The Royce Foundation was started in 1961 for the purposes of:

• The promotion and well being of the students at JMH
• The furnishing of recreational facilities and aids for the students of JMH and
• Fundraising and financial assistance to students, individually and in groups

Over the years a number of activities were added:

• Sponsoring of alumni activities for graduates of JHM
• Funding of scholarships
• Other purposes consistent with advancing the interests of nursing and nursing education at JMH

The History of Jackson Memorial Hospital School of Nursing
1920 - 1997

JMH School of Nursing officially opened in October1920 under the direction of Ainah Royce R.N., who was hired as Superintendent of the hospital and Director of Nurses.  The school was called the Miami City Hospital Training School for Nurses. The 35-bed hospital had begun as a private facility, the Friendly Society Hospital, built mainly to care for Henry Flagler’s rail workers in Miami. The city took over in 1911 and in 1918 moved the hospital to its current location on NW 12 Avenue.

Enrollment in the school grew to 35 within the first few months of opening. Entrance requirements included “good moral character” in addition to two years of high school and courses in Latin, English, mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, and household economics. In 1921, after one year’s probation, the State Board of Nursing in Florida licensed the school provisionally since it met basic state requirements. The school was fully accredited in 1923. Only four graduated in the first class in 1923.

In 1924, the Miami City Commission renamed the hospital the James M Jackson Hospital to honor the memory of Dr. Jackson, one of Miami’s early physicians. The change resulted in a change of names for the school as well.

By 1965, with more than 300 students JMH-SON had become one of the top 12 schools of nursing in the U.S. both in size and reputation. In 1981 another nursing shortage helped secure the school's place as an educational center for nurses during the decade to come despite rising competition from community college and four –year baccalaureate programs. The program’s length was reduced to two years, which required that incoming students complete 35 college credits before entering.

By 1997, the year the school closed, Jackson Memorial Hospital had grown to 1,567 licensed beds and employed a staff of 6,895. More than 4,500 students graduated from the school during its existence.