Like much of the U.S., Texas has a nursing shortage, and it’s only getting bigger. The state’s community colleges are trying to fill the gap.
In many ways, Cedric Brooks is your typical 18-year-old. He likes traveling, going running and spending time with friends. He’s also on the way to being a registered nurse just after his 19th birthday.
Cisco College partners with Abilene ISD to help high school students earn nursing certifications before they even graduate. “I started off actually welding. So the first two years of high school, I welded, then I was like, I kind of want a change of pace, so I applied to Holland, and that’s where the door kind of opened to health care,” Brooks said.
Brooks started studying to become a Licensed Vocational Nurse during his junior year and got his certification right before graduating high school.
Then, he decided he wanted to earn his associate’s degree. Right now, he’s in Cisco College’s bridge program, which allows LVNs to become RNs with just one additional year of school. Brooks plans to graduate before the end of this year.
Brooks said he frequently encourages others to apply for the bridge program.
“There’s no commitment. You get your school paid for, and you’re a nurse before you graduate. That's invaluable. You can’t get that anywhere else,” Brooks said.
The Texas Hospital Association (https://www.tha.org/issues/workforce/) estimates that in just six years, Texas could have 57,000 more open nursing positions than it has people to fill them.
For Pearl Merritt, that means job security.
“I would encourage young women and men that are interested in health care to go to school because they can get a job anywhere, and health care has so many options,” Merritt said.
Merritt is the dean of Cisco College’s nursing program, and she has big ambitions for it. Cisco is expanding and intends to start offering a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing by the Spring of 2027.
The school’s just waiting on approval from the relevant state boards.
The expansion aside, Merritt said students can pursue similar opportunities with either degree.
“The Bachelor of Nursing is more in a leadership role, but not necessarily, not always, but that’s why it is a desired degree to have,” Merritt said.
If Cisco starts offering the BSN in time, Brooks said he wants to be part of the first cohort.
So far, he’s loving Cisco College’s RN program. Brooks calls himself a hardcore cheerleader for the school, in part because of the diverse group of students he’s in class with.
“You just get so many different minds that come together, with different experiences,” Brooks said.
He has classes with 18-year-olds fresh out of high school and 60-year-olds who’ve been working as licensed nurses for years, but want to further their skills and education.
Like many community colleges across Texas, Cisco has connections beyond its own campus. Before she became dean of the nursing program at Cisco, Pearl Merritt held a similar job at Texas Tech. She established a connection with Tech that automatically allows students at the community college to transition to the university.
“So even if students that are going to get the RN to BSN, they don’t have to go to Cisco. They have that choice. But they can also go to Texas Tech and get the RN to BSN,” Merritt said.
Merritt hopes all of this will make a difference for healthcare access in and around Abilene. She said 70%-80% of nurses who graduate from Cisco stay in the area.
Merritt said the community college’s first BSN cohort will consist of 30 students. They’re intentionally keeping it smaller so students can receive individual attention.
Hendrick Medical Center, the leading medical employer in the region, offers to pay for the further schooling of nurses who work for them. The hope is that nurses who graduate in the Abilene area will stay in the area to address the local nursing shortage.
Merritt said many nurses often choose to move out of Abilene. Brooks knows he wants to stay in Texas, but doesn’t know if he’ll stay in Abilene forever.
“I think getting my roots planted here is a really good thing. And there’s a lot of good things in Abilene, but I would like to see what’s out there,” Brooks said.
He plans to go to medical school to become a physician, a profession that is also in high demand. Data from Texas Health and Human Services (https://healthdata.dshs.texas.gov/dashboard/health-care-workforce/hprc/health-profession-fact-sheets) show that 40 counties in Texas lack a single primary care physician.