Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program - Community Colleges - CA Education

Section § 88770

This law section establishes the Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program, which is designed to support and improve nursing facilities and resources.

This part shall be known, and may be cited, as the Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program.

Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program nursing facilities nursing resources support program healthcare infrastructure nursing improvement facility funding nursing grants infrastructure support California nursing healthcare grants nursing development facility improvement resource enhancement

(Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 71, Sec. 10. (SB 155) Effective July 2, 2024. Inoperative July 1, 2030, pursuant to Section 88773. Repealed as of January 1, 2031, pursuant to Section 88773.)

Section § 88771

This section of the law provides definitions for several important terms used in the context of the Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program. An 'applicant' is a community college district that applies for a grant. The 'Chancellor' and 'Chancellor’s office' refer to the leadership and administrative office of California Community Colleges. A 'grant' is an award given under this program, and a 'recipient' is a community college district that receives this grant.

As used in this part, unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions apply:

(a) “Applicant” means a community college district that submits an eligible application pursuant to this part.

(b) “Chancellor” means the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges.

(d) “Grant” means a grant awarded pursuant to this part.

(e) “Program” means the Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program established pursuant to this part.

(f) “Recipient” means a community college district that receives a grant pursuant to this part.

community college district eligible application Chancellor of California Community Colleges grant award Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program nursing program funding college grant recipient higher education grants nursing education infrastructure college district applicant educational funding program grant application process California Community Colleges leadership education grant program nursing program support

(Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 71, Sec. 10. (SB 155) Effective July 2, 2024. Inoperative July 1, 2030, pursuant to Section 88773. Repealed as of January 1, 2031, pursuant to Section 88773.)

Section § 88772

The Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program is designed to boost nursing education and address shortages by providing funds to develop or expand nursing programs in California. The grants can be used for a variety of purposes, such as creating nursing partnerships, recruiting and retaining faculty, offering student support services, and buying educational equipment. The application process is competitive, with priority given to programs in areas with nursing shortages or those expanding bachelor of science in nursing partnerships.

Applicants need to specify how they plan to use grant funds to meet their needs and must report on the outcomes, including new enrollment slots and student success rates, annually until 2030. Grants are capped at $2 million per cycle and must be used within two years. The chancellor will monitor and report on the program's progress to government committees. Administrative costs can consume up to 5% of the program's total budget.

(a) The Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program is hereby established as a competitive grant program under the administration of the chancellor.

(b) The funding for the program shall be awarded as grants by the chancellor to applicants for any one or combination of the following purposes:

(1) Developing or expanding bachelor of science in nursing partnerships, including established partnerships with the California State University, the University of California, or independent institutions of higher education as defined in Section 66010.

(2) Developing or expanding associate degree in nursing programs.

(3) Developing strategies for recruiting, retaining, and training high-quality nursing faculty, including, but not limited to, by offering incentives, including stipends and flexible working hours, to recruit and retain nursing faculty, and by providing professional development opportunities.

(4) Developing strategies for increasing nursing program credentials, including, but not limited to, efforts to address noncompliance issues raised by the Board of Registered Nursing and to obtain accreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.

(5) Developing strategies for engaging and retaining nursing students, including, but not limited to, the integration of high-impact and diversity-, equity-, and inclusion-focused curriculum, the development of apprenticeship opportunities, and the expansion of student support services including basic needs assistance, mental health support, case management, counseling services, and specialized tutoring.

(6) Developing strategies that facilitate the increase of the percentage of associate degree nursing to bachelor of science in nursing students, including, but not limited to, the development of strategies that strengthen the high school to community college nursing pipeline.

(7) Purchasing equipment for nursing education programs.

(8) Developing or scaling efforts that lead to additional clinical placements for nursing students.

(c) The chancellor shall develop an application for applicants to apply for a grant. The application may be an extension of the application used for the Nursing Enrollment Growth and Retention program under Section 78261. The chancellor shall make the application for the first round of grants available on or before November 1, 2024, with grants distributed to recipients on or before July 1, 2025. Subject to available funding for purposes of this part, the chancellor may administer subsequent application rounds. An application for a grant shall require, at a minimum, all of the following information:

(1) A statement identifying the specific needs or problems the applicant faces with regard to providing access to educating, supporting, graduating, or placing nursing students.

(2) A description of how the applicant is addressing the needs or problems described in paragraph (1) with existing funds, and how receipt of a grant will supplement those efforts.

(3) The amount of a grant requested by an applicant, and how the applicant specifically proposes to use the grant for the purposes described in paragraphs (1) to (8), inclusive, of subdivision (b).

