To better understand the nature of a quality practice environment for nurse educators, a survey instrument was constructed and pilot tested. he aim of the study was to highlight some of the critical issues needing to be addressed to support the recruitment and retention of nurse educators. The knowledge generated from the survey makes explicit what nurse educators consider to be important to them in their environments and whether they are currently experiencing these elements. Based on the preliminary results, additional research needs to be undertaken to further develop the psychometric properties of the tool along with a closer examination of the culture of schools of nursing. The information generated may serve to enhance nurse educators' environments to better reflect what they consider to be important.