UTEP produces most Hispanic nurses in U.S. Education Process Help

Posted on July 14 2011 by Cody Stones

UTEP produces most Hispanic nurses in U.S.

UTEP’s Elias Provencio-Vasquez, dean of the College of Health Sciences and School of Nursing, stands in front of the new building.

The University of Texas at El Paso’s School of Nursing has been named the No. 1 school in the United States in awarding bachelor’s degrees to Hispanics.

“We are setting the bar now in educating Hispanic nurses,” said Elias Provencio-Vasquez, the school’s dean. “That gives us the spotlight that we are the experts in educating a diverse student body.”

Of the 324 nurses who graduated from the School of Nursing in 2010, 228, or 70 percent, were Hispanic.

In the June 6 issue of Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine, writer Mary Ann Cooper attributes UTEP’s success in part to offering programs enhanced by simulation and other instructional technology and clinical experience.

The magazine also credits the UTEP School of Nursing for its research and community projects designed to respond to the community’s needs that help prepare leaders in health care.

In 2008, Hispanic Outlook ranked UTEP third in the nation for awarding nursing degrees to Hispanics.

“When I arrived here from Miami, one of the things I would always present to the community is saying that we were No. 3, but I was confident in three to five years, we would be No. 1,” said Provencio-Vasquez, who became dean of the school last year. “Because of the talented staff and faculty, we achieved that goal within a year. We are very proud that we are No. 1 in the nation now.”

UTEP’s School of Nursing was initiated in 1976.

Their are 520 undergraduate nursing students and about 480 pre-nursing students in the department.

“Our School of Nursing has really created some innovative programs that have enabled our students to pursue nursing degrees; we are very proud of our nursing graduates,” UTEP President Diana Natalicio said. “This designation simply shows what UTEP is doing is highly successful. We have been committed to access and excellence in trying to create opportunities for people in this region and ensure these opportunities are high quality and that the diplomas these students are going to receive will lead to a successful life.”

Earlier this year, the publication ranked UTEP in the Top 10 nationally in various academic specialties, including ranking the College of Education as No. 1.

This latest accolade adds momentum to a program that will soon get a tremendous boost in facilities with the opening of the $60 million, 130,000-square-foot Health Sciences and Nursing Building in July.

“The fact that we educate bicultural and bilingual nurses makes us very unique,” Provencio-Vasquez said. “Other schools across the country are looking at us as a model of education for bilingual and bicultural nurses. Our nursing students are being recruited by other cities across the country who have an influx of immigrants that are Hispanic.”

He said this distinction can also help the School of Nursing recruit top researchers, faculty, staff and students.

“When I first came here and heard the president’s vision for not only UTEP but the School of Nursing, she really wanted us to be nationally known,” Provencio-Vasquez said. “I want us to be one of the top 25 nursing schools in the nation in terms of education and research. The potential is there for us.”

Provencio-Vasquez is also proud that UTEP nurses can find jobs anywhere in the country.

“Sixty percent of the nurses who practice in El Paso are UTEP grads,” he said. “We have a UTEP nurse in every state in this country. When I first got here, I went out and met every chief nursing officer, every CEO of every hospital because I wanted to make sure we were educating our students so that they wanted to hire them. I want them to say, ‘UTEP grads are the nurses we want to hire.’ “

One such nurse is Rocio Orozco, who is scheduled to graduate in August.

“I feel really privileged to be a nursing student from UTEP,” said Orozco, who must decide between labor, delivery and intensive care nursing. “The education provided to us was amazing. The instructors were very confident in the material they taught us. They also provided us with the skills we need in order to approach our patients in a more confident manner.”

Hilario Monreal, a faculty member who teaches assessment of fundamentals, has been on staff since 1999 and a faculty member since 2009.

“We’ve been trying for this since 2004 when I ran a grant for the recruitment and retention of disadvantaged nursing students,” he said. “This is what we’ve been striving for, to be No. 1 and now we are.”

Victor R. Martinez may be reached at vmartinez@elpasotimes.com; 546-6128.

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