(4) If applicable, the number of nursing education program slots that the applicant is planning to add each year within the two-year period of grant encumbrance described in subdivision (f) beyond already planned nursing education program slot expansions. A breakdown shall be provided for associate degree in nursing slots and bachelor of science in nursing slots.

(5) If applicable, bachelor of science in nursing partnerships with a campus of the California State University or the University of California, or independent institutions of higher education as defined in Section 66010, that the applicant will develop or expand with receipt of a grant.

(6) A breakdown of the amount and use of other funding sources that the applicant is using for nursing education programs, including apportionments, grants under the Nursing Enrollment Growth and Retention Program established in Section 78261, other state or federal workforce grants, and private or in-kind funding sources.

(d) Selection of recipients shall be on a competitive basis. The chancellor shall develop a scoring rubric to evaluate the completeness and quality of each application. The chancellor shall require an application to meet a minimum threshold to be eligible for a grant.

(1) The chancellor shall give priority for grants to applicants that are located in an underserved nursing area or a region with a local nursing shortage.

(2) An applicant receiving a grant in one application round is not prohibited from applying and receiving a grant in subsequent application rounds. However, the chancellor may prioritize awarding grants to applicants that have not received a grant.

(3) The chancellor shall give priority for a grant to applicants that expand existing bachelor of science in nursing partnerships with a campus of the California State University or the University of California.

(e)

(1) The chancellor shall determine the amount of a grant for each recipient. In determining the amount of a grant for a recipient, the chancellor shall take all of the following factors into account:

(A) The applicant’s requested grant amount in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c).

(B) The applicant’s score on the scoring rubric developed pursuant to subdivision (d).

(2) A recipient shall not receive a grant that exceeds two million dollars ($2,000,000) per award cycle.

(f) A recipient shall have up to two years to expend a grant. Any unspent amount of the grant at the end of that two-year period of encumbrance shall revert to the chancellor’s office.

(g) As a condition of receiving a grant, a recipient shall report, on or before January 1, 2026, and each January 1 thereafter to January 1, 2030, inclusive, all data and information to the chancellor’s office that the chancellor determines furthers the purposes of the program. A report submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall include all of the following:

(1) The number of additional nursing education program enrollment slots created with the use of grants.

(2) Student outcomes, including course success rates, persistence rates, graduation rates, and, if possible, employment placement outcomes.

(3) How the grant was used by expenditure category, as described in paragraphs (1) to (8), inclusive, of subdivision (b).

(4) The extent to which the grant, combined with other funding sources, addressed regional workforce needs.

(h) On or before July 1, 2026, and each July 1 thereafter to July 1, 2030, inclusive, the chancellor’s office shall compile and provide a summary of the information received pursuant to subdivision (g) to the Assembly and Senate Committees on Budget and the Governor. The information shall be provided as part of the report required pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (h) of Section 78261. A report submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

(i) The chancellor may allocate up to 5 percent of the total amount appropriated for purposes of the program for state administrative operations to carry out the intent of the program.

nursing education grants Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure nursing faculty recruitment nursing student support services nursing program expansion clinical placements California State University nursing partnerships University of California nursing partnerships bachelor of science in nursing associate degree in nursing nursing equipment funding nursing student retention diversity in nursing curriculum nursing workforce needs nursing program accreditation

(Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 71, Sec. 10. (SB 155) Effective July 2, 2024. Inoperative July 1, 2030, pursuant to Section 88773. Repealed as of January 1, 2031, pursuant to Section 88773.)

Section § 88773

This section of the law will no longer be active after July 1, 2030, and will be officially removed on January 1, 2031.

If anyone has not used all their grant money by July 1, 2030, they must still follow the existing rules until their money is used up or the specific encumbrance period ends, whichever is sooner.

(a) This part shall become inoperative on July 1, 2030, and, as of January 1, 2031, is repealed.

(b) Any recipient that has not fully expended their grant by July 1, 2030, shall continue adhering to the requirements of this part that were operative on June 30, 2030, until the grant is expended or the encumbrance period described in subdivision (f) ends, whichever occurs first.

grant expenditure encumbrance period operative requirements grant recipients expiration date inoperative law education funding grant adherence 2020 deadline legislation repeal

(Added by Stats. 2024, Ch. 71, Sec. 10. (SB 155) Effective July 2, 2024. Repealed as of January 1, 2031, by its own provisions. Repeal affects Part 53.7, commencing with Section 88770.)