The vision shared by many - to ensure communities in Northeast Nebraska have enough nurses to care for its residents - passed a final hurdle Tuesday.
Gov. Dave Heineman signed the two-year state budget bill that includes operating funds for the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing Northern Division in Norfolk.
"What started three years ago with a letter to Chancellor Harold Maurer has become a reality," said state Sen. Mike Flood of Norfolk, speaker of the Legislature. "The Norfolk area has recharted a new course - one that embraces our strengths and builds for the future."
The bill provides for operating expenses - $425,000 in fiscal year 2009 and more than $1.4 million in fiscal year 2010 and thereafter. The money will go for expenses such as payroll for faculty and staff, curriculum resources and equipment and maintenance expenses.
Funds to build the facility - which will be located on the Northeast Community College campus in Norfolk - came entirely from private donations. The capital campaign successfully raised $11.9 million after being launched in February 2008.
It is expected that the 43,747-square-foot, state-of-the art facility will open in August 2010.
The new division was prompted by a conversation between Flood and Bob Driewer, former chief executive officer of Faith Regional Health Services in Norfolk. Once Driewer identified the need for more nursing education in Northeast Nebraska, Flood took it from there. Letters to University of Nebraska officials followed and the project soon was in the planning stage.
Flood said the partnership between Northeast Community College and the med center would serve as a national model for collaboration and partnership between institutions of higher learning.
Dr. Harold Maurer, chancellor of the med center, said it takes pride in its role of addressing the needs of all Nebraskans.
"We see ourselves as a 500-mile-wide campus. This new division is a marvelous accomplishment," Maurer said. "This public-private partnership will change the health care outlook for the region and will become an economic driver. The state itself will be more robust as there is a work-force shortage of nurses across Nebraska."
Maurer said there are many individuals in state government and the university system who deserve thanks for making the partnership possible.
"We also thank the residents of Northeast Nebraska for supporting the development of the division, Northeast Community College for being a vital partner in creating a national model for nursing education, and to Faith Regional Health Services, which will provide, and has already provided, a lot of support for this effort," Maurer said.
Bill Path, president of Northeast Community College, said the governor's signature on the state budget bill marks the end of a long journey that will ultimately lead to improved health care for Northeast Nebraskans.
"With the successful completion of our capital campaign, we can begin construction soon," he said. "We welcome the UNMC College of Nursing to our campus and look forward to providing exemplary education for all levels of nursing for generations to come."
University of Nebraska Regent Chuck Hassebrook of Lyons, who serves Northeast Nebraska, said the formation of a new nursing division is a great example of a local, grassroots initiative.
"It also is the university at its best - one that works to serve the needs of Nebraskans," he said.
J.B. Milliken, president of the University of Nebraska, added, "The new College of Nursing Division in Norfolk represents a great partnership between the university, the community college, the private sector and the community, and it will play an important role in meeting Nebraska's health care needs."
Jim Sinek, Faith Regional's chief executive officer, said the establishment of the nursing college is a significant achievement for Northeast Nebraska.
"I am proud of the fact that early on, Faith Regional Health Services was a leader both conceptually and financially to make this dream a reality," he said.
Virginia Tilden, college of nursing dean, said the college now will be focused on the appointment of faculty and staff, since in the fall of 2010, the division expects to welcome its first class of students.
When completed in 2010, the facility will house six levels of nursing education, including Northeast's basic nurse aide, licensed practical nursing and associate degree nursing programs and UNMC's bachelor of science, master of science, and doctoral programs. Students pursuing a bachelor's degree in nursing would fulfill their general education requirements through Northeast classes.
Once fully operational, the nursing division could admit 48 students each year to its bachelor's degree in nursing program, 10 to 20 in its master's degree in nursing program, and some doctoral students.
