From: Young, Misty [mailto:YoungM@lincolnu.edu] Sent: Wednesday, December 04, 2013 2:56 PM Subject: Lincoln University to Offer Four-Year Nursing Degree FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT MISTY YOUNG (573) 681-6032 December 4, 2013 LINCOLN UNIVERSITY TO OFFER FOUR-YEAR NURSING DEGREE Jefferson City, MO- After several months of curriculum redesign, Lincoln University has received initial approval from the Missouri State Board of Nursing to establish a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program. As a recipient of a Nursing Education Incentive Program grant in 2012, the university's move is part of a statewide goal to increase the physical and educational capacity of nursing education programs in Missouri. Lincoln University has approval from the Missouri State Board of Nursing to admit 30 students per semester to begin their first clinical nursing course. Admission to the four-year BSN program will be based on GPA in prerequisite courses, ACT score, completed application and letters of reference. Application for admission to the four-year BSN program will be accepted every spring and fall semester. Please send inquiries to bsnadmissions@lincolnu.edu<mailto:bsnadmissions@lincolnu.edu> or call 573-681-5421 The first cohort of four-year BSN students will be enrolled in their first clinical nursing courses starting Fall 2014 semester. The last class of AAS nursing students will be enrolled in the Spring 2014 semester. As these students progress through the remaining AAS courses, those courses will be eliminated as a new BSN cohort is admitted. The final AAS nursing class will graduate in Fall 2015 and the first BSN class will graduate in Fall 2016. The newly established four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing program will replace the AAS nursing program on the main campus, but the university will continue to offer the AAS nursing program at Fort Leonard Wood. The university will also continue to offer the online BSN completion program for registered nurses. The AAS nursing program and the online BSN completion program are currently accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). The university will seek national accreditation for the new four-year BSN program also. The initiative to establish a four-year BSN program is based on a local needs assessment in conjunction with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on the Future of Nursing released in 2010. The report states nurses must achieve higher levels of education to meet the increasing demands of society. It also recommends increasing the number of baccalaureate prepared nurses in the United States from 50% to 80% by 2020. In a historic twist, the Lincoln University Nursing Program opened 43 years ago based upon a similar assessment, which found a shortage of nurses in the Jefferson City hospitals at that time. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) is leading the charge to have all nurses BSN prepared, noting their superior critical thinking, health promotion skills, patient advocacy and leadership abilities. The AACN concurred that for every 10% increase in the proportion of baccalaureate nurses on staff, there was a 4% decrease in risk of death and found baccalaureate nurse education to be an independent factor in contributing to improved patient outcomes. ### Misty Young Director, Office of University Relations 573-681-5580 www.lincolnu.edu<http://www.lincolnu.edu/>