Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science: 2020-2021

In September 2022, the American Nurses Association declared “a crisis-level human resource shortage of nurses that puts our ability to care for patients in jeopardy.” Nurse retirements, an aging population and expansion of insurance coverage all contribute to this shortage.
One of the best ways to address the nationwide nursing shortage is to recruit and train new nurses from the communities that they will one day serve. However, the communities with the greatest nursing shortages in the Chicago Metropolitan area are communities with a high rate of poverty, which is a known barrier to higher education. To help overcome this barrier and meet immediate and long-term needs in healthcare, the Washington Square Health Foundation established the first named scholarship at the new College of Nursing at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science (RFU). Recipients of the Washington Square Health Foundation (WSHF) Nursing Scholarship agree to remain in the Chicago Metropolitan area for a period of at least two years and serve populations in need.
Recently, RFU awarded the WSHF Nursing Scholarship to Gracia Neema. Gracia, who resides in Romeoville, moved to Illinois from the Democratic Republic of Congo when she was in eighth grade. She spoke no English, but quickly learned the language to help translate for her mother who was undergoing cancer treatment. Gracia is excited to start her journey into nursing and is grateful to the Washington Square Health Foundation for helping her achieve her dreams.
In the end, the WSHF Nursing Scholarship simultaneously promotes prosperity, educational attainment, and health one student at a time, each with the capacity to create a ripple effect in their community.