Nursing Project News

Capital Campaign for UNMC College of Nursing at Northeast Launched

Feb. 5, 2008 - The excitement was palpable Tuesday at Northeast Community College when a capital campaign was launched to build a University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) College of Nursing Northern Division on Northeast’s campus in Norfolk.

Ron Stauffer, general campaign chairperson, served as master of ceremonies of the special program. Northeast President Dr. Bill Path, UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D. and UNMC College of Nursing Dean Virginia Tilden, D.N.Sc., also spoke. Additional comments were offered by Paula Pflueger, central region co-chair. Bob Bartee, vice chancellor for external affairs at UNMC, also attended the event as did Clark Froehlich, another central region co-chair, and Mike Hammond and Lisa Walters representing Faith Regional Health Services.

Honorary co-chairs for the project are George Dudley, Jerry and Karla Huse, and Richard and Betti Robinson, all of Norfolk, Herb and Kathy Albers, Wisner, and Duane and Phyllis Acklie, Lincoln. The central region consists of Madison, Stanton, and Pierce Counties. District 19 Senator and Speaker of the Legislature Mike Flood, Norfolk, is the honorary general campaign chairperson and was unable to attend because of weather conditions in Lincoln.

The capital campaign goal is $12.9 million. That figure includes costs of a 34,973-square-foot facility to house Northeast’s basic nurse aide (commonly referred to as CNA), licensed practical nursing (LPN) and associate degree nursing (ADN) programs and UNMC’s bachelor of science (BSN), master of science (MSN) and doctoral (Ph.D.) programs. Tentative opening date is 2010.

Additional campaign costs include site development, infrastructure and financing for the project. The land, valued at $500,000, has been donated by Northeast Community College.

At the kick-off ceremony, Stauffer announced that just over $3 million dollars was raised in the central region in 60 days during the silent phase of the campaign.

Enhanced continuing education opportunities for practicing registered nurses will also be available at this site. The new northern division of the UNMC College of Nursing could also educate more students for work in community and public health services, which is part of the university’s bachelor of science in nursing program. Public health nurses must have a bachelor’s degree.

Northeast’s entire nursing faculty and their classes will move to the new state-of-the-art facility. Initially, UNMC’s programs would recruit 10 faculty and an assistant dean. Once the program reaches its capacity of students, an additional five faculty would be needed for a total of 15 full-time faculty. Dr. Tilden will oversee UNMC programming. Northeast will graduate up to 50 ADN students each year. The UNMC nursing division will graduate up to 48 BSN students. UNMC bachelor’s degree nursing students would fulfill their general education requirements by taking Northeast Community College classes.

“The kick off of the campaign signals yet another step in the partnership commitment between UNMC, Northeast Community College, Faith Regional Health Services, and Nebraskans in the region,” Dr. Maurer said. “A nursing division in Norfolk would help serve the area’s health needs and improve its citizens’ quality of life.”

“I said it several months ago and it is even more appropriate on this very special day,” Dr. Path said. “It is with great anticipation that we embark on this journey with UNMC. We look forward to the day when we will open the doors of this new joint nursing facility on our campus that will contribute to a brighter and healthier future for northeast Nebraska,” Dr. Path said.

“I have been involved in many projects over the years to improve the quality of life for northeast Nebraskans,” Stauffer said. “But none have excited me like this campaign. The potential for economic development, improved health care, better-trained nurses to meet anticipated shortages, and so very much more is staggering.”

The planned Norfolk division was prompted by an inquiry in April 2006 from Sen. Flood to help address the growing demand for acute care in north and northeast Nebraska, and the associated need to increase the number of nurses with bachelor’s and graduate degrees. It is estimated that there will be a shortfall of 1,216 full-time nurses by 2010 and 3,838 full-time nurses by 2020 in Nebraska. Northeast Nebraska, with already the fewest RNs, BSNs, and advance practice registered nurses (master-level prepared nurses in the state), will be hit particularly hard by this shortage, according to campaign leadership.

In January of 2007, the Nebraska Board of Regents unanimously approved the proposal. A Letter of Intent Signing Ceremony was held on the Northeast campus in late April. Currently, UNMC has divisions in four Nebraska cities: Omaha, Lincoln, Kearney and Scottsbluff. Campaign manager is Courtney Klein-Faust, Northeast’s executive director of development. Campaign coordinator is Joe Ferguson, director of business, industry, and economic development at Northeast.
For more information about the campaign, visit www.healthy-lives.org or contact Klein-Faust at (402)844-7056.