ST CATHERINE UNIVERSITY

GRANT PROGRAM

GRANT PROGRAM

WAYS TO WORK: CAREER PATHS AND PROFICIENCIES FOR NOVICE INTERPRETERS

LEVEL UP: INTERPRETER TRAINING IN THE SPECIALTY AREA OF HEALTHCARE

PUBLIC HEALTH SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM - THE COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKER EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND PREPAREDNESS (CHW-ERP) PROJECT WILL STRENGTHEN AND DIVERSIFY THE PUBLIC HEALTH WORKFORCE TO BETTER MEET THE NEEDS OF UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES IN THE MINNEAPOLIS - ST. PAUL METROPOLITAN AREA BY 1) ENGAGING COMMUNITY/EMPLOYER PARTNERS TO BUILD COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKER CERTIFICATE AND BACCALAUREATE PROGRAM RECRUITMENT, TRAINING, AND JOB PLACEMENT PIPELINES; 2) EDUCATING TRAINEES TO ADDRESS SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH IN CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY APPROPRIATE AND ACCESSIBLE WAYS; AND 3) PREPARING TRAINEES TO RESPOND TO COVID-19 AND OTHER PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES THROUGH CURRICULUM, PRACTICUM, AND SIMULATION EXPERIENCES. LED BY ST. CATHERINE UNIVERSITY'S (ST. KATE'S) DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAMS, THE PROJECT WILL RESULT IN 4-5 PIPELINE PARTNERSHIP MOUS; AN INTEGRATED COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKER AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE CURRICULUM WITH CORRESPONDING PRACTICUM EXPERIENCES AVAILABLE THROUGH 14 DIFFERENT SITES; THE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF AN EMERGENCY RESPONSE SIMULATION EXERCISES; WITHIN A CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY VALIDATED CURRICULUM. THE PROJECT WILL RECRUIT 118 CHW TRAINEES, WHO WILL RECEIVE CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND WRAP-AROUND SUPPORTS AT ST. KATE'S; AT LEAST 70% OF PROGRAM GRADUATES WILL JOIN THE PUBLIC HEALTH WORKFORCE IN TARGETED UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES. SPECIFICALLY, IN YEAR 1, 48 TRAINEES WILL RECEIVE SCHOLARSHIPS; 40 WILL IN YEAR 2; AND 30 WILL IN YEAR 3. MANY OF THE STUDENTS WHO ATTEND ST. KATE’S COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKER (CHW) CERTIFICATE PROGRAM AND ITS PUBLIC HEALTH BACCALAUREATE PROGRAMS HAIL FROM THESE COMMUNITIES IN MINNEAPOLIS AND ST. PAUL, AND AS A RESULT, THE UNIVERSITY MEETS THE CRITERIA FOR SERVING INDIVIDUALS FROM DISADVANTAGED BACKGROUNDS: IN ACADEMIC YEAR 2020-2021, 40% OF PUBLIC HEALTH STUDENTS WERE EDUCATIONALLY/ENVIRONMENTALLY DISADVANTAGED; 27% (OF THOSE FOR WHOM THERE IS FINANCIAL DATA) WERE ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED; AND 25% WERE UNDERREPRESE NTED RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITIES (A FIGURE THAT RISES TO 50% IF HMONG AND OTHER DISADVANTAGED SOUTHEAST ASIAN GROUPS WERE INCLUDED). FURTHER, SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS OF PUBLIC HEALTH STUDENTS GO ON TO WORK IN UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES ONCE THEY GRADUATE. AS SUCH, ST. KATE’S QUALIFIES FOR THE TWO FUNDING PREFERENCES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PROGRAM: 1) SERVING INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE FROM DISADVANTAGED BACKGROUNDS, INCLUDING UNDERREPRESENTED RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITIES, AND 2) GRADUATING LARGE PROPORTIONS OF INDIVIDUALS WHO SERVE IN UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES.

