In March 2020, educators worldwide faced significant challenges as authorities recommended the suspension of in-person instruction to protect staff and students from exposure to COVID-19. This qualitative descriptive phenomenological study explored the lived experiences of U.S. nursing instructors navigating the rapid change from traditional curricula to a remote online presence during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through semistructured interviews, 12 nursing instructors provided rich information about their emergency remote teaching experiences in overcoming the obstacles in engaging and assessing students during the pandemic. Using a modified van Kaam analysis, six key themes were found in the data: engagement, environment, learning assessment, pandemic restrictions, technology, and unforeseen challenges. The themes of engagement and environment answered "RQ1," revealing that many students experienced disengagement during the pandemic and that the learning environment was vital. The themes of learning assessment, pandemic restrictions, technology, and unforeseen challenges answered "RQ2," revealing that these influences negatively affected the overall effectiveness of teaching. The findings, limitations, and implications of this study for future research are discussed. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]