Michigan-based Kresge Foundation has made life a bit easier for Mount St. Mary College. Kresge gave the Newburgh college a $600,000 grant for its new Math, Science and Technology Center. The grant will also help offset costs to upgrade the college”™s existing laboratories.
The 53,000-square-foot addition to Aquinas Hall is undergoing the finishing touches and will be ready for students coming back in September, said Bryan Maloney, vice president for college advancement. “We are getting ready to start moving out of the old space and into the new and preparing for students to return.”
Renovations in the existing Aquinas Hall will commence once the new addition opens. Upgrades to the older laboratories and classrooms are projected to be completed by fall 2008.
Rip Rapson, president and CEO of Kresge, cited Mount St. Mary”™s capital campaign, “Answering the Call,” as a compelling strategy to leverage the grant to build additional alumni and community support. “With the aid of this challenge grant, we hope the Mount”™s campaign can become an even more strategic opportunity to connect with stakeholders ”¦ helping them reach out to new donors, volunteers and the general community,” said Rapson.
Sister Ann Sakac, Mount St. Mary president, said the grant was an affirmation of the importance of the project. Kresge Challenge grants are “highly competitive,” noted Sakac.
The college”™s financial campaign has surpassed 70 per cent of its $10 million goal, which includes $5 million lead gift from the Kaplan Family Foundation. To date, the college has raised more than $7.2 million toward the total needed to complete the renovations and upgrades. Maloney said the support of the community has been overwhelming, and he is confident the college will complete the needed fundraising by its projected July 2008 date. “It is becoming harder to obtain funding,” said Maloney. “There are more people out there competing for dollars than ever before. We are very grateful to the Kaplan Foundation for continuing to be supportive of our local colleges.”
With the national nursing staff “aging out,” the demand for qualified replacements is climbing. The American Association of the Colleges of Nursing says the nursing shortage will intensify as “baby boomers” retire and people live longer and require care, both in and out of the hospital. “The number of people enrolling in these fields declined dramatically during the 1970s and 1980s,” said Maloney. “It was not an ”˜attractive”™ career opportunity: the pay and hours, and the emerging news about AIDS during those years was a major detractor.”
These days, nursing has lost its less-than-desirable career status. Nurses are in higher demand than ever, and consequently the demand for training has increased. Many, including Mount St. Mary, have had to cap their nursing programs and have a waiting list. “Our program has grown 108 percent to 330 students since 2000,” said Maloney. “While most of our students come here for our education program, they also need to be competent in science, math and technology. The new addition is going to meet a real need for all our students.”
The U.S. Census Bureau reports the current above-65 population of 36.3 million will more than double by 2050, with approximately 87 million people above the age of 65 requiring health-care professionals. Not only will there be a need for nurses, says Maloney, but the need for qualified nursing teachers is also growing. “Looking forward, there will be a shortage in that area, too,” predicts Maloney. “If a nurse wants to go on to become a nursing teacher, it requires both a master”™s and a doctorate degree.”Â
Mount St. Mary has 2,600 full- and part-time undergraduate and graduate students.
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