Avila University has committed to expand the School of Nursing to allow 100 students by the year 2007. The project is in response to a growing shortage of nurses that will approach 800,000 by 2020. Currently the School of Nursing has an enrollment of 60.

The four-year expansion program will cost approximately $1.2 million. Funding for the project is being sought by corporations, foundations, and individuals. At the 29 th annual Avila Steer Dinner & Auction $44,275 was raised specifically for the Nursing Expansion Project with donations still coming in. Some of our notable gifts are: DST Systems Inc. at $100,000, Menorah Legacy Foundation at $60,000 and Oppenstein Brothers Foundation (Commerce) at $40,000.

Over 860 RNs leave the hospital field each year and currently the area does not graduate enough nurses to combat the attrition. Avila University is responding to the community need with immediate plans to expand classrooms, laboratories, and faculty. Avila’s School of Nursing is one of Kansas City’s oldest and most respected programs.

Avila University President Tom Gordon said “Avila University is taking a proactive approach to answering the needs of the community. Our commitment goes beyond simply educating students, we want to see them succeed in a career that contributes to society and offers reward. The reward of helping others.”

This expansion represents the commitment of Avila’s Board of Trustees, faculty, and staff to help address the nursing shortage. Avila has built an outcome-based evaluation format that will measure quantitative goals as well as measure the number of graduates who remain in the health care field for five years. The evaluation will measure the quality of graduates, the satisfaction of the graduates, and the satisfaction of their respective employers.