Nursing Education

Initiatives

Capacity Expansion:
Colleges across the State have been working diligently with hospital partners to expand the capacity of their nursing programs in order to meet the demand for nurse graduates.

Between 2004 and 2006 community colleges reporting ability to admit more ADN students reported the following as methodology for their successful efforts:⁸

Obtained financial support from partner hospitals and health care agencies to cover costs for admitting more students. College of Lake County Morton Oakton Parkland Engaged in partnerships with health care agencies for Masters prepared RNs to serve as clinical instructors, i.e., joint appointment College of DuPage College of Lake County Illinois Valley- partnership with our six area hospitals. Together they pay for the salary of one instructor. “No strings attached.” Parkland Rock Valley Waubonsee- partner facility provides one adjunct clinical instructor. Provided the program at alternative times/schedules (other than traditional Monday-Friday days Elgin Harper Parkland Oakton Southwestern Recognized past education and work experience in healthcare of advanced placement in your program for other than LPNs or CNAs. None of the respondents were doing this but several were “articulating” with CNA/LPNs.

Rend Lake. You must be an LPN to get into the RN program; admit about 80 LPN students per year. We do give credit for one course to CNAs. All of our ADN students must be a PN for admission. We are using instructors from area institutions, but do not have an agreement for joint appointment. We are under pressure to increase enrollment, but do not have the faculty or the rooms.

Southwestern Illinois- We have an articulation process for CNAs and LPNs.

• Bundle? Package the nursing courses so that those who have general education and support courses completed can complete the nursing course sequence in less than two years (amount of time in shortened package).

Shawnee. Our program requires students to have successfully completed a Practical Nursing program before beginning. They can complete the ADN program in a minimum of two semesters if they go full time and have completed some of their general education courses.

• Partner with employers to provide incumbent workers
  
  Harper
  Oakton
  Rockford
  Southwestern

Triton. Working now with administration to advance partnering. Currently the college partners with the Foundation of Westlake Hospital in working with 3 area high schools. Students are selected in their sophomore year; work at the Hospital, and have Triton tuition and fees paid for.

Richland.
First, we began expanding in Jan 2003 when we offered admission twice a year. Instead of admitting 24 students once a year and graduating about 20 once a year, we began to admit 20 each fall and spring. The first Dec class graduated in Dec 2004. Graduating twice a year May and Dec gave employers 20 students in Dec and 20-30 in May because we had a Bridge program that prepared LPNs to enter in the summer and graduate in spring, so that added about 10 students to the spring graduation.
The second strategy was to work with the faculty to do some creative scheduling so that Bridge students could be admitted twice a year instead of just the summer. I moved the Bridge course to fall and spring instead of summer only, and began accepting Bridge students twice a year. That began in Jan 2004 and that resulted in about 10 additional grads in Dec and May. So we are now at 20-30 grads twice a year depending on the number of Bridge students.
The third strategy for expansion was to increase the number of basic students coming into the program. Beginning in Jan 06 we will admit 30 basic students twice a year until we have 120 basic students, which will take until fall 2007. In addition we will have at least 2 classes of Bridge students = 20.
The fourth strategy was to begin a Fast Track for the Gen Eds for students who have the ability. This program gets the gen eds done in 18 months and allows the student to continue to work, and is all online. We are running a pilot program currently with 13 students. If this is successful, we will add these students to the above numbers.
Carl Sandburg
We haven't done anything truly innovative, however we have increased the program by 10 additional students by going to all day rather than half day clinicals with one faculty taking overload. In this area our clinical agencies do not have master prepared nurses to share with us and we certainly have not found faculty that are willing to work on evenings or weekends!
Harper.
Plan to implement dual admissions with admitting of 40 students in the spring semester on an alternative (evenings/weekend) schedule and have partnerships with two hospitals as a part of a CSSI project that included admitting 20 students in Spring 2005 on a weekend program.

