Educator Apprenticeship Degree Network
NCAD facilitates the Educator Apprenticeship Degree Network to create a forum for leaders of successful grow-your-own educator and teacher preparation programs.
The Educator Apprenticeship Degree Network is designed for institutions of higher education and public education systems. Members share a common interest in continuously improving the quality of their program, tapping new funding source and strategies to lower student tuition, and contribute to a collection of resources that NCAD distributes to empower other organizations beginning the program design process.
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The 2023/24 Cohort has been selected and launched. Fill out this form to express your interest in the 2024/25 cohort.
Coalition to Advance Nursing Apprenticeship Pathways
The nursing shortage in the United States is at a tipping point, with dire shortages projected by 2025. Its not just a numbers game, it’s about the quality of care and the wellbeing of our communities. This challenge can’t wait. Hospitals and healthcare facilities are already feeling the pinch with low nurse-to-patient ratios, and it will only get worse. It’s a safety concern, leading to less access or long waits, more medical errors, longer hospital stays and poorer health outcomes.
Though many aspiring nurses are eager to begin their training, there just aren’t enough seats inside our colleges and universities. This bottleneck effect isn’t just a challenge for prospective nursing students who must navigate highly competitive admissions processes and cumbersome waitlists, it ripples through the entire healthcare system. It systematically limits the number of skilled nurses entering the workforce. Because the number of seats in these programs are fixed, they are unresponsive to shifting needs in the labor market. To address the nursing shortage our training programs must respond to labor market demands, unlocking opportunities for aspiring nurses commiserate with employer demand.
In 2024, NCAD will respond to this challenge by launching a national coalition comprised of healthcare employers, leaders in nursing talent development, labor representatives, champions of apprenticeship and workforce development, post-secondary education innovators, licensing and accreditation experts, and higher education institutions. This alliance will pool their extensive knowledge, resources, and innovative thinking to formulate actionable strategies and policy recommendations to advance the feasibility of apprenticeship programs across all tiers of nursing education and licensure.
Join our mailing list below for updated information on this important initiative.