The local nursing landscape could be on the way to looking more diverse in the near future thanks to a Northeast Wisconsin Technical College grant. The college started working on the EARN grant last spring with the Department of Health Services and officially unveiled it on Thursday. The EARN grant stands for Educating Aspiring Registered Nurses and aims to increase diversity in the NWTC nursing program as well as the nursing workforce. The $1.8 million dollar grant will aid fifty minority students over a four-year period, who are faced with economic barriers. Associate Dean of Nursing Brian Krogh says there hasn’t been too many logistics of the grant program worked out yet, but he doesn’t think it will matter what NWTC campus you attend, as long as you meet eligibility requirements.
Krogh hopes aid recipients stay in the area and practice, but would even like to see some nursing graduates come back to NWTC to educate others.
The influence the grant could have is also important, as Krogh would like the representation of minorities in their nursing department to influence others to enroll at NWTC.
