AM STONE | WVOW NEWS
MT GAY, WVa | Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College received $985,000 from Governor Jim Justice’s Nursing Workforce Expansion Program.
The Governor’s program awarded nearly $23 million dollars to 26 nursing programs and is expected to support up to 600 new nursing students.
First announced in December, the program is designed to address the Mountain State’s nursing shortage. The Workforce Expansion Programs is designed to be a multifaceted approach to attract, train, and ultimately retain nurses. Justice initially funded the program with $48 million dollars.
“We continue to do as much as we possibly can to support future and current nurses whose commitment to the well-being of their fellow West Virginians is unmatched,” Justice said in a prepared statement. “This initiative represents a truly historic investment in our state’s nursing workforce, and I am thrilled that these funds are already on their way to strengthen education programs across the state.”
Southern’s Nursing Department plans to start an accelerated weekend program with its award. The investment is expected to support up to twenty new nursing students at the local college.
Southern President Dr. Pamela L. Alderman said this will benefit the community as well as the college. “This will provide a great opportunity for our students, but it will also fill a gap in the nursing shortage in our region,” said President Alderman.
Approved projects were required to be focused on increasing enrollment in pre-licensure nursing programs through innovative approaches focused on timely degree completion and licensure for graduates, according to a statement from the Governor’s office.
“We are tremendously grateful to Governor Justice for providing this historic funding to support the expansion of nursing education programs across West Virginia,” said Dr. Sarah Armstrong Tucker, West Virginia’s Chancellor of Higher Education. “Through these new projects, our postsecondary education community will be better positioned to help shore up West Virginia’s nursing workforce… will help support our nurses working tirelessly on the front lines right now.”
Nursing programs expansion awards were administered by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and Community and Technical College. Recipients of the awards include:
· RN Programs
o Alderson Broaddus University
o Blue Ridge Community & Technical College
o Bluefield State College
o Davis & Elkins College
o Fairmont State University
o New River Community & Technical College
o Shepherd University
o Southern West Virginia Community & Technical College
o St. Mary’s School of Nursing
o University of Charleston
o West Liberty University
o West Virginia Junior College
o West Virginia Northern Community College
o West Virginia State University
o West Virginia University
o West Virginia University Institute of Technology
o West Virginia University at Parkersburg
o Wheeling University
· LPN Programs
o Boone Career and Technical Center
o John D. Rockefeller Career Center
o Med Care Training Center
o Mingo Extended Learning Center
o New River Community & Technical College
· New Programs
o BridgeValley Community & Technical College
o Concord University
o Marshall University & Glenville State University joint program