Lander University has been awarded federal funding to help improve health care in the state. A total of $2.4 million has been allocated to Lander’s School of Nursing to enhance facilities and upgrade educational technology.
This funding will furnish the soon-to-be-constructed nursing building with new interactive classroom technology and simulation equipment. It will also allow the University to upgrade existing infrastructure in Lander’s Nursing Skills Simulation Center and Barratt Hall with high-fidelity simulators, AV recording and virtual reality technology, and enhanced study and collaborative space for nursing students.
These investments into Lander University’s School of Nursing are part of a larger state- and nation-wide effort to address a looming shortage of nurses and health care professionals. To help close this gap, the South Carolina General Assembly has invested a total of $9 million to construct a new nursing building at Lander. Officials are nearing completion of the design and are expected to break ground on that building later this year.
Meanwhile, Self Regional Healthcare recently gave a monumental gift to the University by establishing the Self Regional Scholars Program. The prestigious scholarship is offered annually to the University’s highest-performing upper-level nursing majors, with preference given to students from Greenwood, Laurens, Edgefield, Abbeville, McCormick, Newberry, and Saluda counties. This gift, along with the expansion of practice-partnerships offered by the health care provider and Lander, have helped create a steady pipeline of nurses for the Lakelands region of South Carolina.
Officials say the upgrades made possible by the federal funding will allow Lander’s School of Nursing to increase the number of students who progress to upper-level coursework, and allow nursing students to practice their clinical skills in a safe, controlled environment that best reflects the scenarios they’ll face in the health care field.
Lander President Richard Cosentino thanked South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham’s office for their assistance in securing this funding for the School of Nursing. “Our state leaders understand the importance of a strong workforce in the health care industry, and know that Lander’s nursing students fill the growing demand in South Carolina for highly credentialed health care leaders,” Cosentino said. “This funding allows us to strengthen our University’s signature nursing program, and continue to provide our state with qualified nurses and quality care.”