UNM College of Nursing Receives Gift to Fund Scholarships

“Health care providers see increasingly complex patients and have an expanding and changing scope of practice and available treatments to address the needs of their patients and their families,” says College of Nursing Interim Dean Carolyn Montoya, PhD, RN, CPNP, FAAN, FAANP. “This is why getting a DNP is so important for our nurse practitioners and nurse-midwives.”

DNP students already have a bachelor’s degree and are returning to transition from registered nurses to nurse practitioners or nurse-midwives with independent full-scope practice, including full prescriptive authority in New Mexico. As DNP students hold an undergraduate degree and are already in the nursing workforce, they may have difficulty securing traditional grants and scholarships. This gift from Western Sky Community Care will alleviate the financial burdens associated with returning to school and allow students who may have not been able to return to school for an advanced degree to receive an education that ultimately benefits New Mexico health care.

“Western Sky Community Care’s generous gift will be of significant help to our students, allowing them to focus on their studies, without the worry of excessive debt after graduation,” says Montoya.

Western Sky Community Care, a Medicaid managed care organization located in Albuquerque, funded the scholarships after identifying a need for nursing care in rural New Mexico. The gift will support nurse practitioners and nurse-midwifery students who plan to care for patients in the areas of rural health, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, nurse-midwifery, maternal-child health, and other health care areas. In addition, the funds will cover all anticipated educational costs, including tuition and fees, housing, food, textbooks and supplies, transportation and test preparation.