Recent federal reforms and an aging baby boomer generation have prompted many schools to create healthcare-related programs to help train more professionals in these fields.
For example, North Idaho College recently announced that it has received a federal grant to train professionals in the healthcare industry, the North Idaho Sentinel reports.
As a result, the school is creating two online new programs dealing with electronic medical records. The two curricula are called information technology support and adoption for healthcare practices. The first curriculum will train students to troubleshoot, install and configure electronic records. Meanwhile, the second course of study will teach learners how to assist in hospitals' transitions from paper to the electronic format.
"We are getting good feedback from students who have finished the program as well as from employers," Sue Shibley, the electronic medical records program manager, told the news source. "A good majority of the students enrolled are highly educated already."
The $625,000 federal grant will reimburse the first 300 graduates of the program for tuition costs. The curriculum will be available during the summer and fall semester as well as the spring 2012 term.
According to a Reuters report, the online education industry grew by 17 percent in 2009.
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Many federal and state government agencies are providing schools with grants that are intended to help them start new training programs for in-demand industries, such as engineering and nursing. As a result, colleges and universities are taking advantage of these funds and setting up curricula that will help educate students for jobs of need in their respective regions.
For instance, the U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that they are accepting applications for the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grant Program, the Asheville Citizen-TImes reports.
In collaboration with the Department of Education, the Labor Department will award nearly $500 million this year and approximately $2 billion over the next four years, which will help community colleges establish or improve career training as it pertains to their area.
Officials told the news source that the funding will "support the development of postsecondary programs of two years or less that use evidence-based or innovative strategies to prepare students for successful careers in growing and emerging industries."
They added that by helping to increase the number of workers who attain degrees, certificates and other credentials, the program emphasizes President Obama's vision in helping Americans attend at least one year of college.
The grants will also aim to push schools to offer more accelerated programs and online curricula to help students graduate and enter the workforce faster. Moreover, officials told the news source that the funding will help facilitate improved retention and graduation rates as well as the development of instructional courses that meet industry needs.
Michigan community college applies for federal grant to change careers
Officials from the Michigan Community College Association (MCCA) recently announced that they will apply for the grant money to help educate individuals who lost their jobs to overseas competition in new career fields, Central Michigan Life reports.
"it is clearly one of the largest grant initiatives for community colleges in recent years," Mike Hanson, president of the MCCA, told the news source. "Right now most of our colleges are faced with record enrollment and a decline in resources."
Officials from the Lake Michigan Community College added that they plan to apply for grants to help them expand their existing job retraining program. Furthermore, many people have been enrolling in the program since factories have closed down in surrounding counties. Nearly 250 individuals attended the program in 2010 as a result of the area auto industry layoffs.
Other Michigan community colleges are seeking partnerships with each other and local businesses. Moreover, some schools indicated that they would use the money to convert their program to the online format or even build a new curriculum altogether.
Tennessee-based university receives federal funds to bolster programs
Likewise, schools in Tennessee are receiving federal grants that will help them launch or strengthen in-demand programs such engineering and computer science.
Tennessee State University recently announced that they have received a $1.3 million federal grant to help create the Interdisciplinary Graduate Engineering Research Institute, The Tennessean reports.
The funding will allow the school to develop a state-of-the-art research facility for the College of Engineering, Technology and Computer Science. Furthermore, the monies will be used to renovate and relocate five laboratories to the new facility.
The university also received an additional $2.8 million, which will be put toward its School of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences. Officials told the news source that the money will be used to help improve teaching, research and extension initiatives.
According to a recent report from the Pew Research Center, nearly 44 percent of U.S. undergraduates are enrolled in community colleges, which represents nearly 6 million students.
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The Lewis and Clark Community School (LCCS) has received a federal grant to begin an accelerated program for nursing students.
“A report came out from the Institute of Medicine that said ‘nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression,’” LCCC Dean of Health Sciences Donna Meyer said to the news source. “We are doing that here.”
The course of study was previously merged into other nursing classes provided by the college for students who lacked clinical experience. Now the program trains students in more online classes and weekend training sessions to enable them to graduate as registered nurses (RNs).
The federal grant allows the school to disburse financial aid to students who previously could not receive money to complete the degree. Most students were paying out-of-pocket and taking out student loans while losing income from their full-time jobs as a result of attending school, college officials said.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the employment of RNs will increase by 22 percent by 2018.
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