In answer to another ICNR survey conducted at the same time, other colleges briefly described their expansion strategies:
Aurora University- The University gave me authorization to hire two additional faculty and funding to update our laboratory equipment.
Heartland Community College- We increased our enrollment from 32 to 40 in fall of 2003 in response to the nursing shortage. This year we will admit five additional students after seeing a pattern over the past few years that we lose approximately five students each year just prior to the start of classes or within the first two weeks due to students deciding nursing is not for them.
NIU (Northern Illinois University) - We admit 140 students a year. We have collapsed sections of courses to free up faculty and we have hired more adjunct faculty.
Rush University College of Nursing -We hired more part-time faculty. These faculty are practicing nurses who teach for us a few weeks a year. We also increased our clinical practicum sites.
Sauk Valley Community College- We expanded by 10 slots in 2003 by having lecture classes of 30 and adding another clinical group.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville- SIUE has increased the number of faculty, including full time faculty, and created the second degree/ accelerated program. We are also using Illinois area community hospitals more as our clinical facilities, reversing a long time practice of using larger St. Louis city/county hospitals as primary care clinical agencies. Started accelerated BSN program for second career students in January 2006 with 16 students. We have a target of 40 students to be admitted in January 2007⁹

But several of the schools responding to these two surveys stated they had either decreased the number of nursing students they could admit or were unable to expand.
Illinois Valley Community College stated, “In 2003 we admitted 75 students and graduated 77 (we had returning students and a few AP students). We were not able to expand the numbers again because of a lack of faculty members. Now we have faculty (8) working overtime for enough hours for 3 more full time faculty. We have another faculty member that is retiring this year and have not filled her position. We live in a rural area that does not have a lot of MSN prepared clinical workers in our area hospitals.”
Saint Xavier University wrote “We have had to decrease our enrollment due to lack of faculty, especially clinical faculty. We are trying to limit enrollments to 60 students per semester (down from 80 per semester in 2004.)”
Southeastern Illinois College replied, “We have approval for an additional 10 ADN students for this fall but we don’t have an instructor nor do we have the 10 qualified students.”
From Southwestern Illinois College- “We will have a decrease this year: I have two fewer faculty and had to move first level people to second level. We have attempted to organize an effort (for more adjunct clinical faculty) as was done just west of us in St. Louis where the hospitals and schools collaborate so that staff who are in masters programs can function as clinical instructors as “leased faculty” with part of the cost shared by the facilities- we have not been able to do this as yet as there is resistance to allowing any other than MS prepared faculty. This proposal was implemented as a pilot in St. Louis and has been very successful so far.”

Other Education Initiatives
Standard Clinical Affiliation Agreement Project
Submitted by Genny Boesen, Executive Director, South Metropolitan Higher Education Consortium, summer 2006

As one of the efforts underway in the Chicago Metropolitan region to decrease the health care worker shortage, the South Metropolitan Higher Education Consortium (SMHEC) is spearheading a project to develop a standard clinical affiliation agreement to be used by health care providers and educational programs. The process of writing and approving clinical agreements between health care providers and educational institutions is notoriously arduous and labor intensive. Creating a standard agreement would simply require a signature on a pre-approved document, eliminating the back and forth with reviews and revisions. The benefits of using a standard clinical agreement include an enormous savings in personnel time at the health care and educational facilities, freeing the staff to focus their efforts on more critical activities. With the expeditious signing of the agreements, the placement of students in clinical rotations will occur more quickly, helping students plan and organize their schedules and their lives.

A task force including: SMHEC, Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council, Illinois Hospital Association, ICNR, hospital staff and educators representing the entire metropolitan Chicago area, developed a plan and timeline for this project. In May, 2006 the first draft of the document was developed. Task force members reviewed that draft. A group of hospitals and colleges in the Chicago Southland region are piloting the document for one year, beginning in the summer of 2006. A group of long term care and ancillary service facilities will begin a six month pilot in January of 2007.

Following the pilot, the document will be evaluated, revised as necessary and then be available to all health care providers and educational programs in the Chicago Metropolitan area. The task force envisions the widespread adoption of this standard agreement within several years. Any questions concerning this effort can be addressed to Genny Boesen at g-boesen@govst.edu.

Illinois Comprehensive Nursing Education Plan Proposal
Prepared by Representatives of the Illinois Association of Colleges of Nursing
(Comprised of 32 Illinois baccalaureate and higher degree programs in nursing)
And submitted by Dr. Maria Connolly
August 18, 2006 (Drafted November 7th, 2005)

We propose a model of a regional network of nursing education collaboratives (RNNEC) in five regions of the state.

• Each regional collaborative would be composed of at least one state school, several private 4-year universities and colleges and the community colleges with nursing programs in the region.
• The intention would be to plan for integrating resources and creating the broadest possible access to entry-level and advanced degrees in nursing for the highest number of qualified people.

