$261K MHEC Grant to Aid SU Nursing Program

SALISBURY, MD---As the national nursing shortage continues to grow, Salisbury University has received funding from the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) to help address this critical need.

Using a $261,009 grant over 3 years, SU plans to expand its graduate programs in nursing to reach Maryland nurses who want to become nursing faculty.

The University will create a new clinical nurse educator track and will develop a track to allow registered nurses with an associate degree in nursing to earn a masters degree in less time than is currently possible. Both will offer about half of the required courses in a distance learning format.

"This grant provides the means for the Department of Nursing to begin to address identified community needs by providing a new clinical nurse educator track, distance learning options and an outstanding education at the masters level,” said Dr. Susan Battistoni, department chair.

Selected from among 23 proposals, SU is one of nine institutions that have received $5.9 million over five years through MHEC’s Nurse Support Program (NSP II).

The NSP II project partners institutions of higher education with health systems and hospitals to increase the number of nurses in Maryland hospitals and expand the capacity of the state’s nursing programs. It is expected to increase undergraduate and graduate nursing enrollments in Maryland by an estimated 1,500 students.

“We are particularly pleased that we will have the resources to develop our own state of the art technology supported classroom that will enhance our efforts to provide distance learning courses that are engaging, student focused, accessible and efficient,” said Dr. Karin Johnson, director of graduate and second degree programs.

“Our intent is to distinguish the SU Department of Nursing from its peers by taking a rigorous approach to the creation of these courses to make them exciting and challenging and reflective of the latest options in distance learning education. We will continue to work closely with local community colleges and healthcare facilities in recruiting high quality students, providing them with an excellent master’s level education and in encouraging them to consider nursing education as a career option.”

Also beginning next fall, Delaware residents enrolling in SU’s graduate programs in nursing will be able to study at reduced out-of-state tuition rate.

For more information call 410 543 6030 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.