1970 Estimate 1971 Estimate Increase or Decrease NURSE SCHOLARSHIPS $17,000,000 +$8,502,861 The authority for this program is contained in section 860 of the Public Health Service Act with an indefinite authorization for 1971. institutions is based on applying the formula in the Act. Allocation to Special efforts must be made to reach minority and other disadvantaged groups who are capable of but are not now entering the nursing field in sufficient numbers. This program will encourage and assist qualified young people with serious financial need to undertake education for nursing. Experience has shown the great need for additional financial assistance to students in the form of scholarships as well as loan funds since more than 37 percent of all nursing students (or about 50,000) come from families with incomes of $7,500 or less. The Nursing Scholarship Program replaced the Nursing Eductional Opportunity Grants Program in 1970. In the first year of operation applications for scholarship funds have been received from 677 schools to assist students of exceptional financial need. The request for $17,000,000 in 1971 will provide continuing assistance to schools first assisted under this program and for new schools who have expressed a need for such assistance for the academic year 1970-1971. 1/ Includes $1,319,139 of unobligated funds carried over from the fiscal year 1969 appropriation for the Nursing Educational Opportunity Grants Program. 1/ Nurse Scholarship Program was enacted August 16, 1968 (P.L. 90-490) replacing Educational Opportunity Grant Program. The authority for this program is contained in section 742 of the Public In addition to the $15,000,000 in awards to participating schools in 1970, an estimated amount of $1,113,000 is expected to be loaned from the health professions education (revolving) funds for a total loan program of $16,113,000. It is not anticipated that any funds will be available from this source (revolving fund) in 1971 as there is no authorization to sell notes received from the schools in 1969 or 1970. Therefore, loans to schools utilizing the revolving fund will not be made in 1971. In 1970 about 14,000 students are expected to receive loans from this program. In 1971, because of the reduction in the loan program level from $16,113,000 to $12,000,000, there is an estimated decrease of 3,553 students who will benefit from these loans. This reduction is expected to be offset by the Office of Education Guaranteed Student Loan Program. See distribution of loan funds by discipline on table following. |