From our perspective, among many things, the regional nursing education network collaboratives could serve to:

• Promote coordinated recruitment, retention (through advising) and dual or integrated admissions, and marketing of a lifelong nursing career.
• Enable the leveraging of scarce resources, such as marketing dollars and faculty.
• Facilitate faculty development and thereby ensure program quality.
• Set regional network common pre-nursing or general education courses and standardized curricula with some tailored features.
• Promote cooperative planning and implementation of clinical experiential or practica opportunities according to clinical agencies and resources in the regions.
• Facilitate multi-site evaluation and research projects.

The regions could be as follows:

1. Northeastern – UIC, Chicago State, West Suburban, DePaul, Loyola, North Park, Rush, Trinity College of Nursing (Moline), (n= 7) plus community colleges in region.
2. North central - Governors State, Olivet Nazarene, St Xavier, U of St. Francis, Trinity Christian (n = 4) plus community colleges in the region.
3. Southern – SIU-E, Blessing Rieman, Lakeview, MacMurray, McKendree, St John’s, (n = 5) plus community colleges in the region.
4. Central – ISU, Bradley, Il Wesleyan, Millikin, St Francis, Medical Center, Methodist (n = 5) plus community colleges in the region.
5. Northwestern – NIU, Aurora, Benedictine, Elmhurst, Lewis, Rockford College, St. Anthony’s, (n = 6) plus the community colleges in the region.

From our perspective these regional networks could serve to:

• Promote opportunities for coordinated recruitment (beginning at the junior high and high school grades), retention (through advising) and dual or integrated admissions.
• Coordinate marketing and reveal the versatility of nursing as a lifelong career path early on so that people are not lost to nursing practice over time.
• Connect students to expedient ways to foster careers within nursing by seamlessly attaining advanced degrees in nursing within or beyond their domicile region.
• Enable the leveraging of scarce resources, such as marketing dollars and faculty.
• Enhance the scope of faculty development and thereby ensure high-level program quality.
• Set regional network common pre-nursing or general education courses.
• Develop collaborative faculty development opportunities to maintain high quality of faculty.
• Collaborate to plan and implement clinical experiential or practica opportunities according to clinical agencies and regional resources.
• Facilitate multi-site assessment, evaluation and research projects.
• Communicate comprehensively about the challenges and outcomes of nursing education.
• Centralize data collection on workforce needs and projections.

Graphic Schema of
Regional Network of Nursing Education Collaboratives (RNNEC)

Southeast Healthcare Consortium Grant
Illinois Eastern Community Colleges- Olney Central College
Excerpts from a PowerPoint presentation to the ICNR in April 2006
Presented by Donna Henry
Partnership

• Illinois Eastern Community Colleges coordinated through Olney Central College
• Clay County Hospital
• Crawford Memorial Hospital
• Richland Memorial Hospital
• United Methodist Village
• Wabash General Hospital

Goals of the Grant

• Prepare CNAs and LPNs for entry into the Practical Nurse and Registered Nurse Programs
• Prepare Health Care Workers (HCWs) for licensure at next level through the career mobility curriculum
• Provide HCWs with additional training
  
  • Better utilization of employees
  • Develop knowledge, skills and attitudes that encourage progression in health care careers

Plan

• Informational meetings with partners
• Assess interest/need of incumbent workers
• Assess capabilities and readiness of employees interested
• Assess technology needs of Partner sites
• Provide courses in Partner sites based on needs assessment
  
  • Remedial
  • Study skills
  • General education
  • Nursing

Integrity in Implementation

• Bring students to completion point
  
  • Course
  • Program
• Maintain standards
• Maintain quality

Resources from College

• Instructors
• Tutoring
• Advising
• Mentoring
• On-site placement testing (COMPASS or ASSET), LSI (learning styles), CSI (attitudes, values, support systems)
• Technology (computers, printers)
• “Soft” supplies for skill competency checks

Resources from Partners

• Classroom Space
• Access to “hard” supplies for skills competency checks
• Qualified RNs for Preceptor Roles
• Support of Employees participating in courses
• Contact person for communication

Implementation
Nursing Program Admission

• Meet all program criteria for admission
• Certified NA for Level I
• LPN for Level II
• All general education courses completed for Level

