Fresno City Hall — Photo: Nightryder84 — CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fresno State Foundation Awarded Grant to Expand Nursing Education in Central Valley
The California State University, Fresno Foundation has received a Nursing Education Investment Grant aimed at strengthening nursing faculty development and expanding clinical training opportunities across the Central San Joaquin Valley.
The grant is part of $486,300 awarded statewide by the Foundation for California Community Colleges through its Nursing Education Investment Fund. The CSU Fresno Foundation was selected as one of two recipients in the 2026 grant cycle.
The foundation’s project, titled “Strengthening Community College Nursing Faculty Capacity through Regional Collaboration,” will support five community colleges, 11 nursing programs, and 10 clinical partners. The initiative will strengthen preparation for nursing faculty, program directors, and clinical preceptors while improving coordination of clinical placement data and expanding faculty development through a hybrid training model.
According to the Foundation for California Community Colleges, the effort aims to better prepare nursing students to provide high-quality, culturally responsive care in rural and underserved Valley communities.
The second grant recipient, San Bernardino Valley College, will use its funding to expand nursing skills and simulation labs in its new health sciences building.
The Nursing Education Investment Fund, established in 2005, has awarded over $8 million to 37 projects supporting California’s nursing workforce. Grants are intended to strengthen nursing education, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
The Breakdown
- The grant supports a regional collaboration involving five community colleges, 11 nursing programs, and 10 clinical partners across the Central San Joaquin Valley
- Funding will strengthen preparation for nursing faculty, program directors, and clinical preceptors
- The project will improve coordination of clinical placement data and expand faculty development through a hybrid training model
- The initiative focuses on preparing nursing students to serve rural and underserved Valley communities with culturally responsive care
What This Means for You
This grant investment aims to address nursing workforce needs in the Central Valley by training more qualified nursing faculty and expanding clinical training opportunities at local community colleges to better prepare nursing students to serve rural and underserved Valley communities.
