MCC Daily Tribune

SUNY Chancellor King Announces Nearly $1 Million Investment to Expand Pathways to Nursing Careers

High Needs Nursing Funding Strengthens Partnerships Across SUNY’s Campuses and Educational Opportunity Centers

Albany, NY – State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. announced Tuesday a nearly $1 million investment from the High Needs Nursing Fund to expand academic pathways to nursing careers, including stronger partnerships between campuses and Educational Opportunity Centers. The awarded campuses represent an array of innovative partnership models designed to increase nursing program capacity, enhance academic pathways across all levels of nursing, and maximize available nursing seats systemwide.

SUNY is committed to helping Governor Hochul achieve New York State’s goal to eliminate the nursing workforce shortage. The High Needs Nursing Fund underscores SUNY’s dedication to advancing the success of our healthcare workforce,” said SUNY Chancellor King. “By harnessing innovation and partnerships across our campuses, healthcare systems, and communities, this investment accelerates our ability to address New York’s healthcare workforce shortage."

SUNY Trustees Robert Duffy and Eunice A. Lewin said, “We are pleased to support our campuses and SUNY’s Educational Opportunity Centers in their mission to train more nurses, directly supporting Governor Hochul's goal of growing the state's healthcare workforce by 20 percent. Congratulations to the recipients and we look forward to seeing how these innovative partnerships help our healthcare workforce thrive.”

The award recipients include:

Alfred State, Jamestown Community College, and Genesee Community College: "Nursing on the Move in Rural New York" – More than $200,000 was granted to establish a mobile nursing laboratory to provide additional lab space for collaborating institutions, on-site skills training for current healthcare workers, recruitment initiatives, and outreach to middle schools, high schools, BOCES, and community events.
SUNY Canton, Clinton Community College, SUNY Jefferson, and North Country Community College: "Pathways to Opportunity: A Model for Building Northern NY Higher Education Partnerships" – More than $60,000 was awarded to establish a partnership among four Northern NY nursing schools to optimize enrollment across nursing programs. Through the Consortium, waitlisted student applicants from oversubscribed programs will be redirected to those with available capacity. The Consortium will also facilitate faculty sharing in limited access specialty instruction areas, starting with psychiatric nursing.
SUNY Canton and Syracuse Educational Opportunity Center (EOC): "Building EOC Nursing Partnerships" – SUNY awarded more than $270,000 to help establish a SUNY Canton Practical Nursing (PN) certificate program housed at Syracuse EOC, including a new simulation lab and classroom space. Funding also supports a new SUNY Canton faculty member for the EOC hosted PN program.
SUNY Downstate and SUNY Old Westbury: "Nursing Education Pathway; Train to Retain" – Nearly $170,000 is being awarded to expand an existing partnership to grant more SUNY Old Westbury graduates seamless transfer into Downstate's Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program. The partnership will also offer direct and contingent admission to these same graduates from the Downstate ABSN program into the Downstate MSEd Nursing Education program to grow the pipeline of nurse educators.
Jamestown Community College: "Building Bridges to Nursing Excellence" – A nearly $115,000 award will support faculty to create seamless educational pathways for current healthcare professionals, establishing opportunities for Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) and Patient Care Technicians (PCT) to advance to LPN, and for LPN to pursue Registered Nurse (RN) licensure. The program will include outreach and partnership to CNA and PCT BOCES programs and healthcare organizations to encourage students to enroll.
SUNY Orange and SUNY Empire: "Nursing Pathways Innovation Hub: Advancing Seamless Mobility Across the SUNY Nursing Continuum" – With support from a $100,000 grant, this partnership will create a seamless transfer and co-enrollment pathway from SUNY Orange's RN program to SUNY Empire's BSN program, supported by cross-institutional advising. The program will establish a pre-nursing advising system to support students transitioning from certification to curriculum programs, as well as bridge microcredentials that prepare waitlisted students for direct transition into coursework.

These efforts help address recommendations by the SUNY Future of Healthcare Workforce Task Force, convened to guide SUNY in addressing the critical healthcare workforce shortage and the Governor's goal of increasing the healthcare workforce in New York State by 20 percent. Following this engagement with over 125 experts across SUNY institutions and the healthcare industry, the Task Force identified four priority areas for short-term action and investment, including supporting innovation and partnerships. Collectively, the initiatives are projected to create or unlock more than 230 nursing slots across SUNY by optimizing and expanding program capacity.

State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Chair of the Higher Education Committee, said, "New York does not have a shortage of people who want to become nurses. We have a shortage of pathways. This funding expands lab space, reduces waitlists, and helps students move from certification to licensure without starting over. That is how you grow a nursing workforce that meets real community needs."

State Assemblymember Amy Paulin said, “As Assembly Health Committee Chair, one of the key issues that I’m working to address is the healthcare shortage. We need both more healthcare workers right now, and also to make sure more are consistently coming on board. These twelve campuses across the state will help more New Yorkers pursue nursing and give our hospitals and clinics the skilled professionals they need. I commend SUNY for their great work in opening doors for students and helping them enter healthcare as a career.”

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, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.4 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 $1.16 billion in fiscal year 2024, 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 SUNY website.

Veronica Chiesi Brown
Community Relations
12/17/2025