Implementation
Teaching/Learning Nursing

• Hybrid theory
• Facilitation groups: 4 sites 3:30 – 7:30 PM
  
  • Skills: MSN or video tape
  • Group discussion, activities, audiovisuals
  • Testing
• Clinicals
  
  • Preceptor experiences
  • MSN faculty: evening/weekend

Challenges ...AND MILES TO GO BEFORE WE SLEEP

12 Counties
3,000 square miles
45 to 90 miles between facilitation sites

College Challenges

• Qualified nursing instructors
• Overload of faculty
• Training/tracking preceptors
• Scheduling
• Communication
  
  • Students
  • Clinical instructors
  • Grant staff
• Meeting student special needs

Partner Challenges

• Preceptors
  
  • Role strain
  • Role overload
• Clinical space
• Facilitation of participating employees
• Communication

Student Challenges

• Full-time employees
• Need for self-discipline/self-direction
• Adjustment to technology
  
  • On-line theory
  • At home access
• Directing questions through WebCT or via e-mail
• Delay in feedback on tests

Outcomes

• 15 of 20 completing AD
• 7 of 7 completing Level I: PN in summer
• Testing results comparable to other students
  
  • HESI Exit Exam
  • ARNETT CAT
  • ARNETT CT
  • Test outcomes same or better

Evaluation: What Worked

• Small group facilitation meetings
• WebCT
• Decreased travel time
• Peer support
• Empowerment felt by students to be involved in planning
• Constancy of Grant staff
• Lead instructor Level I and Level II

Evaluation: Needs Improvement

• Use of discussion board
• Communication channels
• Consistent plan for facilitation groups
• Meeting special needs of students

Other outcomes

• Provided some type of class for 150 students
• Offered Spanish for Health Care Professionals at two Partner sites
• Offered opportunity to participate in educational experiences
  
  • Learned they could learn
  • Courage to try

MSNs in Illinois
It is obvious that a top priority for maintaining current nursing education capacity and/or expanding the number of nursing graduates to meet the demand is to increase the number of masters prepared nurses who can and wish to teach in Illinois nursing programs. In order to facilitate advanced education we have developed this list of graduate programs and the degrees they offer.

Graduate Programs in Nursing in Illinois

Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)
MSN programs are particularly important at a time when the top priority for addressing the nursing shortage is inadequate capacity in schools of nursing. The Illinois Nursing and Advanced Practice Nursing Act requires faculty in schools of nursing to have an MSN. There is a faculty shortage. Inability to recruit qualified faculty for nursing programs is the number one reason for inability to increase number of students enrolled in nursing in both ADN and BSN programs.
Fortunately, the number of Master’s programs in nursing has been increasing and it is more convenient than ever for nurses interested in Advanced Practice and/or teaching to get the necessary education and credentials.
Doctoral Nursing Programs
Illinois, like the rest of the country, has few doctoral programs in nursing but, according to the Illinois Board of Higher Education, there were 77 doctoral degrees in Nursing conferred in Illinois in 2004 and 2005. Three schools offer doctoral degrees in Nursing: Loyola, University of Illinois at Chicago and Rush University.
We have researched all Illinois schools and developed the following list of programs for nurses who are seeking a graduate degree in Nursing.

Bradley University, Peoria www.bradley.edu

MSN:

Nursing Administration
MSN (General)
Nurse Administered Anesthesia
Post-Master’s Certificate in Nurse Administered Anesthesia

DePaul University, Chicago www.depaul.edu/nursing

MSN:

Advanced Practice
Adult Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Nurse Anesthesia
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
Women’s Health
Primary Care Practitioner
Clinical Nurse Leader

Master’s entry program for non-nurses
Certificate Programs

Post-Baccalaureate: Managed Care and Case Management
Post-Masters

Nurse Practitioner
Administration and Leadership
Nursing Education and Scholarship

Elmhurst College, Elmhurst www.public.elmhurst.edu/nursing

MSN with concentration as Clinical Nurse Leader
MSN with concentration in nursing education

Governor State University, University Park www.govst.edu/chp/nursing

MSN: Clinical Specialist in Adult Health
Nurse Educator Certificate

Lewis University, Romeoville www.lewisu.edu/academics/nursing
MSN:

