A $300,000 commitment from Ozarks Medical Center (OMC) will help Missouri State University-West Plains expand its Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) degree program beginning next spring.
The commitment will be paid in $100,000 installments each year for the next three years, according to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) approved by officials from OMC and Missouri State University.
The funds will be used to help underwrite the cost of expanding the university’s nursing program to include an online LPN-to-RN bridge program for an additional 30 students, as well as a second cohort of the regular track RN program for 25 additional students.
The expanded programs are contingent on approval from the Missouri State Board of Nursing at its Nov. 6 meeting. If approved, the new programs will begin with the 2020 spring semester.