On November, 9, 2006, St. David's Community Health Foundation announced a $6 million donation to Texas State University-San Marcos to help establish a school of nursing at Texas State's Round Rock Higher Education Center. The funds will be used to hire new faculty, equip laboratories, and offset other costs for a new school of nursing until the school becomes self-sustaining.

In recognition for the donation, Texas State President Denise M. Trauth announced the school will be named the St. David’s School of Nursing at Texas State University when it opens.

“We are grateful for the St. David’s Community Health Foundation’s generosity and foresight. This is not just a gift to Texas State, it is a gift to Texas. It will allow us to establish a new school of nursing at considerably less cost to the taxpayer than previously expected,” said Trauth.

Dick Moeller, president and chief executive officer of the Foundation, said the gift will help Texas State address an essential need in Texas – a severe shortage of nurses.
        
“We are pleased to be a partner with Texas State in this important effort,” said Moeller. “Nursing education programs in Texas are at full capacity and the need for  more nurses is critical."

Current data shows that Texas has 646 registered nurses per 100,000 population, compared to the national average of 825.

The nursing school will be part of the university's Round Rock Higher Education Center. The university plans to break ground on a new building to house the school in 2008, with the first class of 100 junior-level students to be admitted in 2010.

More Information

Read the Austin American-Statesman article and editorial
Download the timeline for the new school

Questions about the Texas nursing shortage
1. Why is nursing important?
2. How many nurses are there in Texas and how many are needed?
3. Why is there a shortage of nurses?
4. Why is there a need for a new nursing school?

1. As the nation’s largest health care profession, the nursing field comprises 2.6 million registered nurses.  Hospitals employ 60 percent of nurses, with an increasing number of nurses also employed in home care, clinics, short-stay surgery centers, clinics, rehabilitation, health centers, transitional care, hospices, schools and businesses.  The federal government projects that nursing employment opportunities are expected to grow faster through 2008 than the average for all other occupations. back to top

2. Current data shows that Texas has 646 registered nurses per 100,000 population, compared to the national average of 825 per 100,000 population.  The federal government is estimating a shortfall of one million registered nurses by 2012 around the country.  It is estimated Texas will need 138,000 more nurses in the next seven to 10 years, 14 percent of the federal estimated shortfall. back to top

3. The shortages are motivated by demographic forces including the age of nurses and early retirement.  They are also motivated by a growing patient population, heightened productivity requirements in hospitals, increasing use of technology requiring a greater level of training and economic strain on hospitals and other providers.  In Texas, the average age of an employed RN in 1980 was 38, but that average age increased to 43 in 2000.  It is estimated that by 2010, 40 percent of employed RNs and nursing educators will retire.  Another major issue in the shortage of nurses is the lack of spots for students in nursing schools. back to top

4. Nursing students account for 52 percent of all health profession students in the United States.  An American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) survey states that the nursing shortage cannot be blamed on a lack of people wanting to become nurses.  According to the University of Texas School of Nursing at Houston, Texas nursing schools turned away 4,200 qualified applicants in 2004.  Not enough space and resources to train nursing students, along with difficulty in attracting nurses into faculty careers with inadequate salaries, has created a strong need for more schools.  In the next few years Texas needs to double the number of graduates from nursing programs, including baccalaureate programs and hospital programs, to react to the increase in retirement of aging nurses in the near future. back to top