DCI News

Jefferson City, Mo – The Nurse Education Incentive Program (NEIP), was established through legislative action and is funded by the Missouri State Board of Nursing through its nurse licensure fees. The purpose of the program is to increase the physical and educational capacity of nursing programs in Missouri.

During fiscal year 2017 (July 1, 2016-June 30, 2017), the Board granted a total of $1,789,841 to fourteen (14) professional nursing programs in Missouri.

These funds provided positive impact by aiding in the development of graduate level nursing programs with an emphasis on nursing education, increasing faculty resources, pay and training, and providing enhancement opportunities for clinical learning and decision making through simulated clinical experiences.

Nursing programs that received funding in fiscal year 2017 provided outcome data to the Board which showed the grants helped establish:

• 4 graduate level nursing programs, with an emphasis on nursing education;
• Funding for at least 1 full-time and 5 adjunct clinical faculty;
• 16 scholarships and 4 stipends for graduate students not working as faculty to complete doctoral studies;
• Salary increases to aid in recruitment and retention of nursing faculty;
• Purchase of simulation equipment which resulted in an impressive increase in simulation experience for students;
• Updates in distance learning technology to better support delivery of education content to multiple program sites.

“NEIP funding has allowed the development of an RN to MS in nursing education program at the Sinclair School of Nursing in which 9 students were admitted in the initial cohort,” said Dr. Gina Oliver, Nursing Faculty, University of Missouri. “NEIF also provided scholarships to over half of these students who will then commit to teach RN students in Missouri, easing the faculty shortage.”

NEIP funding has become an integral part of nursing education in Missouri and is having a direct impact on reducing the nurse educator shortage.

“We at North Central Missouri College were honored and quite pleased to be chosen as a recipient of the NEIP funding in 2017. Recruitment and retention of high quality nursing instructors has been quite a challenge in north Missouri,” says Korynn Skipper, Nursing Faculty member. “This grant helped us create a new nursing faculty salary schedule which allowed us to be more competitive in attracting new nurse educators. We would like to thank the Board of Nursing for being attuned to the issues many nursing programs face and for the support they have always provided.”

“I am proud of our board, department and legislators for allowing us to offer this program,” said Lori Scheidt, Executive Director, Missouri State Board of Nursing. “This grant program is innovative and fiscally responsible. It is an example of how Missouri educators, policy makers and regulators are working together to address the nursing shortage in a synergistic effort by increasing capacity of nursing schools across the state.”