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Mrs. Anissa Riley,

Office of External Affairs,School of Veterinary Medicine, Tuskegee University

Tuskegee, AL 36088, (334)724-4509, FAX: (334)727-8177, Email: riley@tuskegee.edu

Health and Human Services Awards Over $1.2 million to Tuskegee University Nursing Program

by Anissa L. Riley

Tuskegee, AL—Tuskegee University’s Nursing Program in the College of Veterinary Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health received notification that it had been awarded a $1,279,302, three-year grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The grant was awarded for the Nursing Workforce Diversity Project. This project addresses Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act; Section 821 which focuses on Nursing Workforce Diversity.

The purpose of this project is to increase the number of baccalaureate degree prepared nurses who are from ethnic minority and/or disadvantaged backgrounds through educational enhancement and supportive activities designed to (1) increase the awareness of minorities and/or disadvantaged middle and high school students of health professional careers, (2) increase the retention rate of students occurring during the pre-nursing and professional phase, (3) prepare a culturally competent nurse, and (4) provide financial support. “The grant will enable Tuskegee’s School of Nursing and Allied Health to strengthen its (1) Recruitment, (2) Retention, (3) Pre-Entry, (4) Faculty Development, (5) Cultural competence and (6) Financial support.

Historically, racial and ethnic minorities have always been under-represented in the health professions in America. If nursing is to meet the health care needs of our changing society, it must increase its efforts to prepare nurses who are sensitive to and knowledgeable about the population they serve. Through support from the grant, we will be conducting ‘Nursing as a Career’ awareness presentations each semester on the campuses of two Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) with pre-nursing and/or pre-health professions programs and undecided majors at Tuskegee University,” said Dr. Cordelia Nnedu, Associate Professor/Assistant Director of the Department of Nursing at Tuskegee University.

The overall goal of retention is to increase the retention rate of students enrolled in the pre-professional program (freshmen and sophomores) and the professional phase (juniors and seniors). The strategies to be implemented include student contract, tutorials, seminars, prescriptive learning, comprehensive counseling, support groups, simulations and supplemental reviews via Blackboard. Retention plan will include the Early Alert Evaluation form, and the Individualized Prescriptive Learning Plan (IPLP) currently in use to enhance student success.

The pre-entry objective is designed to raise the awareness of middle school students of health profession careers, and to enhance the high school participants' potential to successfully complete their public school education, and to prepare them for admission to the nursing program. An end product of this objective is an expansion of the pool of qualified and interested applicants from minority and disadvantaged populations.

Dr. Nnedu added, “According to the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) 2000, the need for the high school awareness programs is based on the fact that very few students nationwide reach the proficient levels in mathematics, reading, science and writing. The Tuskegee University Department of Nursing is employing strategies to increase the number of disadvantaged minority students admitted to a baccalaureate nursing program.”

The faculty development and cultural competence objectives are designed to facilitate the implementation of a curriculum with enhanced cultural content and to assist faculty in developing teaching strategies that will enhance their ability to work with culturally diverse students and clients.

The financial support for the students focuses on senior and junior nursing students who are receiving stipends in the amount of $250.00 per month. It is envisioned that providing students with monthly stipends would foster success in nursing by promoting a decrease in financial worries and alleviating many of the unmet personal needs and incidental fees related to enrollment in a nursing program. Students must maintain a passing grade in all of their courses for the eligibility of funds to continue. The freshmen and sophomore students receive scholarship monies as well.

“The faculty and staff in the School of Nursing and Allied Health are to be commended for working together to make the Nursing Workforce Diversity project a success. Without the team approach the over $1.2 million grant award would not have been made possible. This grant moves the program a step closer in identifying students for the nursing program and eventually graduating competent nurses,” said Dr. Tsegaye Habtemariam, Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Nursing and Allied Health.