FPB awarded $3.7M in six stimulus grants

Case Western Reserve UniversityOct 22 2009

The Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing (FPB) at Case Western Reserve University was recently awarded $3.7 million in six stimulus grants from various federal offices to fund innovative research and academic programs.

Funded projects include establishing a new center of excellence on end-of-life science; expanding the Self-Management Advancement through Research and Translation (SMART) Center with a program to involve more disabled persons in the subject side of research activities; developing new electronic tools to reduce health disparities; testing the effects of early therapeutic mobility among hospital patients; combating the nursing faculty shortage through a forgivable loan program for graduate students; and providing opportunities to disadvantaged students.

"The stimulus awards represent that the hard work of our dynamic faculty and staff is unique, relevant, and, most of all, needed," says May L. Wykle, the Marvin E. and Ruth Durr Denekas Professor and Dean of the nursing school.

The research awards range from a variety of sources and will further FPB's reach into the international healthcare and scientific communities.

"We are proud of these grant awards and look forward to sharing the findings of the research projects with our peers," says Shirley Moore, the Edward J. and Louise Mellen Professor of Nursing and Associate Dean for Research. "We continue to be at the forefront of creating new knowledge to improve health care for patients across the lifespan."

In addition to funding research, some stimulus money will be used to create scholarships for students.

Nurse Faculty Loan Program (NFLP) funding is available for U.S. students in master's and doctorate programs in nursing who include in their program of study courses that prepare them to become nurse educators. Recipients of NFLP funds may be eligible to have up to 85 percent of their loans forgiven over a consecutive four-year period while they serve as full-time nursing school faculty members.

Another grant was awarded to FPB to create scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students who are who are economically or geographically disadvantaged.

The breakdown of the stimulus awards is as follows:

• John Clochesy, $1,334,973, for "Electronic Self-Management Resource Training to Reduce Health Disparities," (National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities);
• Barbara Daly, $1,158,610, for "Building End-of-Life Science through Positive Human Strengths and Traits (BEST) Center," (National Institute of Nursing Research);
• Teona Griggs, $18,896, "Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students," (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act);
• Shirley Moore, $399,761, "FIND Lab: Full Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Self-Management Research (National Institute of Nursing Research);
• Chris Winkelman, $431,750, "Dose of Early Therapeutic Mobility: Does Type or Frequency of Activity Matter?" (National Institute of Health);
• Jaclene Zauszniewski, $367,306, "Nurse Faculty Loan Program" (Health Resources and Services Administration).