Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing received a $970,000 Nursing Workforce Diversity grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The grant is designed to help increase nursing education opportunities for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds by providing student stipends, scholarships and mentorship opportunities.

The HRSA funding will support the school’s “Building Nursing’s Diverse Leadership at Emory” (BUNDLE) program that focuses on racial and ethnic minorities who are underrepresented among registered nurses. Emory is one of 12 nursing schools in the country to receive this competitive nurse-training grant.  

"We are honored to receive this grant as it demonstrates HRSA’s understanding of the vital role of workforce diversity in nursing,” says Angela Amar, PhD, RN, FAAN, program director and professor at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. "Our program aims to address the increasing diversity and health disparities in the populations that we serve.”

BUNDLE will reduce social, economic and educational barriers to academic success in order to prepare nurses, from diverse backgrounds, to enter the public health nursing workforce. The aim is to build nursing leaders in underserved populations.

"The BUNDLE program will focus primarily on academic success and thorough training through best practices such as nurse/peer tutors, expansion of the academic advisor role, diversified student communities and mentorship programs,” explains Amar. “We are committed to developing nursing leaders who are sensitive to the cultural diversity of the health care population and will help change health outcomes in every community.”