September - University of Nebraska

growth, and provide an on-campus educational environment in a new 45,525 gross square
foot facility to be located on the East Campus at UNL. The building will be designed to
house classrooms, class labs and education support space along with administrative space to
accommodate current and new faculty and staff, and space essential for research programs.
C. Purpose and Objectives
The principal objectives of the recommended project are to:
1. Education
a. Provide a quality environment where nursing professionals can be
prepared at the baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral levels.
b. Provide additional space for planned growth in enrollment.
c. Provide office space for the faculty and administrative staff of the
Lincoln Division.
2. Research
a. Conduct research to advance the art and science of nursing care and the
health of citizens of Nebraska.
b. Provide state of the art research areas which are critical to the
recruitment and retention of the best faculty and students.
II. JUSTIFICATION OF THE PROJECT
A. Data That Support the Funding Request:
The growing nursing shortage will affect all Nebraskans’ ability to access quality health care,
and this problem will intensify as the population ages. Federal and state statistics indicate that
Nebraska's nursing shortage will jump from 9% in 2006 to 20% percent in 2020. Results of
the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis suggest that by the year 2020 Nebraska
will have a shortage of about 3,800 RNs. The shortage is not a result of low interest in
nursing careers, in fact, applications to schools of nursing generally far exceed capacity of
educational programs.
Compounding the general nursing shortage is the higher need for better educated nurses.
There is an increasing demand by hospitals and other health care agencies for university
educated baccalaureate-prepared nurses because of the increasing proportion of sicker
patients in hospitals, particularly in intensive care units and emergency rooms. In addition,
BSN nurses are required for public health positions.
To meet the challenge, the UNMC College of Nursing has increased enrollment by 28% since
2002. However, even with this expansion, qualified applicants are turned away in large
numbers due to space and facility limitations and a faculty shortage (i.e., a shortage of
masters and doctorally educated nurses, for which UNMC is the main supplier). In a typical
year, the College accepts only 50% of qualified BSN applicants across all of its Divisions.
The acceptance rate is lower at the Lincoln Division (about 40%) because of the popularity of
that Division.