BRTC and ARNEC Receive $900,000

On May 25, Black River Technical College officials attended a press conference at UAMS to receive a $919,139 grant from the USDA’s Rural Development. USDA Deputy Under Secretary of Rural Development Vernita Dore announced the funding.

The grant was awarded to BRTC as part of the Arkansas Rural Nursing Education Consortium (ARNEC). ASU-Newport, Ozarka College in Melbourne, and SouthArk in El Dorado were the other ARNEC colleges who will benefit from the grant. Grant funds will be used to purchase and implement additional simulation manikins and equipment in the Registered Nursing (RN) program. Simulation recreates events to which students rarely encounter in the clinical setting, improving students’ skills and experience.

ARNEC is composed of 8 colleges, but the 4 colleges awarded the grant are located in the Mississippi Delta. BRTC is the lead institution for the grant.

Photo:
Back: Holly Ayers, ASU- Newport Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs; Rhonda Stone, BRTC Vice President of Finance; Crystal Gillihan, ASU-Newport Dean of Nursing; Dr. Mickey Best, SouthArk Vice President of Learning;
Front: Ruby Johnson, Ozarka Division Chair of Allied Health; Judy Carlyle, ARNEC Director and Ozarka; Ramonda Housh, BRTC Division Chair of Nursing and Allied Health; Angie Caldwell, BRTC Vice President of Technical Education; and Karen Liebhaber, BRTC Vice President of Institutional Advancement