As Tennessee’s nursing shortage deepens and national policy debates threaten to reshape the future of nursing education, Jennifer McGuire Hitt, PhD, RN, CNE, serves as President of the Tennessee Nurses Association — bringing to the role an extensive background in nursing research, education, and workforce development at a moment when the profession demands precisely that combination.
Hitt holds a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of Mississippi, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Memphis, a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, and a PhD in Nursing from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She previously served as President of the Mississippi Nurses Association and has contributed nationally through her service on several American Nurses Association and American Association of Colleges of Nursing committees. She currently serves as Executive Director of the Tennessee Center for Nursing Advancement — a statewide hub for advancing nursing science and workforce capacity, operating as a partnership between East Tennessee State University, Ballad Health, and the State of Tennessee.
Hitt assumed the TNA presidency at the start of the 2025–2026 term, succeeding Ray Coe, RN, PhD, MBA, NEA-BC, who remains on the board as Immediate Past-President. The current board includes Tiffany Street, DNP, ACNP-BC, as Vice President; Julie Hamm, MSN, RN, ACNP-BC, as Treasurer; Teresa Hobt-Bingham, MSN, RN, NE-BC, as Secretary; and directors overseeing operations, membership, education, government affairs, and nursing practice.
Her tenure has been defined from the outset by two converging crises: a worsening state workforce shortage and escalating federal policy threats to nursing education. Tennessee is already short approximately 15,000 nurses, and Hitt has been outspoken about the risk of further attrition. “About 20% of nurses that are currently at the bedside have reported that they are going to leave the bedside within the next two years,” she has warned — a projection that, if realized, would significantly strain patient care capacity across the state.
On the federal level, Hitt has led TNA’s opposition to a Trump administration proposal that would strip nursing of its classification as a professional degree, a change that would cap federal student loan access for graduate nursing programs and place advanced nursing education financially out of reach for many students. She has argued the move risks undoing years of work to rebuild the profession’s image after COVID discouraged applicants and could leave patients waiting longer for care.
At the state level, TNA’s advocacy record under the current board has already demonstrated the membership’s political reach. When legislation threatening to impose new restrictions on advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) practice was introduced in the Tennessee General Assembly, TNA members sent over 6,000 messages to legislators within a 24-hour window, helping to defeat the measure.
TNA’s mission is to empower registered nurses, advocate for the practice of nursing, model nurse advocacy and political involvement, and champion quality health care equity for all Tennesseans. Its vision is to serve as the unifying voice for nursing in Tennessee to positively influence the future of health care.
As the 2025–2026 board year progresses, Hitt’s priorities — protecting nursing education funding, defending APRN scope of practice, and addressing the state’s nurse supply pipeline — place TNA at the center of healthcare policy in Tennessee. For an association entering its 121st year, the stakes are as high as they have ever been.