UH Manoa Nursing Recognizes U.S. Veterans at Commencement, Gifts Patriotic Honor Cords
Honolulu, Hawaii (May 20, 2015) – UH Manoa Nursing, through the School’s federal grant – Achieving a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing: A Veterans’ Initiative Program – has provided all UH Manoa veterans with a symbolic red, white, and blue honor cord worn at the 104th Annual Commencement Exercises held on Saturday, May 16, 2015. The veterans honor cords represent the sacrifice, service, and commitment to excellence that all student veterans share. This is the first semester that UH Manoa Nursing has provided patriotic honor cords to graduating veterans to recognize and support all veterans across the UH Manoa campus.
The Achieving a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing: A Veterans’ Initiative Program is a three-year $342,472 federal HRSA grant. Launched in spring 2015, the grant assists U.S. veterans with military medical experience receive credit for their training, decreasing the time to graduation and a nursing degree. The program also provides academic and social support services to veterans and dependants, and facilitates new enrollment and academic progression.
“One of the exciting outcomes of this grant is the synergy created across campus and the UH system with and for student veterans. Collaborating with UH Manoa Nursing faculty, UH Manoa’s Office of Veteran Services Support, the ROTC Command, and the Schools of Nursing at Kapiolani Community College, Kauai Community College, and Maui College has increased our collective capacity to support student veterans and facilitate their enrollment, retention, and academic progression,” said Dr. Debra Mark, program director and U.S. Veteran.
“The nation will continue to have demand for highly skilled workers in healthcare and we are fortunate to have the most highly trained military in the world. In alignment with the Obama Administration, this grant is one of nine federal grants funded this year specifically for Hawaii veterans who wish to build upon their military training and experience,” said Mary G. Boland, dean of UH Manoa Nursing. “Our program seeks to enroll veterans, give them credit for their military experience, and provide them with the support they need to complete their Bachelor’s degree in nursing. The School is committed to serving our veterans by helping them to successfully transition to the civilian workforce while leveraging their extensive skill set to build a stronger, more diverse, nursing workforce.”
This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under Grant no. UF1HP26981. For inquiries about the Achieving a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing: A Veterans’ Initiative Program at UH Manoa Nursing, please contact Dr. Debra Mark, program director at (808) 956-5297 or at debramar@hawaii.edu. Visit the program online at www.nursing.hawaii.edu/vetstonurses.
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About UH Manoa Nursing
UH Manoa Nursing, the Nursing Capitol of the Pacific, is the leader in nursing education and research in Hawaii with outreach to Asia and the Pacific Basin. We support the mission of the University of Hawaii at Manoa: to provide an innovative, caring and multicultural environment in which faculty, students and staff work together to generate and transmit knowledge, wisdom, and values to promote quality of life and health for present and future generations. The school offers the BS, master’s, and doctoral programs. To reflect Hawaii’s unique cultural diversity and heritage, UH Manoa Nursing is committed to increasing the representation of Native Hawaiian and other underserved people in all nursing programs. Visit us at www.nursing.hawaii.edu.
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