News
Beebe Medical Foundation Raises Goal for Nursing Education Campaign $2 Million
08/18/11
Beebe Medical Foundation Board of Directors voted at its August meeting to raise the goal of the Nursing Education Campaign by $2 million.
The $2 million will allow us to complete the expansion and outfitting of the new Margaret H. Rollins School of Nursing at Beebe Medical Center, said Board Chairman Paul Mylander. The construction project isn't completely funded, even with the $3 million gift from Randall and Peggy Rollins. By raising the additional funds, we will be able to consolidate the two-phased project into one, saving more than $1 million in costs.
The original campaign goal of $6.1 million was to fund the first phase of construction, which includes the razing of the old two-story dormitory and the construction of an 18,000-square-foot, three-story building to house classrooms and clinical laboratories. Construction is scheduled to begin in the summer of 2012.
The second phase of the project will include the renovation of the existing single-story building, expansion of the library, and addition of faculty offices, seminar rooms and the latest educational technologies such as human patient simulators.
Managing the project as one instead of as two separate phases will be less disruptive for that students and faculty, predicts Donna Streletzky, Vice President for Operations. It also will mean that the advanced educational technologies, upgraded library and facilities will be available in a much timelier manner.
The $3 million gift in July 2011 from Randall and Peggy Rollins' Ma-Ran Foundation was the largest single donation Beebe has ever received and, together with funds already raised through donations and government funding, meant that the first phase could be completed.
In honor of the Rollin's gift, the Beebe Medical Center Board of Directors voted to rename the school the Margaret H. Rollins School of Nursing after Mrs. Rollins, a Lewes native known to childhood friends as Peggy Hastings.
The Beebe School of Nursing is the only hospital-based nursing program in Delaware, and is accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC). The school's graduate nurses consistently earn some of the highest pass rates in Delaware on the nursing licensure exams. Through affiliations with Wilmington University and the University of Delaware, the School offers students the opportunity to pursue a bachelor's and/or a master's degree in nursing. There are also affiliations with other universities.
We are re-defining our strategic direction as we look into the future needs of our community, says Connie E. Bushey, RN, MSN, MEd, School Director. We want to make sure that our graduates are prepared to offer the highest quality care to our patients.
Today, the School is housed in an antiquated building with space to enroll a maximum of 30 students each year. The expanded school will allow the number of enrolled students to double to 60, and it will allow the latest in educational technologies to be installed.
In May of 2011, the Beebe Medical Foundation officially kicked off the Nursing Education Campaign to raise $2.9 million more to complete Phase I, estimated to cost about $6 million. Beebe Medical Foundation already had in hand $1.8 million in state and federal funding and about $1 million in donations that had been made in anticipation of the project.
Beebe Medical Foundation was established in 1989 with the sole mission to raise philanthropic support for Beebe Medical Center. The Foundation is located at 902 Savannah Road, Lewes DE 19958. For more information, please call (302) 644-2900 or visit www.beebemedicalfoundation.org.
Beebe Medical Center is a not-for-profit community medical center with a charitable mission to encourage healthy living, prevent illness, and restore optimal health with the people residing, working, or visiting in the communities we serve. For more information, please visit us online at www.beebemed.org
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