Harrisburg – Seeking to address a critical need for nurses across the Commonwealth, Indiana University of Pennsylvania will begin offering a doctoral program designed to train new nursing faculty.

Not only is there a severe shortage of nurses to work in hospitals and other healthcare facilities in Pennsylvania, but many nursing programs also face a shortage of qualified faculty to teach new nurses. The Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) today approved the new program at IUP to help address that shortage.

“This new program to be offered by IUP demonstrates the university’s and PASSHE’s commitment to meeting the critical needs of the Commonwealth,” said Board of Governors Chairman Kenneth M. Jarin. “The need for nurses is widespread, not only in Pennsylvania, but also across the United States . Addressing that need has been a priority of the Rendell Administration and the first step in achieving that effort is preparing the new faculty necessary to teach the next generation of these essential healthcare workers.”

The Board of Governors also approved a new Bachelor of Science degree program in graphic design to be offered by Mansfield University of Pennsylvania.

IUP’s doctoral program in nursing will require students to complete 48 credits of coursework and a 12-credit dissertation. A total of 12 credits of courses will involve specialized study of the role of nurse educators. Students will take classes part time so they can continue to work while earning their Ph.D.

According to the American Association of Colleges of Nurses (AACN), more than 32,000 qualified applicants were turned away from nursing programs in the U.S. last year because of a shortage of nurse educators. Many nursing programs in the state are filled to capacity and cannot expand because of the lack of qualified faculty.

A survey conducted by IUP of recent graduates of its Master of Science in Nursing MSN) program indicated that the vast majority would be interested in pursuing a Ph.D. in nursing if the program were made available.

The new program at Mansfield University will prepare graduates for careers in the growing field of graphic design. There is significant demand for skilled graphic designers in the Northern Tier, an area of the Commonwealth that has been particularly impacted by the declining industrial base. There are substantial opportunities for entrepreneurship in the field, in which a large percentage of workers are self-employed.

The program will be interdisciplinary in nature, combining coursework from several departments and disciplines, including art, broadcasting, journalism, business and computer science. It will include training in studio art, principles of design, computerized design and marketing and business. Students will be able to focus on print-based design found in magazines and other publications or electronic design used in television, the Web and other motion-capable communications media.

For more information on either of the new programs, please contact the appropriate university.

With more than 110,000 students, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth.The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Approximately 405,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock, and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania . PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.