College Relations

Karen Cady at 978-542-7500, Director, College Relations

Salem, Mass. - Following Massachusetts House and Senate approval of a supplemental budget, North Shore Medical Center (NSMC) and Salem State College have announced their strong support for legislation that would provide additional funding for clinical instructors in nursing and significant renovations to the College's nursing and science laboratories.

The legislation, sponsored by Senator Frederick Berry (D), would enable Salem State College to significantly increase the number of nursing school applicants it is able to accept and educate, helping to address a chronic shortage of registered nurses in Massachusetts. Salem State College graduate and undergraduate nurses have included, as part of their training, hands-on experience at NSMC for more than 100 years.

"Some of our most skilled and compassionate nurses are graduates of Salem State College School of Nursing," said Robert Norton, President and Chief Executive Officer of NSMC. "By increasing the number of new nurses entering the profession, Senator Berry's legislation will help us continue to hire the qualified nurses that have a direct benefit to the thousands of patients we see every year."

"We have an outstanding nursing program that has been limited only by the number of clinical instructors we can afford to hire and the laboratories in which we teach," said Nancy Harrington, President of Salem State College. "This funding will enable us to admit a significant number of qualified applicants who would otherwise be turned away due to fiscal constraints."

The Massachusetts House and Senate approved the 2005 supplemental budget on September 9. Governor Mitt Romney (R) has ten days in which to approve the budget or veto all or parts of the legislation.

NSMC is a multi-site health system headquartered in Salem, Mass., which includes NSMC Salem Hospital, NSMC Union Hospital in Lynn, NSMC North Shore Children's Hospital, NSMC Cancer Center, NSMC Heart Center, NSMC Women's Center and the physician network known as Charter Professional Services Corporation. NSMC is a member of Partners HealthCare, which was founded by Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital.

Salem State College is a comprehensive, fully accredited, four-year institution. Approximately 9,200 undergraduate and graduate students representing 27 states and 52 nations matriculated during the 2003-04 academic year. Salem State is the fifth largest public institution of higher learning in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the largest in the state college system.