St. Lawrence College fights for stand-alone nursing program

Randi Belec

CORNWALL – Ontario colleges –- including St. Lawrence College — are fighting to offer stand-alone nursing programs to their students.

Currently in Ontario it is required that all college nursing programs are offered jointly with universities. Many colleges have issued a report, Opening Doors to Nursing Degrees: Time for Action, which explains why interested colleges should be allowed to offer stand-alone nursing degree programs.

“St. Lawrence College delivers all our nursing programs, we are ready to deliver on our own.” says Glenn Vollebregt, President and CEO of St. Lawrence College.

St. Lawrence College (SLC) is currently offering all four years of the Bachelor of Science in Nursing, with only the degree being granted by Laurentian University.

SLC currently enrolls approximately 600 nursing students across its three campuses in Cornwall, Brockville and Kingston. Close to half of SLC students are enrolled in the health sciences and allied health programs.

“It’s an area of expertise for us,” explains Vollebregt.

Should SLC be allowed to offer its nursing program independently, it would offer greater flexibility within the curriculum and well as allowing the college to invest more into the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSCN) program.

“This is an opportunity to provide more options to students,” says Vollebregt, “A number of colleges are ready to offer stand-alone nursing degree programs that will be more efficient for many students.”