Of interest in the media," Georgia educators expand nursing school capacity"

In a recent edition of The Healthcare Advisory Board, Nursing Executive Watch there was encouraging news!
http://www.advisory.com/members/default.asp?collectionid=39&program=1
Georgia nursing education leaders are working to expand the region’s pool of qualified nurses by increasing state universities’ training capacity, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The state Board of Regents recently approved $42.5 million in state bonds to help support construction of a new health sciences facility at Kennesaw State University. The $60 million building will increase the nursing school’s capacity by roughly 40 percent, or at least 80 students per year, when it opens for the 2009-2010 school year. Georgia State University officials, meanwhile, plan to launch alternative nursing education programs, including Web-based curricula, to expand enrollment by 20 students per year beginning this fall. The expansion will continue through late 2009, when officials expect to complete construction on a dedicated nursing lab and classroom facility. To further boost the nursing workforce, the dean of Medical College of Georgia’s nursing school is chairing a task force charged with developing strategies for encouraging collaboration among schools. The group ultimately hopes to increase the number of nurses graduating from the state university system by 50 percent over three years. Finally, the state’s education budget includes $3 million in grants to support other projects designed to stem the region’s nursing shortage (Duffy, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 5/4/07).