ST. CATHERINE UNIVERSITY TRIO STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

NURSE EDUCATION, PRACTICE, QUALITY AND RETENTION - WORKFORCE EXPANSION PROGRAM - THIS GRANT AIMS TO ADDRESS THE CRITICAL SHORTAGE OF NURSES IN LONG-TERM AND ACUTE CARE SETTINGS ACROSS RURAL MINNESOTA, PARTICULARLY FOCUSING ON THE ESCALATING HEALTHCARE NEEDS OF OLDER ADULTS AND MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES, INCLUDING POPULATIONS OF COLOR. BY 2057, THE POPULATION OF ADULTS AGED 85 AND ABOVE IS EXPECTED TO MORE THAN DOUBLE, NECESSITATING URGENT WORKFORCE EXPANSION. MINNESOTA’S NURSING HOMES WERE RECENTLY REPORTED TO HAVE THE LARGEST WORKFORCE SHORTAGES IN THE COUNTRY, ACCORDING TO AN ANALYSIS OF CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES. THE AFTERMATH OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC HAS EXACERBATED THESE CHALLENGES, LEADING TO A SIGNIFICANT EXODUS OF NURSES AND FACULTY SHORTAGES IN NURSING EDUCATION PROGRAMS. OUR PROPOSED INITIATIVE INCLUDES THE DEVELOPMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE TRAINEESHIP PROGRAM THAT WILL PROVIDE ESSENTIAL TRAINING, SUPPORT, SCHOLARSHIPS, AND STIPENDS TO NURSING STUDENTS. THESE RESOURCES ARE CRUCIAL IN ENABLING FULL PARTICIPATION IN EDUCATION, PARTICULARLY FOR THOSE FACING ECONOMIC DISADVANTAGES OR CAREGIVING RESPONSIBILITIES. WE WILL ALSO RECRUIT AND SUPPORT CLINICAL FACULTY AND PRECEPTORS TO ENHANCE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES IN CLINICAL SETTINGS AND STRENGTHEN OUR PARTNERSHIPS WITH HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS IN RURAL AREAS. THE CURRICULUM WILL BE ENHANCED TO INCLUDE SPECIALIZED TRAINING IN ACUTE AND LONG-TERM CARE, MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH, SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH, AND COMPLEX HEALTH AND SOCIAL NEEDS. SIMULATION-BASED EDUCATION WILL PLAY A PIVOTAL ROLE IN PREPARING NURSES TO MEET THE EVOLVING DEMANDS OF HEALTHCARE DELIVERY. CENTRAL TO OUR APPROACH IS THE INTEGRATION OF DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION PRINCIPLES THROUGHOUT OUR PROGRAMS. WE ARE SUBMITTING UNDER QUALIFICATION #2 FOR A FUNDER PREFERENCE, “SUBSTANTIALLY BENEFITS UNDERSERVED POPULATIONS” AND ALSO MEET QUALIFICATIONS FOR #1 REGARDING RURAL POPULATIONS. WE ARE COMMITTED TO RECRUITING AND SUPPORTING STUDENTS FROM RURAL AND UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES, ENSURING CULTURAL AWARENESS AND SOCIAL JUSTICE ARE EMBEDDED IN OUR EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK. TO OVERCOME SYSTEMIC BARRIERS TO EDUCATION SUCCESS, WE WILL IMPLEMENT STRATEGIES AND PROVIDE RESOURCES TO SUPPORT STUDENTS, SUCH AS FLEXIBLE SCHEDULING, FINANCIAL SUPPORT, CHILDCARE, ACADEMIC ASSISTANCE, TECHNOLOGY ACCESS, AND ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES. THROUGHOUT THE GRANT PERIOD, RIGOROUS EVALUATION WILL ASSESS PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS THROUGH SURVEYS AND FOCUS GROUPS WITH GRADUATES AND CLINICAL PARTNERS. THIS FEEDBACK WILL INFORM CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT EFFORTS AND ENSURE THE SUSTAINABILITY OF OUR INITIATIVES. THIS COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH AIMS TO DIVERSIFY AND INCREASE THE NURSING WORKFORCE IN UNDERSERVED RURAL AREAS OF MINNESOTA. WITH A COMMITMENT TO HOLISTIC NURSING EDUCATION AND SOCIAL JUSTICE, WE SEEK TO BRIDGE HEALTHCARE DISPARITIES AND IMPROVE ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY CARE FOR ALL MINNESOTANS.