Nursing Administration
Nursing Education

Dual MSN/MBA
Post-Masters Certificates

Nursing administration
Nursing education

Loyola University of Chicago, Chicago www.luc.edu/academics/nursing

MSN:

Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Acute Care Clinical Nurse Specialist
Adult Health Nurse Practitioner
Adult Health Clinical Nurse Specialist
Cardiac Health and Disease Management Clinical Nurse Specialist
Family Health Nurse Practitioner
Health Systems Management
Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner
Population-Based Infection Control and Environmental Safety
Oncology Entrepreneur Clinical Nurse Specialist
Nursing Services Administrator

Post Master’s Certificates

Cardiovascular Nursing
Oncology Entrepreneur Clinical Nurse Specialist
Health Care Informatics
Health Care Management
Outcomes Performance Management
Population-Based Infection Control and Environmental Safety
Spiritual Care for Health Care Providers
Teaching in Nursing
Nurse Practitioner

Dual MSN/ MBA
Dual MSN/ Masters in .Divinity
PhD in Nursing (Traditional and Summer Programs)

McKendree College, Lebanon www.mckendree.edu

MSN

Nursing Education (RN/ADN- to MSN- 3 year program)
Nursing Management and Administration

Memorial Medical Center, Springfield www.mhsil.com

Collaborative doctoral program with the University of Iowa: Focus Nursing in Aging

Mennonite College of Nursing at Illinois State University www.ilstu.edu

MSN (accelerated program also)
Post Masters Family Practitioner Certification

Methodist Medical Center College of Nursing, Peoria www.methodistcollegeofnursing.com

MSN:

Family Nurse Practitioner
Nursing Systems Administrator

Post-Masters Certificates

Family Nurse Practitioner
Nurse Educator Graduate

Millikin University, Decatur www.millikin.edu/nursing

MSN with Clinical Nurse Leader and Nurse Educator tracks
School Nurse Certification Program

North Park University www.northpark.edu/nursing

MSN tracks

Leadership and Management
Advanced Nursing Practice
Community Health Specialist
Adult Nurse Practitioner

Dual MSN/MATS (Master of Arts in Theological Studies
Dual MSN/MBA
Post-Masters Certificates

Adult Nurse Practitioner
Family Nurse Practitioner
Geriatric Nurse Practitioner

Northern Illinois University, DeKalb www.niu.edu/nursing

MSN:

Family Nurse Practitioner
Adult Nurse Practitioner
Clinical Nurse Specialist
Nurse Educator
Post Masters Certificate: Family Nurse Practitioner

Olivet Nazarene University, Bourbonnais www.olivet.edu/nursing

MSN

Rockford College of Nursing, Rockford www.rockford.edu/academics/nursing

MSN: Clinical Specialists and Nurse Practitioner roles

Rush University, Chicago www.rushu.rush.edu/nursing

MSN Clinical Specialist

Community/ Public Health
Critical Care: Adult
Gerontological
Medical Surgical
Pediatric
Psychiatric-Mental Health
MSN: Nurse Practitioner

Acute Care
Acute/Chronic Care Pediatric
Adult
Anesthesia
Family
Gerontological
Neonatal
Pediatric
Psychiatric-Mental Health
ADN-MSN Program
Dual Masters

Acute Care NP and Critical Care CNS
Adult NP and Gerontological NP/CNS
Adult NP and Medical Surgical CNS
Adult NP and Psychiatric Mental Health NP/CNS
Post-Master’s Certificates for any NP or CNS option
Post-Certificate Masters

Anesthesia
Neonatal Pediatric
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
Doctor of Nursing Science (DNSc) Including BSN-DNSc option

Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville www.siee.edu/NURSING

MSN

Healthcare and Nursing Administration
Nurse Educator
Family Nurse Practitioner
Clinical Nurse Leader
Certified Nurse Anesthesia Program
Medical Surgical
Psychiatric Mental Health
Public Health

Accelerated MSN for students with a Bachelors in another field
Certificates

Health Care and Nursing Administration
Psychiatric Mental Health
Medical Surgical
School Nurse
Gerontological Nursing
Nursing Management
Nurse Educator
Public Health Nursing

St. Anthony College of Nursing, Rockford www.sacn.edu

MSN

Nurse Educator track
Clinical Nurse Leader track
Clinical Nurse Specialist, Adult health

