For Immediate Release
Contact: Wendy Hinton
Director of Advancement Communications
(570) 208-8130
wendyhinton@kings.edu
February 5, 2019 – King’s College announced today that the Northeastern Pennsylvania Health Care Foundation (NPHCF) has awarded its Nursing program $60,000 in support of its Nursing Scholarship Program. The award will provide support in the amount of $20,000 per year over a three-year period. Through the Nursing Scholarship Program, six students from Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties who have earned their Associate Degree in Nursing will receive financial assistance to help them to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN) in a learning environment that combines academic rigor with personalized attention.
Established in 2011, the NPHCF is administered through the Scranton Area Community Foundation, which has been working to better the lives of local residents for 65 years. King’s College is grateful to the NPHCF for its generous support of the Nursing Scholarship Program that aims to provide flexible and affordable educational pathways for working RNs to obtain an advanced degree.
The Nursing Scholarship Program gave first preference to students with diverse backgrounds including first generational students, male nurses, those with low socioeconomic status, and individuals who are racially diverse. King’s College is committed to helping local healthcare systems improve patient access to quality healthcare as populations become increasingly more diverse.
Dr. Cynthia Mailloux, King’s College Professor and Chairperson of the Department of Nursing, commented about the grant award, saying, “We are so appreciative to the NPHCF for enabling these students to obtain the BSN, increasing opportunities for advancing into leadership positions in nursing.” This program will help King’s to provide more BSN-prepared nurses into our healthcare systems.
There is a demonstrated need for nurses with bachelor’s degrees in Northeastern Pennsylvania. Regional and local hospitals are encouraging nurses with associate degrees to return to school to earn their BSN degrees as research has shown that hospitals experience lower mortality rates, have fewer medication errors, and report more positive patient outcomes when nurses are educated at the BSN level.
Laura Ducceschi, President and CEO of the Scranton Area Community Foundation remarked, “Supporting the Nursing Scholarship program falls in line with the Northeastern Pennsylvania Health Care Foundation mission to support the health care needs of the region including health education. We are proud to be able to allow more nursing students an opportunity to receive continuing education, which will only help to improve the quality of life in the region.”
This fall, King’s also admitted the first class of nursing students into the 1-2-1 Dual Degrees in Nursing partnership with Luzerne County Community College. This Dual Degrees in Nursing partnership will also contribute to increasing the number of BSN-prepared nurses in the Commonwealth. These students, during year four, will matriculate into the RN to BS in Nursing program at King’s College.
For more information on the RN to BSN program, please call 1-888-KINGS-PA or visit www.kings.edu.
Representatives from the Northeastern Pennsylvania Health Care Foundation (NPHCF) visit King’s College to present administrators with a $60,000 grant award in support of Nursing Program scholarships. Pictured from left: Jim Clemente, NPHCF Board Chair; Laura Ducceschi, President and CEO of Scranton Area Community Foundation; Rev. John Ryan, C.S.C., Ph.D., President of King’s College; Dr. Christopher O’Brien, Dean of Health Sciences at King’s College; Dr. Cynthia Mailloux, Professor and Chairperson of the Department of Nursing at King’s College