In response to demand from across the region, Salina Area Technical College is planning to start a part-time program for Practical Nursing, starting in the fall of 2024.

The college started its full-time Practical Nursing program in the fall of 2018, and has been tremendously popular; all open seats for the current class were filled by last April.

Naomi Tatro, Director of Nursing and Allied Health at Salina Tech, said conversations with potential students showed there is a population out there interested in becoming nurses, but unable to commit to a full-time program.

“Between class time, and clinicals, and the amount of time you have to spend on homework and study outside of class, this is more than a full-time job,” Tatro said. “I know there are a lot of people out there who would make great nurses, but can’t commit to 50 hours a week to get their education.”

In contrast, the new part-time program would involve just 2-3 days a week in class, for 5-6 hours each class period, and some clinical hours as well. The program would take four semesters to complete, compared to two semesters for the current full-time program.

The part-time program still must be approved by several organizations, including the Kansas Board of Nursing, the Kansas Board of Regents and the Higher Learning Commission, but Tatro is confident those approvals will happen.

Tatro urges anyone who thinks they might be interested in the program to contact Salina Tech as soon as possible.

“Besides knowing they’re interested, we also need to know what kind of schedule would work best for students,” Tatro said. “We have the option of doing either day or evening classes, and want to provide the schedule that best fits the needs of these students.”

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If interested, go to the Practical Nursing page at: https://www.salinatech.edu/programs/practical-nursing/  and fill out the information in the form.