School of Nursing dreads potential cuts to budget

Linda Cronenwett, dean of the School of Nursing, will be keeping her fingers crossed until August.

At that time, members of the N.C. General Assembly will announce their final budget cuts to the UNC system — and decide the fate of the nursing school’s admissions and many of its programs.

The state already faces a large shortage of nurses, and the UNC system has taken a look at ways to fix the problem in recent years.

Cuts to funding at UNC-Chapel Hill’s school would be a step back, Cronenwett said. Funding for the School of Nursing already has reached a dire situation, and any more budget cuts could drastically affect how the school operates.

“We have eliminated pretty much what we could in the budget cuts that came before, so we’re just hoping that we are not asked to implement any further cuts,” she said.

But in proposed budget scenarios submitted to the UNC-system Office of the President last week, officials said the nursing school likely would sustain further cuts.

“We have already squeezed enormously in maintaining our current number of students in times of budget cuts,” Cronenwett said.

Because the nursing school offers a tight schedule of programs for students — almost all credit hours in the school are required courses — budget cuts would reduce the number of enrolled students.

“Our only option — given that we have minimal elective options and all of our courses are essentially required — is to decrease admissions,” Cronenwett said.

The nursing school would decrease enrollment by increments of eight to 10 students, though budget cuts wouldn’t affect those numbers until the 2006-07 academic year.

Cronenwett added that budget cuts will have the greatest effect on undergraduate students, whose program requires close regulation by faculty members.

Students work in clusters of eight to 10 when working with a patient. Reducing a class size by 10 could cut one instructor.

Cronenwett said faculty members are discouraged each year when they review qualified students in the applicant pool and are unable to admit them.

Steve Allred, executive associate provost, said the potential reductions will have a ripple effect in terms of the number of certified nurses available in the state. “We all want to be able to go to the emergency room or hospital and know there are able nurses there.”

Yet UNC’s nursing school rejects hundreds of qualified students each year.

“Our state needs a dramatically increased production of nurses over the next 20 years in order to come close to meeting the projected number of people with health care needs at that time,” Cronenwett said. “The state needs nurses in order for health care to be available to its citizens.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.