The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) has awarded Monmouth University and two other New Jersey private colleges a four-year, $2.5 million grant to train future nurse faculty members. The grant is part of RWJF’s $22 million, five-year “New Jersey Nursing Initiative,” which will increase the number of nurse faculty available to educate the next generation of nurses in the state.

The initiative’s central component is a Faculty Preparation Program that includes grants to schools of nursing around the state, and support for 46 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Jersey Nursing Scholars. The scholars will study to become faculty and commit to teach in the state for three years after they complete their studies.

The collaborative includes Monmouth University, Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU), and Bloomfield College. Four other nursing schools or collaboratives received similar grants in New Jersey.

Monmouth University President Paul G. Gaffney II stated: “Thank you to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for this generous grant. Monmouth’s exceptional nursing faculty looks forward to educating future leaders in the field of nursing education.”

Janet Mahoney, associate dean of the Marjorie K. Unterberg School of Nursing, is the RWJF grant co-director. She commented, “The shortage of nurses is in part due to a shortage of nurse educators. There is a waiting list in many NJ nursing programs because there are not enough faculty members to teach the students who are interested in a career in nursing. This grant will provide an opportunity for qualified scholars to receive both financial and academic support as they study to become nurse educators. The RWJF program promises to increase the number of full time nursing faculty in the state.”

Fourteen RWJF Scholars will take courses at Monmouth University and FDU’s Becton School of Nursing and Allied Health, which both have master’s level nursing education and nurse practitioner courses. Bloomfield College, which has a traditional BSN and an RN-BSN program, will serve as a feeder school to FDU and Monmouth University.

The RWJF Scholars will receive a $50,000 annual stipend, enabling them to study full-time for the two years needed to earn their MSN degrees, in exchange for a commitment to teach in the state for three years after they complete their studies. The grant will also pay for the scholars’ tuition, fees, laptops, books, PDAs, and other direct costs of the program.

In addition to training future nurse faculty members using an innovative curriculum, the project will promote a collaborative partnership among the three institutions and provide a mentoring program for the scholars.

“Combining the faculty expertise and resources of the three institutions will reduce costs while attracting students from northern New Jersey to central New Jersey,” said Dr. Guttman, director of FDU’s Becton School of Nursing and Allied Health.

Another goal of the grant is to increase the number of nurse faculty members from minority groups; at least five of the RWJF Scholars will be minority students.

In addition to supporting the RWJF New Jersey Nursing Scholars, the Faculty Preparation Program is working to develop, implement, and evaluate new curricula for students at the master’s and doctoral levels.

The “New Jersey Nursing Initiative” is also working to: create innovative approaches to increase faculty capacity; make New Jersey nurse faculty a preferred career; lead focused policy initiatives; increase sustainable funding; build local, regional, and statewide collaboration; and develop creative strategies to increase nurse education capacity.

For detailed scholarship information and how to apply to Monmouth University, please visit the Marjorie K. Unterberg School of Nursing Web site.

More information about the “New Jersey Nursing Initiative” and nursing in New Jersey is available at www.njni.org.