HRSA grant will help Joliet university prepare nursing educators

The Leach College of Nursing at the University of St. Francis recently received a grant worth nearly $250,000 each year.

This grant will help reduce the nursing faculty shortage and address health disparities, while providing “incentives for students to enter careers in nurse education in academic and clinical settings,” according to Christina Nordick, grant project director and associate professor of nursing at USF.

“The NFLP funds will provide tuition assistance to 20 future nurse educators in the Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP), Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), and post-master’s certificate programs,” Nordick said in the release.

This Nurse Faculty Loan Program Grant is through the Health Resources and Services Administration. Its goal is to increase the amount of qualified nursing faculty across the U.S, while decreasing the financial barrier experienced by many nursing instructors.

Students may receive up to $12,490 annually to pay for tuition, fees, books and educational expenses, the release said. After graduation, 85% of the grant is “forgiven” if recipients are employed full-time as nurse faculty at an accredited institution or employed part-time in an accredited nursing institution and are precept advanced practice registered nursing (APRN) students part time or are precept APRN students full-time for four years,” the release said.

The release said the grant will help USF increase the quantity and diversity of nurse educators in the greater Chicago area, help USF NFLP loan recipients receive high-quality preparation for their nurse-educator roles and help decrease the shortage of nurse educators in the Chicago area.

“Students will benefit from the various in-kind supportive structures provided at USF, such as mentorship, advising, and career-development activities, which will help students overcome barriers that prevent them from persisting through graduation,” Nordick said in the release.

For information, visit stfrancis.edu/leach-college-of-nursing.