Earlier this week, Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States awarded over $1.5 million in workforce grants to eight establishments of higher education; including five community colleges in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. The workforce development grants will support an estimated 2,404 students with scholarships, equipment, and educational training in nursing, allied health, and health technology. They are part of Kaiser Permanente’s mission to invest in the future of health care and build healthy communities.
“Kaiser Permanente is a model for the future of health care and these workforce development grants demonstrate Kaiser Permanente’s commitment to invest in, train, and educate tomorrow’s health care professionals,” said Maritha Gay, Senior Director of External Affairs, Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States. “This is not only an investment in education enhancements for future health professionals, but will ultimately impact community health by creating improvements in quality of care.”
The workforce development grant recipients include the following:
- $200,000 to Baltimore City Community College Foundation to support capacity building within the college’s nursing and allied health programs to train nurses, practical nurses, and allied health professionals by increasing staffing and purchasing simulation equipment.
- $200,000 to Howard Community College Educational Foundation to provide scholarship awards used for tuition, books, supplies, and credentialing fees to nursing and allied health students with financial need.
- $200,000 to Northern Virginia Community College Educational Foundation to develop curriculum and build online capacity for training in health information technology.
- $200,000 to Prince George’s Community College Foundation to increase simulation training in nursing and allied health.
- $200,000 to Community College of Baltimore County will provide scholarships to students seeking degrees or certificates in nursing or allied health. The two-prong goal of the scholarships is to meet the workforce demands of the health care industry and to improve access to college for low income students.
- $200,000 to University of the District of Columbia will build capacity in health related programs and purchase simulation equipment to enhance instruction.
- $200,000 to University System of Maryland Foundation on behalf of the Universities at Shady Grove to provide scholarships to juniors and seniors enrolled in health care disciplines and demonstrate financial need.
- $198,824 to Montgomery College Foundation to purchase equipment for training nursing and allied health students in fields that are experiencing workforce shortages.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 10 of the 20 fastest growing occupations are in the health care industry. More than 3.2 million jobs are estimated to be created between 2008 and 2018 in health care field alone, largely in response to rapid growth in the elderly population.