Students at the Loewenberg School of Nursing are receiving tuition assistance due to a contribution from the Assisi Foundation of Memphis.
The nursing school has been awarded a one-time grant of $65,000 by the foundation in order to offset the 15 percent tuition increase implemented this fall.
The grant will cover up to $250 per student of the increased tuition costs for at least 260 students.
Since its formation in April 1994, the Assisi Foundation has been very active in Memphis and the Mid-South. It has awarded millions of dollars to organizations in the community.
The foundation has also been instrumental in helping community organizations find and apply for other sources of grants.
The Assisi Foundation of Memphis, formed as a result of the sale of Saint Francis Hospital to American Medical International, has contributed to research into areas such as cell therapy, HIV/AIDS and cancer treatment.
Three of its most widely known recipients are St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, The University of Tennessee College of Medicine and the Church Health Center. The grants that the foundation has provided have been used for research as well as providing health care to those that are unable to afford it.
However, its primary goal is to promote scientific education in colleges and high schools.
The Fall 2000 enrollment of students at the Loewenberg School of Nursing was 226, and it is estimated that 78 new students have enrolled for Fall 2001.
According to the executive director of the Assisi Foundation, Barry J. Flynn, the foundation has provided this grant to assist nursing students because of a critical need for health care providers, particularly nurses.
“The increase in tuition will pose a burden on many students, even possibly causing some individuals to withdraw from school,” said Flynn. “This will only exacerbate an already critical shortage of nurses.”
University President Shirley Raines praised the foundation for its gift, stating that she is “very grateful to the Assisi Foundation for the assistance they have chosen to give our nursing students.”
Raines also said that the Assisi Foundation’s contribution is a great example of the type of partnerships and commitments that are beneficial to students, adding that she is hoping to see more of those types of partnerships and gifts in the future.
