III. Collaboration

Your state is at the Collaboration step of the Academic Progression Commitment Continuum if:

A defined plan for ongoing development of an academic progression model has been agreed upon and momentum is building toward implementation, which may include the following:

• Infrastructure has been developed for continued investigation and implementation
• Participation includes representatives from registrar, financial aid, student advising, academic affairs and others as needed
• Stakeholders outside the academic institutions are included (Board of Nursing, Department of Public Health, Department of Higher Education, etc.)
• Action steps advance the development of a partnership model
• Curriculum is increasingly integrated and the need for further integration is recognized
• Procedures for application, admission, and financial aid have been developed
• Need for pilot or test and initial cohort size has been determined
• Target date and benchmarks for collaboration have been identified
• Strategies to address procedural and academic barriers have been developed
• Regulatory and accreditation issues are addressed (program and substantive change reporting processes are initiated as needed)

 A deepening collaboration between academia and practice is represented by all or some of the following:

• A full range of practice settings are represented in development of partnership models; models address current workforce needs, which may include the following:
• CNOs and other practice partners are full participants with academic partners in design and are generating momentum within their settings
• Workforce data is shared with all partners, including education demographics
• Employers recognize and can message ROI for a more highly educated nursing workforce
• Union and employers negotiate specifics related to academic progression and implications for the workforce
• Academic partners may receive preference for clinical placement contracts
• Flexible employment options may exist for students who are licensed and employed while completing the BSN component (such as part time hours with full time benefits, etc.)
• Creation and funding of joint appointments as appropriate to the setting

Employer practices support the completion of the BSN, which may include the following:

• Financial support is provided for nursing staff (tuition reimbursement, formation of cohorts, IT support, flexible scheduling, etc.)
• Consideration of preferential hiring and / or advancement
• Consideration of differentiated practice between AD and BS nurses
• Pay differential based on educational level: specific roles require a BSN
• Employers value education preparation

The following outcomes are typically expected during Collaboration:

• A mechanism has been developed to track the proportion of students who matriculate directly from the AD to the BSN program.
• The data tracking process includes sufficient diversity data to evaluate enrollment and graduation from the AD program, rates of matriculation and subsequent graduation of various minority groups.
• Plans are in place to gather data about program effectiveness, student satisfaction, program completion, NCLEX pass rates, and student retention