CHARLESTON, (WV) – Gov. Jim Justice announced today that nearly $23 million in grant funding has been awarded to 26 nursing education programs at colleges, universities, schools of nursing, and career technical education centers across West Virginia. These awards, which are expected to support up to 600 new nursing students, are part of the West Virginia Nursing Workforce Expansion Program, first announced by Gov. Justice in December 2021 as a multifaceted approach to train and retain nurses in and attract nurses to the Mountain State.
“We continue to do as much as we possibly can to support future and current nurses whose commitment to the well-being of their fellow West Virginians is unmatched,” Gov Justice said. “This initiative represents a truly historic investment in our state’s nursing workforce, and I am thrilled that these funds are already on their way to strengthen education programs across the state.”
Gov. Justice has dedicated $48 million for the West Virginia Nursing Workforce Expansion Program to support new and expanded initiatives that will train new nurses, fully fund the West Virginia Nursing Scholarship Program, value nurses already practicing in the state, and recruit nurses into West Virginia.
The nursing education programs receiving funding through this announcement are:
RN Programs
Alderson Broaddus University
Blue Ridge Community & Technical College
Bluefield State College
Davis & Elkins College
Fairmont State University
New River Community & Technical College
Shepherd University
Southern West Virginia Community & Technical College
St. Mary’s School of Nursing
University of Charleston
West Liberty University
West Virginia Junior College
West Virginia Northern Community College
West Virginia State University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University Institute of Technology
West Virginia University at Parkersburg
Wheeling University
LPN Programs
Boone Career and Technical Center
John D. Rockefeller Career Center
Med Care Training Center
Mingo Extended Learning Center
New River Community & Technical College
New Programs
BridgeValley Community & Technical College
Concord University
Marshall University & Glenville State University joint program
The nursing program expansion awards are administered by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission and Community and Technical College System. Funded projects were required to be focused on increasing enrollment in pre-licensure nursing programs through innovative approaches focused on timely degree completion and licensure for graduates.
“We are tremendously grateful to Gov. Justice for providing this historic funding to support the expansion of nursing education programs across West Virginia,” said Dr. Sarah Armstrong Tucker, West Virginia’s Chancellor of Higher Education. “Through these new projects, our postsecondary education community will be better positioned to help shore up West Virginia’s nursing workforce – which, in turn, will help support our nurses working tirelessly on the front lines right now.”
The West Virginia Nursing Workforce Expansion Initiative builds upon Gov. Justice’s successful Save Our Care program, which he made possible with an initial $58 million in payments to hospitals intended to help them retain and hire staff.
