The Illinois Board of Higher Education has awarded nearly $150,000 to Illinois State University's Mennonite College of Nursing.
It was one of 12 nursing schools across the state to receive a portion of $1.4 million from the IBHE's Nursing School Grant program award. IBHE said in a news release that figure is "nearly doubled" from that of last year, thanks to an increase in funding included in the state budget approved by lawmakers.
Funding was awarded via an application process in which nursing schools submitted data about student enrollment, retention and job placement rates over a multi-year period.
ISU's allocation of $148,847 will pay for additional equipment and supplies needed for the nursing college's simulation lab.
The university said in its own announcement of the funding award that a needs assessment revealed "additional equipment and supplies were needed to manage the projected growth of student enrollment."
MCN recently expanded its campus presence to Springfield in a joint venture with Memorial Health last year. University enrollment data from 2019-2023 shows MCN's enrollment continues to tick up every year, rising from 779 in 2019 to 1,056 in fall 2023.
In addition to supplies needed for expected enrollment growth, MCN plans to purchase new manikins in varying skin tones. Previous purchases of manikins and other body part simulators were mostly lighter in tone.
As part of the grant award, MCN is required to complete a research study, which will include a focus on the use of diverse manikins. The goal is to "expand the limited body of nursing literature on the use of various skin-toned manikins and body part trainers in simulation labs," according to a university news release.
MCN will also interview recent graduates to determine how well simulation lab work prepared them for their professional practice.
Construction on the $18 million expansion of MCN simulation laboratory remains ongoing and is expected to be completed later this year. When complete, it will allow the college to enroll an additional 100 students per year over four consecutive years.
