The University of South Carolina Upstate’s Mary Black College of Nursing (MBCON) has received a $123,829 grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration to support the college’s Nurse Faculty Loan Program (NFLP).

Introduced in 2021, NFLP provides a loan fund for graduate nursing students enrolled in the Master of Science in Nursing Education program, which seeks to increase the pipeline of qualified nursing faculty. This most recent grant builds on the initial $76,000 HRSA awarded MBCON for the program a year ago.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to support our Master of Science in Nursing Education students in a way that does not incur significant financial debt,” said Toshua Kennedy, Ph.D., associate professor and director of RN-BSN and graduate programs for MBCON.

“After graduation, HRSA cancels 85 percent of the loan if the nurses serve as faculty for over four years,” Kennedy added. “The NFLP is a win-win scenario for everyone, including the future nursing students who will benefit from having nursing faculty well prepared by the MBCON program.”

This latest grant will serve as a loan fund from NFLP to cover the costs of tuition, fees, books, and reasonable education expenses for graduate nursing students enrolled in the MSN Education program.

The three primary objectives of the program are:

• To provide financial support to MBCON students enrolled in its MSN Education program.
• Graduate MSN Education students who meet the National League of Nursing Nurse Educator Competencies.
• To support MBCON MSN Education graduates in acquiring employment in a nurse faculty role within 12 months of degree completion.

“There are tremendous employment opportunities right now for students who graduate with a Master of Science in Nursing Education and USC Upstate is very excited to help these students become qualified teaching faculty without incurring debt,” said USC Upstate Provost Pamela Steinke, Ph.D.

Short Link: