Nursing Workforce Development (NWD) - The University at Buffalo School of Nursing (UBSON) proposes the Nursing Success Scholars program to increase the recruitment, retention, graduation, and workforce advancement of registered nurses from disadvantaged backgrounds enrolled in the RN-BS program. Baccalaureate-prepared nurses are instrumental in reducing all-cause hospital mortality by 25%, and earning this degree creates a pathway to future career advancement. The project addresses educational, financial, environmental, and professional barriers that often impede academic success while strengthening the nursing workforce serving rural, medically underserved, and high-need communities in Western New York and throughout New York State. The RN-BS program serves registered nurses in the workforce who frequently balance full-time employment, family responsibilities, and financial obligations while pursuing baccalaureate education. Many students are first-generation college students, from low-income households, who have experienced other educational and environmental disadvantages that place them at increased risk for delayed progression and/or degree non-completion. Institutional data and a recent RN-BS student needs assessment identified key barriers to success: 1) work schedule conflicts, 2) time management challenges, 3) financial hardship, and 4) limited peer support, highlighting the critical need for coordinated, evidence-informed interventions. The Nursing Success Scholars program will implement a comprehensive individualized support model organized around four integrated components: 1) Recruitment and Pipeline Development; 2) Student Success and Retention; 3) Faculty Development and Professional Mentorship; and 4) Workforce Transition, Leadership Development, and Community Impact. Recruitment activities will strengthen transfer pathways through partnerships with regional community colleges and expand educational opportunities for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Students will receive individualized needs assessments, career coach support, faculty and peer mentoring, professional nurse mentoring, scholarship assistance, emergency financial support, wellness programming, leadership development, and career preparation. Faculty and professional nurse mentors will receive specialized training to strengthen their ability to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds and foster supportive learning environments. We will also collaborate with community colleges in rural areas to implement robust recruitment strategies to recruit students from disadvantaged backgrounds into our Nursing Success Scholar Program. The project will support a total of 60 Nursing Success Scholars over the four-year project period by enrolling 15 eligible scholars each year. Expected outcomes are: increased student recruitment, retention, progression, graduation, and workforce readiness among registered nurses from disadvantaged backgrounds for nurses; and strengthening faculty mentoring capacity, academic-practice partnerships, and career pathways into rural, medically underserved, and high-need communities for the program. By reducing barriers to baccalaureate nursing (BSN) education and preparing more BSN-prepared nurses to serve rural populations, the Nursing Success Scholars program will increase the representation of disadvantaged nurses in the workforce, build and expand educational opportunity for these nurses, and improve access to high-quality nursing care for individuals, families, and communities throughout Western New York and New York State.
