WesternU College of Graduate Nursing awarding $1.3 million in financial assistance to students
Western University of Health Sciences College of Graduate Nursing students beginning classes today, Aug. 28, 2023, are receiving $1.3 million in scholarships and stipends.
Twenty Master of Science in Nursing – Entry (MSN-E) students will receive scholarships from the Strategically Transforming and Advancing Nursing Diversity (STAND) grant. CGN received a $1.64 million Strategically Transforming and Advancing Nursing Diversity (STAND) grant from HRSA to provide scholarships to underrepresented minority nursing students as well as supportive services to help them succeed. The funding supports 20 MSN-E students per year for three years. The MSN-E students starting today represent the second cohort of STAND scholarship recipients. Read more about the first STAND Scholars.
“There has never been a better time to be a nurse,” said CGN Dean Mary Lopez, PhD, MSN, RN. “Removing the barrier of the cost of attendance is important for individuals to advance their careers. We are directly addressing the need for a more diverse nursing workforce. Our STAND recipients are the faces of tomorrow’s workforce.”
Sixty-two Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) students are receiving support from the California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) Psychiatric Education Capacity Expansion (PECE) Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners Grant Program. CGN received a $7,912,000 grant from the HCAI in 2022.
Thirty-two PMHNP students are receiving stipend support of $10,000 each. HRSA awarded CGN $1.875 million to create Behavioral Workforce Education Training (BWET) program to enhance mental health services in the region. The BWET program also created the region’s first Behavioral Health Training Center. The first cohort of WesternU PMHNP students started in August 2021.
“CGN is proud to help support the mental health needs of California,” said Rodney W. Hicks, PhD, RN, FNP-BC, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN, CGN Associate Dean for Research and Administration and Research. “California currently is experiencing an increase demand for mental health services for clients of all ages at the time that the number of practicing psychiatrists is dwindling. Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners are assessing, diagnosing, and treating the mental health needs of clients and families. Our grants are increasing the number of PMHNPs to fill the need.”
