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Tom Mason, administrator, and Diane Potter, administrative assistant, at the “front door” of the new location of the UNMC College of Nursing Lincoln Division. |
The college moved in July to the Commerce Court Building at 1230 O St., which also is occupied by Wells Fargo Bank.
The University of Nebraska Board of Regents last year approved a proposal to temporarily relocate the college into a renovated building in the downtown area called Commerce Court — two blocks from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. In the long-range plan, UNMC leaders and the University of Nebraska Foundation plan to raise money to build a new facility. It’s estimated the new building would cost $7.5 million.
“This transitional stage in Commerce Court will move us toward our long-range goal of building a new facility on the UNL East Campus near the UNMC College of Dentistry,” said Virginia Tilden, D.N.Sc., dean of the UNMC College of Nursing. “This is wonderful space and we’re very excited to have it. It’s ideal for teaching and students are the real beneficiaries.”
UNMC holds a seven-year lease with the option to renew the space from Ameritas Life Insurance Company, which owns the building. The average annual cost is $259,367 with a total cost of $1.8 million over the seven years of the lease.
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Nursing student Kristin Bertelsen, second from left, prepares to immunize fellow student, Suzie Hunt, far left, with fellow students and faculty watching. |
Faculty, staff and students say the move to Commerce Court greatly enhanced the learning environment. Once a shell of an office building, the college now doubled its classroom space which is equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including hardware and software for distance education classes. Students now learn and practice patient care skills in sophisticated assessment and skills laboratories that mimic those in which they will work after graduation. In addition, there is a student lounge.
“The college was in dire need of adequate space in which to teach nursing students to meet the needs of today’s complex health environment,” Dr. Tilden said. “The former facility was outdated and was no longer suitable for teaching nursing students. I’m thankful to UNMC Facilities Management and Planning in negotiating the lease and implementing plans for the major renovation.”
She said renovation of the building has allowed the college to install sophisticated simulation labs and high technology classrooms essential in nursing education today.
“We had the facility designed with emphasis on student learning and life,” Dr. Tilden said. “We concentrated on state-of-the-art classrooms, a state-of-the-art computing center and a clinical skills lab that provides the types of hospital beds and equipment they will encounter in the real world.”
Inadequate space, poor heating and cooling and noise disruptions hampered learning in the previous location, said faculty and students. In some classes, columns blocked students’ view of the instructor. The buildings didn’t have central heating and air conditioning so when it got warm, faculty either turned on the window air conditioner, which made it difficult to hear, or left the air conditioners off.
“The College of Nursing at Fairfield and Benton Halls was adequate,” said nursing student Neil Root. “Of course, it is the faculty and staff that are most important, so students were always getting a quality education.”
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Nursing instructor Myra Schmaderer, far left, talks with students in the clinical skills laboratory. |
“We’re very grateful for the support of Chancellor (Harold M.) Maurer in helping to recognize that the college was in a very inadequate space and students were suffering as a consequence. I’m very grateful for his unequivocal support for this venture,” Dr. Tilden said.
Lani Zimmerman, Ph.D., assistant dean of the UNMC College of Nursing Lincoln Division, said she has heard a lot of positive comments from students, faculty and staff. “We’re real happy with the facility and so excited to have central heating and air,” Dr. Zimmerman said. “The renovation is beautiful and I think the faculty and staff and UNMC facilities management staff did an outstanding job designing efficient use of space, particularly in the health assessment, skills and computer lab. We talked with them about what we needed and they got it done.”
Melissa Lake, senior nursing student, is impressed with the location. “The computer lab is much larger,” she said. “More students can be on computers at the same time. It’s also very nice having a lounge area.
“In the old building, we had so many people in the same space at the same time. It was just chaotic,” Lake said. “Many times when we were in lectures, it was always hot in the room and we were always crunched together.”
Susan Barnason, Ph.D., associate professor, said moving to the new location with more space and updated equipment provides a better learning environment. “We have so many more opportunities to create more realistic situations that students are likely to encounter in clinical situations.” She said the space also is well designed to promote better collaboration in research among faculty and graduate students.
Tom Mason, administrator, UNMC College of Nursing Lincoln Division, said the facility also provides ample space for teaching and storage of teaching tools, including a computerized mannequin that can simulate actual patient conditions. In the clinical skills laboratory, faculty and students went from a small room with five beds to a spacious room with 10 beds and state-of-the-art equipment.
“From what we came from, this is quite a difference,” Mason said. “It used to be crowded and the buildings didn’t have decent airflow. This is so much better.”
About 80 undergraduate students a year enroll in the Lincoln Division, Dr. Zimmerman said. Officials say while at the former facility, the college could not accept all the qualified nursing applicants that applied, partly due to space restrictions. With the newly renovated space and additional faculty, the college already has taken 16 percent to 20 percent more applicants than last year.
“With the nursing shortage in Nebraska, there is a 10 percent shortfall of registered nurses,” Dr. Tilden said. It is estimated by the year 2020, the shortfall will increase by 20 percent. The shortage needs to be addressed, especially with the growing number of Nebraskans who will be elderly and require nursing care by 2020.
The Lincoln Division, which employs 30 faculty and 14 staff, currently has 175 undergraduate nursing students enrolled in its bachelor’s degree in nursing program. Getting into nursing school is highly competitive. Students entering have an average grade-point-average of 3.7 out of a possible 4.0.
Each year, the Lincoln Division turns out an estimated 65-70 graduates, 50 percent of whom take nursing positions in the Lincoln area.
The UNMC College of Nursing Lincoln Division is part of the UNMC College of Nursing based in Omaha, which also has divisions in Kearney and Scottsbluff.