MCC Daily Tribune

Nursing Simulation Experiences Expanded at SUNY Campuses Including MCC

Funding Will Advance Simulation-Based Education in SUNY Nursing Programs
Supports Governor Kathy Hochul’s Goal to Grow New York State’s Healthcare Workforce by 20 Percent
Builds on SUNY’s Commitment to Expand Nursing Opportunities and Address the Healthcare Staffing Shortage in New York State

Albany, NY — State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. announced Wednesday grant awards from the High Needs Nursing Fund. Over three consecutive years, the SUNY High Needs Nursing Fund has awarded over $4.4 million to equip campuses with the necessary tools, training, and resources to modernize and expand simulation experiences for students. This effort has allowed SUNY nursing programs to train more nurses and directly supports Governor Kathy Hochul’s goal of growing the state’s healthcare workforce by 20 percent.

“SUNY is committed to investing in the success of New York State’s future healthcare workforce,” said SUNY Chancellor King. “SUNY’s investment in the High Needs Nursing Fund reinforces our dedication to accomplishing Governor Kathy Hochul’s goal to expand New York State’s highly skilled healthcare workforce. The awards from this round of funding will help ensure our students receive the world-class education and training they deserve so they can thrive in their future careers in healthcare.”

SUNY Trustee and Chair of the Academic Medical Centers and Hospitals Committee Eric Corngold said, “The SUNY High Needs Nursing Fund is a vital tool to help campuses invest in state-of-the-art equipment to train and educate more nurses in New York State, while also supporting Governor Hochul’s goal to grow the state’s healthcare workforce by 20 percent. We thank Governor Hochul and the State Legislature for their continued support of SUNY, and our nursing students.”

In May 2023, Governor Hochul signed legislation permitting nursing students to complete up to one-third of their clinical training through high-quality simulation experiences. The same year, the SUNY Future of Healthcare Workforce Task Force, created to guide SUNY in addressing the critical healthcare workforce shortage, convened and identified fully leveraging nursing simulation as one of its four priority areas for short-term action and investment.

For the 2025-2026 academic year, 30 SUNY campuses with nursing programs received funding to enhance simulation-based education. This year’s $746,500 investment will support training for faculty members, the purchase of high fidelity and full body manikins, simulator equipment, medical equipment, audiovisual equipment, virtual reality and augmented reality equipment, as well as sensory props and investments in updates and repairs to current equipment. New for this round, the funding also supports campus investment in course release time and extra service compensation for faculty directly working to integrate simulation-based education into their campuses nursing curriculum.

Over the past three years, the total $4.4 million investment has supported more than 160 simulation trainings for faculty and staff, the acquisition of 68 new state-of-the-art simulation manikins, and the purchase of essential simulation and medical equipment, including scenario kits, code response carts, and more. In addition, half of the awarded campuses have invested in advanced audiovisual tools to enhance simulation fidelity and debriefing, as well as cutting-edge virtual reality programs to further modernize nursing simulation offerings.

Campuses awarded funding this year through the High Needs Nursing Fund include:

SUNY Adirondack
State University of New York at Albany
Alfred State College
State University of New York at Binghamton
SUNY Brockport
Clinton Community College
Columbia-Greene Community College
State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences University
Dutchess Community College
Empire State University
SUNY Erie Community College
Farmingdale State College
Fulton-Montgomery Community College
Genesee Community College
Hudson Valley Community College
Jamestown Community College
Jefferson Community College
Mohawk Valley Community College
Monroe Community College
Nassau Community College
North Country Community College
Onondaga Community College
Orange County Community College
Rockland Community College
Suffolk County Community College
Sullivan County Community College
Tompkins Cortland Community College
Ulster County Community College
State University of New York Upstate Medical University
SUNY Westchester Community College

SUNY has led the effort to expand nursing opportunities and address the health care staffing shortage in New York State. In December 2025, Chancellor King and SUNY announced a $1 million investment from the High Needs Nursing Fund to expand academic pathways to nursing careers, including stronger partnerships with SUNY campuses and Education Opportunity Centers. In May 2025, Governor Hochul announced a $62 million investment to establish exemplar SUNY nursing simulation centers at the State University of New York at Buffalo, SUNY Canton, and State University of New York at Stony Brook. To further support simulation-based learning in the SUNY System, Chancellor King and SUNY also announced the second cohort of the SUNY Nursing Simulation Fellowship to help advance simulation-based education within SUNY’s nursing licensure programs, and Governor Hochul’s SUNY Reconnect program also funds nursing and allied health fields for eligible adult learners to increase the number of healthcare workers in New York State.

About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit the SUNY website (suny.edu).

Veronica Chiesi Brown
Community Relations
02/05/2026