Regis awarded Cummings Foundation grant for new Nursing Resource Center

Regis, a Catholic university in Greater Boston, is pleased to announce it is one of 100 local nonprofits to receive a grant of $100,000 through the Cummings Foundation's “$100K for 100” program. The Weston-based university was chosen from a total of 479 applicants during a competitive review process. The award will help fund a Nursing Resource Center (NRC) at Regis - a dedicated “one stop shop” for nursing students to obtain comprehensive academic assistance by nursing faculty and student-peers.

“So many advances in knowledge and changes in delivery are in play in health care today, we’ve been comparing it to building the airplane while flying it,” said Regis President Antoinette M. Hays, PhD, RN. “This grant is crucial to preparing students to be successful in their pre-licensure nursing education and transition into practice, caring for diverse patients in all health care settings. I am deeply grateful to the Cummings Foundation.”

Establishing a Nursing Resource Center is industry best-practice today as nursing students face increasing restrictions on hands-on interaction with patients during clinical placements. According to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, without such initiatives as the NRC in the education of the new nurse, difficulties in his or her transition into practice can gravely affect both staffing and costs.

“The Nursing Resource Center will fuel our capacity to provide students with the tools they need to deliver excellent patient care by further immersing students with hands-on skills and the culture of nursing, thus boosting their competencies and confidence in real-world situations,” said Patricia McCauley, Director of Nursing Simulation and Resource Center and Associate Professor of Nursing at Regis.

As well, since Regis is a leader in education in nursing and the health sciences toward workforce diversity, the Cummings Foundation’s investment will have immediate and significant impact by contributing to the education of a diversified nursing profession. “At the 2016 commencement alone, the university graduated close to 200 bachelor’s candidates in nursing, and we are looking forward to more,” said Jan Tuxbury, Instructor in Nursing and Clinical Resource and Simulation Center Coordinator.

"We admire and very much appreciate the important work that nonprofit organizations like Regis are doing in the local communities where our colleagues and clients live and work," said Joel Swets, Cummings Foundation's executive director. "We are delighted to support their efforts."

Regis was named a Center of Excellence for 2015-2020 by the National League of Nursing for the third consecutive time – one of only four schools in New England to be currently so named, and the only nursing school in New England given that designation the first time in 2008. Overall Regis boasts a population of 2000 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in liberal arts, education and health sciences.

This is the second grant Regis received from the Cummings “$100K for 100” program. The first grant awarded in 2013 helped launch the Regis Center for Global Connections. The “$100K for 100” program supports nonprofits that are not only based in but also primarily serve Middlesex, Essex, and Suffolk counties. This year, the program is benefiting 41 different cities and towns within the Commonwealth.

Through this place-based initiative, Cummings Foundation aims to give back in the area where it owns commercial buildings, all of which are managed, at no cost to the Foundation, by its affiliate Cummings Properties. Founded in 1970 by Bill Cummings of Winchester, the Woburn-based commercial real estate firm leases and manages more than 10 million square feet of space, the majority of which exclusively benefits the Foundation.

This year's diverse group of grant recipients represents a wide variety of causes, including education, homelessness prevention, elder services, healthcare, and food insecurity. Most of the grants will be paid over two to five years. The complete list of 100 grant winners is available at www.CummingsFoundation.org.

Representing Regis, President Hays; Patricia McCauley; Shawna Erickson, Director of Institutional Support; and Miriam Sherman, Vice President of Institutional Advancement; will join approximately 300 other guests on June 9 at a reception in Woburn to celebrate the $10 million infusion into Greater Boston's nonprofit sector. With the conclusion of this grant cycle, Cummings Foundation has now awarded more than $140 million to local nonprofits alone.

ABOUT REGIS:

Regis is a leading Catholic university in greater Boston with over 1900 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students in the arts, sciences and health professions devoted to engage, serve and advance in a global community. With a strategic graduate focus on health care, Regis was recently named a Center of Excellence in Nursing Education by the National League of Nursing for the third time. The intergenerational and multifaceted Weston campus includes a pre-school and a Life Long Learning program (LLARC) for senior adults with a passion for learning. Regis North, a satellite campus in Lawrence, Massachusetts, is an initiative of the Regis Institute of Advancing Studies (IAS) in partnership with Northern Essex Community College (NECC) and dedicated to bachelor’s degree completion in nursing, public health and other health sciences. Regis is also an Apple Distinguished School for 2014-2016. Visit Regis on the Web at www.regiscollege.edu.