates who take the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN).

S.C. State has asked an administrative law judge to overturn the state Board of Nursing's July decision to end its four-year nursing program. The decision was made because, despite having the highest passing percentage since its inaugural class of 1992, the program was still 10 percent below the national average.

Schools in South Carolina with students taking the NCLEX-RN for the first time must have a failure rate no greater than 5 percent below the national average to avoid a deficiency citation. The 1996 passing percentage for S.C. State--which had just five graduates take the test, with one failure--was 80 percent. Nationally, 90 percent of those taking the NCLEX-RN passed the exam. Virginia programs need an 85 percent passing rate to avoid a deficiency notice from the nursing board.

The number of students in S.C. State's program has always been low--as have the passing percentages. The first graduating class of nine students had a 77.7 percent pass rate. In 1993, five students graduated and 40 percent passed. The next year, the number of graduates grew to fourteen, but only 41.7 percent passed. And in 1995, eleven students graduated, but the pass rate was a mere 45.4 percent.

"When we went to the appeal, we were optimistic that we would be allowed to reopen the program--especially with the statistics," says Cherie Smith, president of the student nursing association. "Because we are so small, we suffer more. In my class, we only have ten students and if one person fails we're already at 90 percent."

"I am surprised that S.C. State has not come up to snuff," says Dr. Sallie Tucker-Allen, a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. "I'm disappointed. We really need Black schools of nursing."