School of Nursing Centers Receive $2 Million in Federal Grants for Graduate Education

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (July 28, 2008) — The University of Minnesota School of Nursing’s Center for Adolescent Nursing and Center for Children with Special Health Care Needs each received $1 million from the federal Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) of the Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. They are two of only five university-based nursing programs in the country to receive this funding. The school will utilize this funding to educate and increase the number of advanced nurses who will promote innovative health and wellness programs for young people and their families.

“We continue to fulfill our mission by preparing nurses for lead roles in clinical care and public health practice,” said Connie Delaney, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N., F.A.C.M.I., dean of the School of Nursing, “These grants reflect our commitment to improving care for children and youth while shaping the way we deliver services in today’s health care environment.”

Each center has been instrumental in initiating research and outreach programs that impact practice in hospitals, clinics, and communities. Alumni use the education and experiences gained from their work with the centers to serve communities in diverse, influential roles in important fields such as oncology and reproductive and mental health. One advanced practice nurse who graduated from one of these centers now works at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago with girls who are at high risk for sexual abuse and HIV/AIDS.  Another teaches in a university nursing program helping students learn how to work with Latino/Latina young people living in rural areas.

The goal of the Center for Adolescent Nursing is to keep pace with the social nature of teen problems and to improve teen health by preparing nurses for lead roles in academia and public health. Initial support from MCHB launched the Center for Adolescent Nursing in 1993. It remains the only international federally supported center for nurses who specialize in adolescent health.

“Our center has been successful in securing research grants – $10 million from the NIH thus far,” said Linda Bearinger,Ph.D., M.S., R.N., F.A.A.N., director of the Center for Adolescent Nursing. “This additional training support from the MCHB assures on-going educational resources – for graduate students and our community partners who work with young people.”

The Center for Children with Special Health Care Needs (CSHCN) prepares pediatric nursing leaders to provide and improve the quality of care and systems of care for children and youth with an emphasis on those with special health care needs. The center has been continuously supported by MCHB for two decades.

“Pediatric nursing faculty and practitioners are critically needed to address the growing prevalence of children and adolescents with special health care needs amidst a pediatric nursing and faculty shortage,” said Ann Garwick, Ph.D., R.N., L.P., F.A.A.N., director of the CSHCN. “New funding expands the capacity of the CSHCN to support more pediatric prepared graduate students and to provide consultation and evidence-based continuing education that prepares nurse leaders to prevent and manage chronic illnesses and disabilities among children and youth in home, clinic, hospital, school, and community settings.”

Since 1993 the two centers in the School of Nursing have received more than $8 million in funding from MCHB to support nursing education on child and youth issues.

Other recipients of the MCHB grant include the University of California-San Francisco, University of Alabama, and University of Colorado-Denver.  

The University of Minnesota School of Nursing is ranked among the nation’s top nursing schools. It is a leader in nursing research and has a combined undergraduate and graduate enrollment of approximately 850 students. The school produces 55 percent of the faculty in Minnesota’s public and private nursing schools, advanced practice nurses and nurses who can assume leadership positions. It is the oldest continuously-operated, university-based school of nursing. The School of Nursing is one of six schools and colleges in the Academic Health Center, one of the most comprehensive facilities for health professionals in the nation, fostering interdisciplinary study, research and education. For more information, visit www.nursing.umn.edu.

Contact:    Melissa Ritter, Academic Health Center, 612-626-4784 or ritt0114@umn.edu
Aneisha Tucker, School of Nursing, 612-626-1817 or tucke127@umn.edu