Alfred State was one of the campuses that received grant awards from the High Needs Nursing Fund. State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced grants to thirty campuses.
Over three consecutive years, the SUNY High Needs Nursing Fund has awarded over $4.4 million to equip campuses with the necessary tools, training, and resources to modernize and expand simulation experiences for students. This effort has allowed SUNY nursing programs to train more nurses and directly supports Governor Kathy Hochul’s goal of growing the state’s healthcare workforce by 20 percent.
“SUNY is committed to investing in the success of New York State’s future healthcare workforce,” said SUNY Chancellor King. “SUNY’s investment in the High Needs Nursing Fund reinforces our dedication to accomplishing Governor Kathy Hochul’s goal to expand New York State’s highly skilled healthcare workforce. The awards from this round of funding will help ensure our students receive the world-class education and training they deserve so they can thrive in their future careers in healthcare.”
SUNY Trustee and Chair of the Academic Medical Centers and Hospitals Committee Eric Corngold said, “The SUNY High Needs Nursing Fund is a vital tool to help campuses invest in state-of-the-art equipment to train and educate more nurses in New York State, while also supporting Governor Hochul’s goal to grow the state’s healthcare workforce by 20 percent. We thank Governor Hochul and the State Legislature for their continued support of SUNY, and our nursing students.”
In May 2023, Governor Hochul signed legislation permitting nursing students to complete up to one-third of their clinical training through high-quality simulation experiences. The same year, the SUNY Future of Healthcare Workforce Task Force, created to guide SUNY in addressing the critical healthcare workforce shortage, convened and identified fully leveraging nursing simulation as one of its four priority areas for short-term action and investment.
For the 2025-2026 academic year, 30 SUNY campuses with nursing programs received funding to enhance simulation-based education. This year’s $746,500 investment will support training for faculty members, the purchase of high fidelity and full body manikins, simulator equipment, medical equipment, audiovisual equipment, virtual reality and augmented reality equipment, as well as sensory props and investments in updates and repairs to current equipment. New for this round, the funding also supports campus investment in course release time and extra service compensation for faculty directly working to integrate simulation-based education into their campuses nursing curriculum.
Over the past three years, the total $4.4 million investment has supported more than 160 simulation trainings for faculty and staff, the acquisition of 68 new state-of-the-art simulation manikins, and the purchase of essential simulation and medical equipment, including scenario kits, code response carts, and more. In addition, half of the awarded campuses have invested in advanced audiovisual tools to enhance simulation fidelity and debriefing, as well as cutting-edge virtual reality programs to further modernize nursing simulation offerings.
Campuses awarded funding this year through the High Needs Nursing Fund include:
- SUNY Adirondack
- State University of New York at Albany
- Alfred State College
- State University of New York at Binghamton
- SUNY Brockport
- Clinton Community College
- Columbia-Greene Community College
- State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences University
- Dutchess Community College
- Empire State University
- SUNY Erie Community College
- Farmingdale State College
- Fulton-Montgomery Community College
- Genesee Community College
- Hudson Valley Community College
- Jamestown Community College
- Jefferson Community College
- Mohawk Valley Community College
- Monroe Community College
- Nassau Community College
- North Country Community College
- Onondaga Community College
- Orange County Community College
- Rockland Community College
- Suffolk County Community College
- Sullivan County Community College
- Tompkins Cortland Community College
- Ulster County Community College
- State University of New York Upstate Medical University
- SUNY Westchester Community College
SUNY has led the effort to expand nursing opportunities and address the health care staffing shortage in New York State. In December 2025, Chancellor King and SUNY announced a $1 million investment from the High Needs Nursing Fund to expand academic pathways to nursing careers, including stronger partnerships with SUNY campuses and Education Opportunity Centers. In May 2025, Governor Hochul announced a $62 million investment to establish exemplar SUNY nursing simulation centers at the State University of New York at Buffalo, SUNY Canton, and State University of New York at Stony Brook. To further support simulation-based learning in the SUNY System, Chancellor King and SUNY also announced the second cohort of the SUNY Nursing Simulation Fellowship to help advance simulation-based education within SUNY’s nursing licensure programs, and Governor Hochul’s SUNY Reconnect program also funds nursing and allied health fields for eligible adult learners to increase the number of healthcare workers in New York State.