ADVANCING SCIENTIFIC EXCELLENCE

CAMPUS BASED-FWS

ST. CATHERINE UNIVERSITY TRIO STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES - REGULAR

CAMPUS BASED-FSEOG

CAMPUS BASED-FSEOG

COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH: RESEARCH-PGR: DECIPHERING HOST- AND ENVIRONMENT-DEPENDENCIES IN THE LEGUME-RHIZOBIA SYMBIOSIS BY DUAL-SEQ TRANSCRIPTOMICS AND DIRECTED GENOME ENGINEERING -PLANTS LIVE IN CLOSE ASSOCIATION WITH BACTERIA. SOME OF THESE ASSOCIATIONS HAVE LITTLE EFFECT ON PLANT GROWTH, SOME ARE HARMFUL TO PLANTS, AND SOME BENEFIT PLANTS BY PROVIDING ESSENTIAL NUTRIENTS OR OTHER BENEFITS. THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THESE BENEFICIAL ASSOCIATIONS OCCURS BETWEEN RHIZOBIA BACTERIA AND THEIR LEGUME HOSTS, WHICH INCLUDE AGRICULTURALLY IMPORTANT SPECIES SUCH AS SOYBEANS, PEAS, AND ALFALFA. THIS ASSOCIATION IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE BACTERIA, WHEN LIVING WITH PLANTS, PROVIDE PLANTS WITH NITROGEN THROUGH A PROCESS CALLED NITROGEN FIXATION. BECAUSE NITROGEN IS AN ESSENTIAL NUTRIENT THAT OFTEN LIMITS PLANT GROWTH, THIS ASSOCIATION SUPPORTS PLANT PRODUCTIVITY IN BOTH NATURAL AND AGRICULTURAL SETTINGS WHILE GREATLY REDUCING THE NEED FOR NITROGEN FERTILIZER, AN ECONOMICALLY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY EXPENSIVE INPUT TO AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS. THIS PROJECT WILL USE AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH TO IDENTIFY THE PLANT LEGUME AND RHIZOBIA GENES THAT WORK TOGETHER TO CONTROL THE EFFICACY OF NITROGEN FIXATION. THE RESEARCHERS WILL USE MANIPULATIVE EXPERIMENTS TO MEASURE THE BENEFITS THAT EACH OF EIGHTEEN HOST SPECIES GAIN WHEN GROWING IN ASSOCIATION WITH EACH OF TWO SPECIES OF RHIZOBIA BACTERIA. THESE SAME EXPERIMENTS WILL ALSO BE USED TO ASSAY WHICH PLANT AND RHIZOBIAL GENES ARE BEING EXPRESSED IN EACH PLANT-RHIZOBIA PAIR, AND THEN STATISTICAL ANALYSES WILL IDENTIFY GROUPS OF GENES THAT HAVE SIMILAR EXPRESSION PATTERNS. THE EXPERIMENT PROMISES TO IDENTIFY GENE MODULES THAT CONTAIN PLANT GENES THAT CONTROL RHIZOBIA GENES AND RHIZOBIA GENES THAT CONTROL PLANT GENES. BY EXAMINING MULTIPLE PLANT SPECIES AND MULTIPLE ENVIRONMENTS, THE PROPOSED WORK WILL IDENTIFY GENES ESSENTIAL FOR NITROGEN FIXATION AND GENES THAT CAN BE MODIFIED TO MANIPULATE NITROGEN FIXATION IN SPECIFIC ENVIRONMENTS. TO VERIFY GENE FUNCTION, THE RESEARCHERS WILL ENGINEER BACTERIA GENOMES WITH GENES OF INTEREST AND THEN MEASURE HOW THESE ENGINEERED BACTERIA AFFECT PLANT GROWTH. THE RESULTS OF THE WORK WILL PROVIDE TOOLS TO MANIPULATE THE LEGUME-RHIZOBIA SYMBIOSIS TO INCREASE THE BENEFITS IT PROVIDES TO AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS. THE