New U of M scholarship covers rent, utilities, tuition, books for nursing students in need
Laura Testino
Nursing students at the University of Memphis are now eligible for more help with the cost of obtaining their degrees.
Students who have been financially impacted due to COVID-19 can receive funds for rent, utilities, food, tuition and books, U of M announced Tuesday. The scholarships are made possible by an AT&T Foundation gift.
Leadership expressed gratitude in statements about the scholarship funding.
“Many of our nursing students must work part-time jobs to help defray the cost of attending college. We want students to focus more on their studies so they can complete their academic program on time and move quickly into practice,” Kimberly Grantham, senior director of corporate and foundation relations at the college, wrote in a statement.
Among its Memphis and Lambuth campuses and online courses, the university has more than 1,100 students enrolled in its Loewenberg College of Nursing.
“After several Zoom meetings with our undergraduate and graduate students, I have been quite touched by their adaptability and resilience. Some of our graduate students are working at the front line caring for COVID patients while taking care of their own families as well as studying,” Dr. Lin Zhan, dean of the Loewenberg College, wrote in a statement.
In May, graduating senior Brianna Hamlin talked with The Commercial Appeal about completing her nursing degree virtually. Classmates moved from discussing coursework to discussing how they'd be entering the workforce on the front lines of a pandemic.
"For now I'm excited to start my career. ... Even though it is during this kind of situation, I'm pretty confident that it will be a great experience," she said at the time.
In Memphis and across the country, hospitals are facing nursing staffing shortages as cases of COVID-19 increase.
More:Memphis has enough hospital beds for a COVID-19 patient surge, but are there enough nurses?
A 2012 article published in the American Journal of Medical Quality projected a shortage of registered nurses would persist nationwide until 2030 and that the most severe shortages would be in the South and the West. A Georgetown study estimated a shortage of 200,000 registered nurses and licensed practical nurses in 2020.
Chuck Thomas, regional director of external and legislative affairs for AT&T, said the foundation aims to prepare students "at home, in the classroom, at work."
"We see tremendous value in the nursing program at the University of Memphis," Thomas wrote in a statement, "and are pleased to contribute to it.”
Commercial Appeal reporter Corinne Kennedy contributed.
Laura Testino covers education and children's issues for The Commercial Appeal. Reach her at laura.testino@commercialappeal.com or 901-512-3763. Find her on Twitter: @LDTestino.