Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut, received a $30,000 grant from Bank of America to support the second cohort of students in the Bank of America Success Stipend program. The program, which launched in 2024, helps support nursing students as they pursue degrees and prepare for careers in the nursing field.
With the Bank of America grant, the stipend program will decrease the financial burden associated with attending nursing school by assisting students and their families with basic needs and living expenses during the 2025-2026 academic year. Financial security for students can help them complete school and secure stable employment after graduation, setting them up for future success and growth.
“Nursing is an essential profession and supporting the next generation of health-care providers in southern Connecticut is crucial for ensuring the wellness of our communities,” said Bill Tommins, president of Bank of America Southern Connecticut. “In partnership with Sacred Heart University, the Bank of America Success Stipend program helps alleviate the financial pressures of attending school. We look forward to welcoming a second cohort of nursing students to the program and helping them pursue their studies and achieve success after graduation.”
The Bank of America Success Stipend program focuses on supporting students from the two-year Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) and 15-month Second Degree Accelerated (SDA) programs. Students on these nursing tracks commute from the Bridgeport area and will benefit from stipends to assist with food costs, transportation, books, childcare and other living expenses.
Professor Millie Hepburn, assistant director of the SDA program said, “Our students complete a second bachelor’s degree in 15 months. With that said, many of our students have families to support, and due to the rigor and the time requirements of the program, maintaining even a per diem job is extremely challenging,” she said. “We are most thankful to Bank of America for their consideration to help support our hard-working students in their quest to obtain a second degree to become a nurse.”
Bank of America Scholars will also receive training, mentoring and support from Bank of America employees to build each student’s financial acumen, professionalism and financial success.
As the second-largest Catholic university in New England, and one of the fastest-growing private doctoral institutions in the U.S., Sacred Heart University is a national leader in shaping higher education for the 21st century.
