With Rogers's leadership, NYU became one of the first universities to treat nursing as a science with a distinct body of knowledge developed through research.

Rogers's groundbreaking model for the Science of Unitary Human Beings provided a theoretical basis for nursing practice, education, and research.

[3] In 1931, Osborne became the first African American nurse to receive a master's degree, awarded by Teachers College, Columbia University.

[5] During the next decade, McGriff and her successor, Patricia Winstead-Fry, directed a substantial expansion of the master's degree program — in part by enhancing research involvement for graduate students.

Under her direction, new academic programs, community-based practices, expanded research initiatives, and growth took place.