U.S. university opens Sackville campus for nursing students
Beal University program offers combination of online, on-campus and clinical training
A nursing program run by a private college in Maine held an official launch of its New Brunswick campus on Monday at the Sackville Memorial Hospital.
Beal University, based in Bangor, offers a program that begins with 12 months of online instruction in nursing followed by on-site instruction in Sackville and in clinical placements.
The program can be completed in 30 months, and the first group of students to train in Sackville are expected to graduate in August.
Beal officials gave a tour of the unversity wing in Sackville on Monday.
"The nearly 10,000-square-foot campus includes classrooms, nursing clinical fundamentals and simulation labs, a virtual reality classroom, a learning resource centre, a student lounge and faculty offices," said Sheryl DeWalt, president of Beal University.
DeWalt said many New Brunswickers have been crossing the border to attend Beal, specifically the nursing programs.
But Opportunities New Brunswick contacted Beal and asked if the university would consider opening a Canadian campus, as a way to help solve the nursing shortage without losing Beal graduates to jobs in the U.S.
The effort to get a campus in Canada began in 2019.
Isabella MacGillivray, a student in the program who is originally from Saint John, said it's been nice to finally put some of the skills into practice after doing the first portion of the program online..
DeWalt said the pandemic delayed planning, but the effort resumed in 2021, with a goal to open the Sackville location in January 2024. DeWalt said construction issues delayed that opening.
She said she chose Beal because it had a shorter wait list compared with some other nursing programs and because it was an accelerated options, Nursing programs are often four-year degree programs.
"I was on a wait list for another nursing program for close to two years," MacGillvray said.
In 2022, the province announced a $6,000 "incentive grant" to help offset some of the costs associated with studying out of country, such as travel and living expenses, when Beal opened up 100 nursing seats specifically for New Brunswick students. Tuition was also reduced for New Brunswick students.
Then in 2023, the college was given conditional approval to offer a bachelor of science in nursing, through a combination of online courses and clinical training completed at Horizon's Sackville Memorial Hospital.
The Sackville Memorial Hospital has not had a 24/7 emergency room for several years now because of staff shortages.
That's why on Monday, Tantramar Deputy Mayor Matt Estabrooks says it's a huge deal for the municipality to have the program at the Sackville hospital.
"To have a fully functioning hospital is critical for, number one, our aging population, but also for our student population," said Estabrooks, referring to those attending Mount Allison University.
Estabrooks also has a personal connection to the announcement. He said his mother was a nurse at the Sackville hospital, in the same wing where the newly renovated Beal spot is located.
Estabrooks has other family members who worked or work at the hospital, and his daughter also enrolled in the Beal program in Maine, which prompted the family to start thinking about accommodations in Bangor for when she would need to go in-person.
"Throughout … that first year of her online studies with Beal, it came to reality that it was going to be open here, so I looked at my wife and said, 'This was absolutely meant to be.'"
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With files from Katelin Belliveau