NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State University and Centenary College of Shreveport formalized an agreement Thursday that will allow Centenary graduates who hold a Bachelor of Science degree in biology, chemistry or related science to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from NSU in an accelerated curriculum.
The memorandum of understanding grants Centenary students preferred admission to the BSN Accelerated Curriculum (BAC), an intense, fast-paced program that helps students achieve the BSN degree within four semesters.
NSU president Dr. Chris Maggio underscored the quality of Centenary’s students, faculty and administrators as he discussed the benefits of the new partnership which was several years in the making.
“This is an exciting day,” said Maggio. “We know that you produce a number of wonderful graduates at Centenary who are well-prepared. We want to utilize these strengths and accelerate and streamline the process. There were a lot of moving parts to this, but we knew, at the core, that we had two outstanding institutions who were willing to help students and to help the healthcare profession.”
“This agreement builds on Centenary’s strengths in the biological sciences and helps us provide an easy pathway for students to be able to pursue their passions,” said Centenary president Dr. Christopher L. Holoman during the signing ceremony. “Collaborating with NSU is a great opportunity for us to serve the people of Louisiana and fill a really desperate need for nurses in our state. NSU is such an important part of our community, both in Shreveport and in northwest Louisiana, and we are really grateful to be able to create this partnership.”
The agreement will provide academic advising to Centenary students about the BS to BSN (BAC) curriculum, assist Centenary students in the advising process to ease the transition between institutions, and provide a program leading to degree completion in 15 months. Faculty and administrators from both Centenary and NSU will communicate regularly to ensure that the agreement is achieving its goals. NSU’s College of Nursing and School of Allied Health and Centenary campuses are located just three miles apart in Shreveport’s Highland neighborhood.
Centenary students interested in the BS to BSN (BAC) program must complete a bachelor of science degree in biology, chemistry or a related science field and graduate with an overall GPA of 3.0 or higher. They must also complete all prerequisite courses for the BSN degree and pass all required entrance examinations with satisfactory scores.
“We will have a dedicated faculty member guiding the students,” said Dr. Dana Clawson, dean of NSU’s College of Nursing and School of Allied Health. “We also feel students learn from other students and have arranged for the accelerated students to integrate with traditional BSN students in some courses.”
Information on the BS to BSN (BAC) program is available at nursing.nsula.edu or by contacting Clawson at roed@nsula.edu or Dr. Anna Morris at morris@nsula.edu.
