Director named; degree pathways developed
Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK) is launching a nursing program to serve the community and its future students.
The need for nurses in the rural community of South Texas was at the forefront of TAMUK President Dr. Robert Vela’s mind when he began the steps to bring a nursing program and school to the university.
The region surrounding Kingsville is projected to have a deficit of more than 6,000 full-time nurses for the population by 2032. The process to start the program is already underway with degree pathways chosen, $5 million in funding acquired and an Inaugural Director hired.
“As the founding public institution of higher education in South Texas, it’s vital that we address this growing need with commitment and courage. Establishing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program will address regional needs for nurses with the appropriate degree required by the largest hospital systems in the South Texas region,” Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. James Palmer said.
Denise Neill, PhD, RN, CNE, has been chosen to be the Inaugural Director of Nursing at TAMUK.
“I think that from what I’ve learned about the demographics here at TAMUK, we’re a primarily Hispanic-serving, first-generation serving institution. I’m not Hispanic, but I am first generation. I was not only first generation for an original degree, undergraduate degree, but I was also first-generation graduate degree in my family. So, I’ve been where those students are,” Neill said. “I think it helps me relate to some of the problems they encounter. And they’re really not massive problems, but if you don’t have anybody to guide you through them, they can seem massive and overwhelming. And that’s why we want to admit students as freshmen so that our faculty can start interacting with them from that very first semester. And we can help guide them into the professional development as well as just through the hurdles of higher education.”
With the rural community of South Texas being a focal point, Neill hopes that students can feel a sense of pride to drive them into staying in this area to help this deficit.
“Rural nursing brings a whole different aspect. You’re the neighbor of your patient as well. So, helping them to understand that people are going to rely on them for information, and they don’t have to know everything, they just need to know who to ask and what the right questions to ask are. That depth of relationship can occur more in smaller areas. And I think that that’s a lot of what drives people to live in these areas anyway. So why not capitalize on that with our students?” Neill said.
The program will feature three different pathways to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN).
The program will also admit students as freshmen which means they don’t plan to have a pre-nursing and then a nursing degree pathway.
“The first pathway is the RN to BSN, where we provide a pathway for students who have their associate degree and want to progress to a bachelor’s degree. But some students want a university degree, and we want to be here to provide that for them. We also want to offer a pathway for students who have their LVN but want to move to an RN and want to go ahead and get it at the baccalaureate level. So, we’ll have that option as well. And then we’ll have the option for those students who have no nursing license. They may be a CNA, they might be a patient care tech, they could have no health care background, but we want to provide a pathway for them to move through as well,” Neill said.
TAMUK’s nursing school is just one of the ways the university is hoping to retain its sense of community and keep people in the area.
“I am incredibly excited that establishing nursing at TAMUK will align students’ skills in rural South Texas with the workforce shortage of nurses in the region while ensuring greater earning potential. Moving forward, we’ll strategically establish a cluster of degree and research areas around health right here in South Texas,” Dr. Palmer said.