Processing Your Payment

Please do not leave this page until complete. This can take a few moments.

January 25, 2023

Arizona College of Nursing gets green light to open East Hartford campus

PHOTO | COSTAR The Arizona College of Nursing, which is currently trying to secure regulatory approval to begin operating in Connecticut, has signed a lease to occupy 30,000 square feet of space in an East Hartford office building at 99 East River Drive.
By Robert Storace

In an effort to avoid litigation, the Connecticut Board of Examiners for Nursing (BOEN) and Arizona College of Nursing (ACN) have entered into an agreement that allows the school to continue its plan to open an East Hartford campus.

The nursing school’s plans to open its first Connecticut campus were stalled late last year when several BOEN members raised concerns about a voluntary probation consent agreement Arizona College signed with the Arizona State Board of Nursing. BOEN members said they found out about the consent agreement after they approved parts of the nursing college’s application.

Among other things, the consent agreement outlined staffing issues and shortages that took place at the nursing school’s Tempe, Arizona campus in 2021 that impacted classes. The school said those issues have since been addressed. 

The BOEN and Arizona College signed a six-page agreement on Jan. 18, that gave the school an initial approval to move forward with the East Hartford campus.

The state Office of Higher Education has also signed off on the expansion, giving it full approval. 

Arizona College officials said they hope to begin enrolling students this fall.

The BOEN agreement states the parties “desire to avoid litigation,” and that the program’s “application materials comply with the application DPH regulations.”

The BOEN voted 4-0 in favor of the agreement with five members recusing themselves.
 
Office of Higher Education Director Timothy Larson told the Hartford Business Journal that his office “did its due diligence and followed the statutory requirements when approving the Arizona School of Nursing’s application and looks forward to working with the school to ensure that students are prepared for this very important field.”

No one from DPH responded to requests for comment for this story. The BOEN operates under the auspices of DPH.

In a statement, Arizona College of Nursing Board Chairman Nick Mansour said: “We greatly appreciate the work and partnership of the Board of Examiners for Nursing in reaching this agreement, which will allow the Arizona College of Nursing to begin enrolling, educating, and graduating more nursing students in Connecticut. The current nursing shortage facing Connecticut is an urgent crisis with very real impacts for the state’s healthcare system and its patients. Our college is ready to get to work helping solve that problem, improving health care in the state while at the same time opening up career opportunities for more Connecticut residents.”

The nursing college has signed a 30,000-square-foot lease at 99 East River Dr., in East Hartford, where it plans to open the school.

The nursing college has proposed launching an accelerated three-year, 120-credit bachelor’s degree program similar to what it offers at its 12 other nursing school campuses in eight states. The Connecticut location will be the school’s first New England outpost.

In its application, Arizona College projected it would enroll upwards of 32 students in the first year, and about 285 pupils by the end of year five. The nursing school would offer both virtual and in-person classes and hire 18 new faculty over the next three years, according to its application.

The Arizona College of Nursing was founded in 1991 and enrolls more than 4,000 students.

Sign up for Enews

Most Recent

Most Recent

0 Comments

Order a PDF