The Nursing Explosion: Cleveland State Leading Charge

Monday, January 27, 2020 12:00 AM
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(Cleveland, Tennessee) – Over the next 10 years, the nursing field is expected to see a 12% growth in available nurses. However, even with this kind of professional growth, the latest generation of Americans hitting their golden years is still expected to leave this field lacking in a number of needed professionals.

For this region of the nation, that’s where Cleveland State Community College comes in. As a result, the Cougar Nation is experiencing a nursing boom of its own.

Today, construction on Cleveland State’s brand new Health and Science Center is officially underway after a late summer groundbreaking this past year. When the doors open in Spring 2021, the college will officially expand its arsenal of nursing education opportunities for anyone considering joining the field in this new decade.

From their new state-of-the-art facility to the latest training available in 2020, Cleveland State is reaching out to anyone who is interested in getting a taste of what takes place to properly educate today’s nurses. On January 28, the college is holding a special information session at 5 p.m. in the Johnson Auditorium on the CSCC campus to assist the region’s future nurses.

Building on 50 years of excellence, the nursing program at Cleveland State continues to prepare nurses to hit the ground running. And that’s good, because the college’s nursing graduates get to work immediately after graduating.

“For as long as I can remember, our nursing program has had a 100-percent job placement rate among our graduates,” said CSCC Director of Nursing Nancy Thomas, MSN, RN. “Most of our students have jobs secured even before graduation, and they’re heavily recruited by area hospitals and healthcare facilities.”

One reason for such ongoing success is CSCC’s standards. The nursing program expects excellence from students, and the students respond.

But the college doesn’t leave nursing students on their own. Cleveland State offers tutors, success coaches, and one-on-one meetings with faculty and staff. All of this to ensure each and every nursing student is prepared for the next test. And more importantly, prepared for the invigorating life of a nurse.

For the last five decades, this commitment to excellence has paid off. After welcoming the first cohort of students under a new common nursing curriculum in 2018, the college was thrilled when all seven enrollees later passed their licensure tests to become registered nurses.

This spring, the nursing program is on schedule to graduate 30 nurses through this new program and another 50 next year.

So who is an ideal nursing candidate?

According to Thomas, great nurses have different personalities, strengths, and weaknesses. But they have some things in common. Great nurses use critical thinking skills to problem-solve. They care about people and use evidence-based practices to help others heal and live better lives. They openly advocate for patients, speaking words of comfort when needed and finding satisfaction in restoring good health. And they do it day after day, knowing their work benefits others.

While completing nurse training and working as a nurse isn’t easy, nothing worthwhile is. And Cleveland State’s nursing graduates insist it’s worth the effort.

“I often ask graduates if they’re glad they became nurses, and they always answer with an emphatic yes,” said Thomas. “In fact, I’ve never had a single graduate tell me they wish they’d not entered nursing.”

To learn more about the nursing program at Cleveland State Community College, come to the informational session on January 28 at 5 p.m. in the Johnson Auditorium. Faculty, staff, success coaches, enrollment services, and current nursing students will be on hand to answer questions and help you determine if CSCC’s nursing program is a good fit for you. Visit ClevelandStateCC.edu or call the college at 423.472.7141 for information.

CSCC is the College System of Tennessee’s current College of the Year. CSCC directly serves the people of Bradley, McMinn, Meigs, Monroe, and Polk Counties in Tennessee. The College System of Tennessee is the state’s largest public higher education system, with 13 community colleges, 27 colleges of applied technology and the online TN eCampus serving more than 110,000 students.