St. Francis Medical Center College of Nursing, Peoria www.sfmccon.edu

MSN

Medical Surgical Nursing
Child and Family Nursing
Tracks in Clinical Practice or Education

Post Masters Certificates

Nurse Educator
Nurse Clinician

St. Xavier University, Chicago www.sxu.edu/son

MSN

Family Nurse Practitioner
Clinical Nurse Leader
Adult Health
Leadership/ Community Health
Psychiatric/ Mental Health
Dual MSN/MBA degree
Expedited admission agreement with Rush University to obtain doctoral degree

University of St. Francis College of Nursing and Allied Health, Joliet www.stfrancis.edu/conah

MSN

Family Nursing Practitioner and CNS Program at Albuquerque campus and online
Adult Health CNS

University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago www.uic.edu/nursing

MSN

Maternal Child
Medical Surgical
Public Health
Mental Health
Administration
Nurse Practitioner

Acute Care
Adult
Adult/Geriatrics
Family
Geriatrics
Mental health
Occupational health
Pediatrics
School Nursing
Women’s Health
Nurse Midwife
CNS Options

Acute Care
Geriatrics
Mental health
Occupational health
Pediatrics
Perinatal
School Nursing
Dual Degrees

MSN Administrative Nursing /MBA
MSN Administrative Nursing/ Health Informatics
MSN Advanced Community health Specialist/ Masters in Public Health
Post-Masters Certificates

Advanced Practice Palliative Care Nurse
Advanced Nursing leadership
Health Informatics
School Nurse
Teaching
And all Nurse Practitioner certificates
PhD in Nursing Science
BSN to PhD program
Establishing a DNP (Doctorate of Nursing Practice)
Graduate Entry Program for applicants with a degree in another field/ MSN entry

University of Illinois Regional Programs
The University of Illinois College of Nursing has four regional programs:

Peoria
Quad Cities
Rockford
Urbana

Urbana is the only one of the four with a BSN (pre-licensure) program.
Both Urbana and Quad Cities have RN to BSN programs and Rockford offers an ADN to MSN program for ADNs with a Bachelors in another field.
Urbana has supportive courses for the PhD program and Peoria has the combined MSN/ MPH.
All four campuses offer virtually all of the MSN, Nurse Practitioner, and CNS options that are offered at the Chicago campus.

West Suburban College of Nursing, Oak Park www.wscn.edu

MSN

Clinical Nurse Leader
Adult Health Clinical Specialist
Nurse Administrator track
Nurse Educator track

Support for Graduate Students
SB931 was signed into law by Governor Blagojevich this summer. It has several provisions to support development of nursing faculty in Illinois. This description is excerpted from an IDFPR document describing the bill.

• Nursing educator scholarships: Since every additional faculty member in nursing can add 10 more nurses to the workforce, the Center would also be charged with the creation of a nursing education scholarship that will make pursuing a career in nursing education more attractive and more affordable in the State of Illinois. This year’s budget includes $1.3 million for these scholarships.
• Grants to nursing schools: Capacity in nursing colleges around the country is reaching the breaking point. In fact, over 26,000 qualified applicants were turned away from baccalaureate granting nursing programs in the United States because of faculty shortages, crowded clinical facilities, and funding shortfalls. In Illinois, over 1,100 qualified applicants were not admitted. In order to increase the number of faculty, and the number of graduating nurses as a result, Illinois would make competitive grants available to nursing schools. These could be used to hire more faculty members or create evening or weekend training programs, among other options. In Fiscal Year 2007, a $1.5 million grant would be available to nursing schools to increase the number of graduating nurses, as well as $150,000 for 15 nurse educator fellowships that would supplement faculty salaries.
• Student loan repayment for nurse educators: The legislation contains provisions for a future loan forgiveness program for those who choose to become nursing faculty. The Illinois Nurse Educator Loan Repayment Program, through the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC), would be an incentive for nurses to become educators. The program will allow current nurse educators, or those in a Master’s level or PhD program to become a nurse educator, to receive $5,000 in student loan forgiveness a year, for up to four years. For every year of student loan forgiveness they receive, they must work for one year as a nurse educator in Illinois. The program will be up and running by Fiscal Year 08.

⁸ ICCB Nursing Program Survey, Vickie Gukenberger, Harper College, May 2006
⁹ ICNR, Rapid Response Brief Survey, May 19, 2006