Nurse Education, Practice, Quality and Retention - Workforce Expansion Program - The United States anticipates only a 6% growth in the registered nursing workforce over the next decade. (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, ([AACN], 2022; Bureau of Labor Statistics [BLS], 2023). Further, faculty shortages, student financial barriers, lack of ease of articulation, and availability of clinical experiences hinder the production of future nurses, particularly in rural areas (World Health Organization, 2020). The state of Georgia, at 29%, has the highest nurse shortage rate in the United States (HRSA, 2024), resulting in a request for funding priority consideration. This proposal will support 70 trainees from a public university and a public technical college to increase the nursing workforce in the rural and underserved areas of Carroll and Haralson Counties in Georgia, particularly in long-term care (LTC) settings. Removal of financial barriers for trainees will occur by providing scholarships, a monthly stipend, and technology (laptop or iPad) to access their online coursework and support learning. Removal of articulation barriers will occur through an articulation agreement between the University of West Georgia and West Georgia Technical College, allowing a seamless transition from an associate degree to a baccalaureate degree completion program. Retention and graduation support will occur by providing trainees with a graduate student or peer mentor and access to a Writing Associate and Student Success Coordinator. Finally, students will gain increased knowledge and experience caring for patients in an LTC or acute-care setting through over 80 additional hours of clinical experiences and online content. These activities will increase the nursing workforce in rural areas, addressing the critical shortage of nurses.
