Indiana University Health announced a $16 million gift to the Indiana University School of Nursing at IUPUI made on May 3, according to IU News. The gift is the first allocation of IU Health’s $416 million gift to IU in December 2021.
The IU School of Nursing is a renowned institution ranked in the top 30 nursing schools in the U.S. News and World Report.
With these funds, the nursing school can expand classrooms and lab spaces as well as student services and staff recruitment.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, there has been a statewide shortage of nursing faculty. Robin Newhouse, the dean of the IU School of Nursing, said the school is actively working towards expanding the program by 50% in order to address the scarcity and serve the needs of the community, according to the press release.
She appointed nine groups of IU Nursing staff, faculty and students at the start of the spring semester, and they are currently planning projects to implement in the program using the new funds.
In addition, IU Health is allotting positions to qualified nursing students. The students will take on clinical rotations at its facilities.
The CEO and president of IU Health, Dennis Murphy, said in a press release that nurse recruitment and retention are important for caring for more patients.
IU Health will continue to contribute to Indiana University through more research initiatives and clinician recruitment.
