The total cost of the Missouri lab, inclusive of construction and equipment, exceeded $5 million. WGU received a $2 million grant for the lab's construction, thanks to the generous support from Gov. Mike Parson and the Missouri General Assembly. This grant was administered in partnership with the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development. WGU provided the remaining funds in alignment with plans to expand access to LSH’s innovative nursing programs nationwide.

“We commend Western Governors University for its efforts to support critical workforce needs while also expanding higher education opportunities,” said Gov. Parson. “Nurses are vital to improving health outcomes in our state and region, and WGU’s innovative educational options will help more individuals who wish to fill crucial roles in the future of our state.”

The nearly 18,000-square-foot state-of-the-art lab aims to train and educate more than 500 new nurses in the region by 2026, and up to 3,000 per year in the long term. The facility features advanced high-fidelity medical education simulation equipment across five simulation rooms and two skills labs with 17 patient beds, four patient exam rooms, five student-focused debriefing rooms and a large multipurpose room for training and teaching.

Global consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, estimates that the U.S. could have a shortfall of direct patient care nurses ranging from 200,000 to 450,000 by 2025. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics echoes similar projections and reports that employment opportunities for nurses will grow at 9%, faster than all other occupations from 2016 through 2026.

“This new nursing lab reflects WGU’s commitment to expanding access and preparing nurses who serve on the front lines of healthcare, those who are needed both now, and in the future,” said Dr. Courtney Hills McBeth, WGU’s chief academic officer and provost. “This facility would not have been possible without the support of so many people. I’d like to congratulate my WGU colleagues and offer deepest thanks to Gov. Mike Parson, the Missouri General Assembly, the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development, Missouri Partnership, Kansas City Area Development Council, Platte County Economic Development Council and all our Missouri and local Kansas City partners.”

Missouri Hospital Association data shows more than 10,000 nursing students were enrolled in Missouri prelicensure programs in 2020; however, nearly 1,300 qualified applicants were turned away. The situation, though, is not limited to a single state. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) reports that more than 65,000 qualified applications (not applicants) were turned away from schools of nursing nationwide in 2023. While AACN mentions that the students submitting these applications may have been accepted and enrolled elsewhere, the report emphasizes that a variety of reasons stall nurse education, including the lack of infrastructure and faculty. WGU’s clinical sites are designed to add capacity and offer flexible, affordable options for nursing students, in and around their communities.

Clinical training forms an important component of nurse education, and with WGU’s rapid expansion of the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (Prelicensure) program to add new competent nurses to the workforce, the university is establishing these regional nursing centers to promote the attainment of education within and around communities for a potential increase in local and regional employment. The program is presently available in 24 states and counting. With this program, the university aims to add more than 3,000 newly qualified nursing graduates to the workforce by the end of 2027.

“Our BSN Prelicensure program is removing barriers and enhancing access to high-quality nursing education for a greater impact on society. With labs opening across the country, we are aimed at upskilling and reskilling the workforce while also addressing the massive infrastructural and faculty shortages in diverse communities,” said Kimberly Kelly-Cortez, LSH senior associate dean and director of undergraduate programs.

WGU’s Missouri nursing lab will enhance rural and urban health equity to benefit the health system of the regions served, while also boosting the state’s economy. In 2023, WGU received the Platte County Business Excellence Award for its efforts to positively impact the quality of life and the region’s job market with the establishment of the Missouri lab. The university launched its first nursing simulation lab in Houston, TX, followed by Salt Lake City, UT, and then Kansas City, Missouri, with additional facilities scheduled to open next year.

Presently enrolled in WGU’s BSN Prelicensure program, Kayla Stroup from Clever, Missouri, said, “I am excited to be able to attend my practical classes at the new nursing center in Missouri. I have been visiting the university’s out-of-state lab and that is a great place to learn, but having this location, right within my reach, is such great news. This will not only significantly reduce my travel time and cost, but also enhance the overall experience of learning in my home state.”

Established in 2006, LSH represents more than 170,000 jobs in the healthcare industry and the school produced a whopping 17 percent of the nation’s registered nurses earning a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2021. The school conferred 5.4 percent of all bachelor's and master's degrees in nursing across the country during the 2021-2022 academic year. With the mission to positively impact health education, the school presently serves nearly 25,000 students nationwide and has conferred over 118,000 degrees to more than 100,000 students across the country, thereby enhancing lives one student at a time.