The Mennonite College of Nursing (MCN) at Illinois State University has been awarded a federal Advanced Education Nursing Traineeship (AENT) grant of nearly $350,000 from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to support the education of nurse practitioners for the 2016-2017 academic year.
The grant will provide funding for traineeships to increase the number of advanced practice nurses prepared to practice as primary care providers. An additional emphasis of the grant is to increase the number of students participating in clinical experiences caring for rural and underserved populations.
“The nurse practitioner plays a vital role in the provision of primary care,” said Professor of Nursing Denise Wilson, MCN’s family nurse practitioner (FNP) sequence leader and director of the grant. “The FNP is prepared to provide holistic primary health care. This includes not only the care of individuals with acute and chronic illnesses, but also stressing health promotion, disease prevention, and providing education to assist patients to optimize their health status.”
This is the third AENT grant Mennonite College of Nursing has received. The previous grants provided funding for 46 new family-nurse practitioners. The new grant, totally financed by federal funds, will continue the work of MCN to educate nurse practitioners to practice as primary care providers. There are currently 32 students in the sequence who will receive funding from the new grant to cover tuition, fees, and stipends for classes beginning in August.
“I was thrilled when I heard Dr. Wilson’s grant had been awarded,” said MCN Dean Judy Neubrander. “This funding is crucial to assist nurses to advance their education and to meet primary care needs of members of our communities.”
For additional information on the grant, contact Amy Irving of the Mennonite College of Nursing at (309) 438-7418.
