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It’s not your typical summer school for some high school seniors in Central Florida. Pre-nursing students from three area High Schools are donning scrubs and stethoscopes, and getting a first hand look at how nurses care for patients at Florida Hospital Celebration Health. From the emergency department to the labor and delivery unit, about 30 students taking part in Valencia Community College’s Pathways Into Nursing (PIN) project are spending a month in the nursing trenches.
Pathways Into Nursing is a three year pre-nursing program that identifies and recruits Hispanic and other diverse high school sophomores, juniors and seniors into an educational pipeline that will take them from high school through an Associate degree program in Nursing. The program was made possible by a federal grant of $678,105 to increase Hispanic opportunities in nursing.
“Nursing is an integral part of the safety and care of our patients, and the demand for Registered Nurses is growing. Florida Hospital Celebration Health is happy to support this program that will help more students become professional nurses,” according to Shannon Leonard, director of nursing at Florida Hospital Celebration Health.
Students participating in the PIN project are guaranteed a slot in Valencia’s Associate of Science degree in Nursing program once they meet all entrance requirements. Then, after graduating from Valencia, students can choose to enter the nursing workforce or, through articulation agreements with all Florida state universities, can continue on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Three high schools with significant Hispanic student populations are partners in the project: Gateway High School, Osceola High School, and Cypress Creek High School. Students are placed based on their College Placement Test (CPT) scores, high school grade point average (GPA), and interviews.
For more information, please contact Florida Hospital Media Relations at 407/303-1917 or www.floridahospitalmedicalnews.com. Or contact Joan Andrek with Valencia Community College at 407/299-5000 ext. 1017.
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For more information, please contact Florida Hospital Media Relations at (407) 303-1917.
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