NIH Grant to Community College of Philadelphia Will Fund Partnership With Drexel, Increase Minority Nurses In Biomedical Research

PHILADELPHIA, PA, May 9, 2005 - Community College of Philadelphia received a $609,218 grant for the National Institutes of Health's Bridges to the Baccalaureate project. The College will partner with Drexel University's College of Nursing and Health Professionals for the project to increase the number of minority nurses in the field of biomedical research.

This partnership will enable a total of 45 Community College of Philadelphia nursing students, over three years, to enter into the RN-BSN program at Drexel University. The two nursing schools will collaborate to develop and implement a research-based academic experience.

The project, titled Research Models for Change, and the establishment of an academic community between the nursing programs at the College and Drexel University will increase the academic readiness of minority nursing students and remove the barriers that minority students often face as they transition into an RN-BSN degree program. The program will also increase minority nursing student's exposure to and preparedness for biomedical research.