PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Nursing students in California are getting a financial boost from Kaiser Permanente’s Deloras Jones, RN Scholarship program with $319,500 in community benefit funding to help secure the future of the nursing profession and the health of California residents.
Kaiser Permanente Southern California continues its long-standing commitment to nursing education, awarding 100 scholarships totaling $179,500 to students from 26 local schools (pdf) of nursing. In Northern California, 88 students from 20 schools of nursing were awarded scholarships totaling $140,000. Since 2001, Kaiser Permanente’s Deloras Jones RN Scholarship program has awarded more than $4 million to 2,130 students statewide.
An economic downturn can force some nursing students to put their education on hold, yet the U.S. is projected to have a nursing shortage that will intensify as baby boomers age and the need for health care grows.
UCLA student Alison Wagoner is one of this year’s scholarship recipients. Wagoner says she won’t have to delay graduation or increase her loan debt given the recent student fee increases, “I am truly grateful to Kaiser Permanente for awarding me this scholarship. If it weren’t for this support, students like me would have a difficult time making it through nursing school. It’s because of these scholarships that people can achieve their dreams and accomplish great things.”
The scholarships of $1,000 to $2,500 (described below) are based primarily on financial need to assist nursing students enrolled in an approved program:
- Academic Excellence in Pre-licensure (minimum 3.8 GPA required for this category only)
- Graduate/Doctoral Studies (registered nurses pursuing an MSN, DNSc or PhD, minimum 3.0 GPA required)
- Underrepresented Groups in Nursing (minority and male students)
The scholarship is named for Deloras Jones, RN, MS, executive director of the California Institute for Nursing and Health Care, who said, “The recently released recommendations from the IOM (Institute of Medicine) Initiative on the Future of Nursing provides the opportunity for the nursing profession to redefine its contribution to the health care delivery system and position nurses to play a very important role in health care reform. Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to the nursing profession, and in particular nursing education, makes the organization a key partner in the community to fully actualizing the contribution that nurses are able to make to the health of all our communities.”
As one of the largest employers of nurses in California, Kaiser Permanente’s annual support to replenish the ranks of nurses in the state will again exceed $5 million in 2011 for Nursing Pathways, career ladder programs, nursing research, nursing scholarships, forgivable loans to students, and grants to colleges for faculty development.
Deloras Jones retired as Kaiser Permanente’s director of Divisional Nursing Services for California in 2000 after a 34-year career dedicated to professional nursing and leadership. Jones is the founder and current director of the California Institute for Nursing and Health Care in California.
A reception will be held for the Southern California scholarship recipients from 5–7 p.m. on Dec. 9 at the Kaiser Permanente Walnut Center, 393 E. Walnut, Pasadena.
The 26 Southern California Participating Colleges
- Inland Empire: California Baptist University (Riverside), California State University San Bernardino, San Bernardino Valley College
- Kern County: California State University Bakersfield
- Los Angeles County: Azusa Pacific University, Biola University (La Mirada), California State University Dominguez Hills, El Camino College (Compton), Glendale Community College, Los Angeles City College, Los Angeles Harbor College, Los Angeles Southwest College, Mount St. Mary’s College, Rio Hondo College (Whittier), University of California Los Angeles, Western University of Health Science (Pomona)
- Orange County: California State University Fullerton, Cypress College (Cypress), Golden West College, Santa Ana College, University of California Irvine.
- San Diego County: California State University San Marcos, National University (La Jolla), San Diego State University (San Diego), Southwestern College (Chula Vista)
- San Fernando Valley: Los Angeles Valley College.
ABOUT KAISER PERMANENTE
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 3.3 million members in Southern California. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: www.kp.org/newscenter.
CONTACT:
Kaiser Permanente
Southern California Region
Socorro Serrano
Mobile: 323-627-5595
[email protected]
or
Sandra Hernandez
Mobile: 214-542-3744
[email protected]
KEYWORDS: United States North America California
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Education University Health Hospitals Nursing
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