News
Email
Print
Community colleges expanding nursing programs
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: August 11, 2008
JAMESTOWN
For years, Guilford Technical Community College officials have seen the demand grow for nurses.
They responded again this year by expanding Nursing Assistant I courses. Officials expect 168 students to start studies in the nursing assistant course this fall. Classes also are growing at Davidson County Community College.
"There is a need for more health care," said DCCC President Mary E. Rittling. "We have seen a growth in the basic courses and those needed to get the four-year degree."
The state will face a predicted shortage of 9,000 nurses by 2015 and nearly 18,000 by 2020, according to a N.C. Center for Policy Research report. Community colleges already produce 68 percent of the state's registered nurses. All colleges in the state, public and private, produce about 3,400 nursing graduates each year, but the state needs 2,400 more graduates annually, the report said.
Overall, the demand for nurses, truckers, teachers and biotechnology technicians is expected to grow, according to U.S. Labor Department reports.
One example of what's available for nurses is Julie Allen Rumbley, a 47-year-old Oak Ridge grandmother, who is on her way to a nursing career,.Four years ago, Rumbley decided she wanted to leave a business job and get her college degree.
Rumbley graduated May 8 with an associate applied science degree in the surgical technology. Meanwhile, she's landed a job as a scrub nurse in the operating room at Forsyth Medical Center.
The report estimates that the state's population will grow by 15 percent within the next eight years, and that growth will amplify work force shortages. The report said community colleges will have to increase graduation rates by 75 percent to produce 19,000 more graduates every year.
The state also must replace about 10,000 public school teachers a year because of retirements and resignations. UNC campuses produce nearly 4,000 a year, but the state will need about 6,500 additional graduates in teacher education each year.
Email
Print