PROJECT WILL TRAIN SCIENTISTS IN NEW APPROACHES AND DATA ANALYSES AND DEVELOP MATERIALS FOR HANDS-ON STEM COURSES FOR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS. MOST GENETIC ANALYSES OF THE LEGUME-RHIZOBIA SYMBIOSIS HAVE BEEN CONDUCTED IN UNREALISTIC ENVIRONMENTS, WHERE PLANTS RELY ENTIRELY ON NITROGEN SUPPLIED BY A SINGLE RHIZOBIUM STRAIN. THE EXTENT TO WHICH RESULTS FROM THESE STUDIES CAN BE EXTRAPOLATED ACROSS SPECIES AND ENVIRONMENTS REMAINS AN OPEN QUESTION THAT IS CRITICAL FOR REFINING PREDICTIONS ABOUT SYMBIOSIS GENOMICS, INCLUDING THE SOCIETAL GOAL OF IMPROVING PLANT HEALTH. THIS PROJECT WILL BUILD ON THE FOUNDATIONAL KNOWLEDGE FROM THE MEDICAGO TRUNCATULA-SINORHIZOBIUM MELILOTI SYMBIOSIS BY USING DUAL-SEQ HOST-SYMBIONT TRANSCRIPTOME DATA FROM A BROAD RANGE OF MEDICAGO HOST SPECIES (18 SPECIES) AND TWO SINORHIZOBIUM SPECIES, ACROSS A RANGE OF FIELD-RELEVANT NITROGEN FERTILIZER LEVELS. THE RESEARCHERS WILL USE DIFFERENTIAL EXPRESSION ANALYSES AND TWO-SPECIES COEXPRESSION NETWORKS TO IDENTIFY BOTH HOST AND SYMBIONT GENES WITH EXPRESSION THAT IS ASSOCIATED WITH SYMBIOTIC PERFORMANCE. OF PARTICULAR INTEREST ARE COEXPRESSION MODULES THAT ARE ENRICHED FOR BOTH PLANT AND MICROBE GENES AS WELL AS PLANT-MICROBE GENE PAIRS WITH COORDINATED EXPRESSION (I.E., STRONG EDGES IN THE COEXPRESSION NETWORK). THE FUNCTION OF A SUBSET OF CANDIDATES WILL BE VALIDATED BY ADDING THEM TO A MINIMUM SYMBIOTIC GENOME, A POWERFUL GENOMIC ENGINEERING APPROACH FOR GAIN OF FUNCTION ASSAYS. BY IDENTIFYING GENES THAT PLAY A ROLE IN ADAPTATION TO SPECIFIC HOSTS AND NITROGEN ENVIRONMENTS, THE PROJECT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO THE GOAL OF UNTANGLING THE INTERSPECIFIC GENETIC CROSSTALK THAT CONTROL PLANT-MICROBE SYMBIOSIS AND THAT HOLD THE KEY TO OPTIMIZING THIS SYMBIOSIS FOR PLANT HEALTH. ALL PROJECT OUTCOMES WILL BE FREELY AVAILABLE THROUGH LONG TERM DATA AND RESOURCE REPOSITORIES. THIS AWARD REFLECTS NSF'S STATUTORY MISSION AND HAS BEEN DEEMED WORTHY OF SUPPORT THROUGH EVALUATION USING THE FOUNDATION'S INTELLECTUAL MERIT AND BROADER IMPACTS REVIEW CRITERIA.

PELL GRANTS

EMPLOYEE TUITION ASSISTANCE PYMT

SPRING SEMESTER TUITION PAYMENT ST CATHERINE UNIVERSITY V618C20355

TUITION PAID TO SCHOOL

TUITION.

EDUCATION&TRAINING SERVICES

TAS::36 0160::TAS EDUCATION & TRAINING SERVICES

PURCHASE CARD ORDER

TUITION ASSISTANCE PAYMENT TO ST CATHERINE UNIVERSITY FOR JOAN WICKSTROM

EDUCATION & TRAINING SERVICES

TAS::36 0160::TAS EDUCATION & TRAINING SERVICES

TAS::36 0160::TAS EDUCATION & TRAINING SERVICES

TUITION REIMBURSEMENT, PURCHASE CARD ORDER

EDUCATION & TRAINING SERVICES

SMALL PURCHASE DATA

SMALL PURCHASE DATA