In the News: New state-of-the-art nursing education at Columbia-Greene Community College
Hudson, NY (News10) — Many of the nurses who work at Columbia Memorial Health Hospital were educated at Columbia-Greene Community College. A new program is addressing the growing nursing shortage while equipping students with a well-paying career.
The Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) program is set to begin in January 2026.
According to Columbia-Greene Community College President Victoria Walsh it “meets a critical nursing workforce shortage in both of our counties and beyond.”
The 15-month program includes academic and hands-on learning in a state-of-the-art lab with animatronic patients of all ages — including a $60,000 baby that can cry, have a seizure, and a number of other issues for students to respond to.
“When you touch the baby itself, it feels very real,” Walsh said while holding the baby whose skin is soft and whose little hand feels like it’s gripping whoever takes hold of it — just like a human baby.
The training space also has mirrored windows through which instructors observe students while voicing the patients’ various medical scenarios.
“It makes a huge difference for our students to have as close to reality as possible because that helps them build the confidence they need to go into the clinical setting,” Walsh stated.
These experiences are made possible by a $750,000 investment from the SUNY Transformation Fund.
“Our nursing students really have the best of the best, the most up-to-date medical technology that they can have to become the nurses of the future,” Walsh noted.
The program launched as Columbia Memorial Health Hospital announced an increased need for nursing staff.
“Columbia Memorial Health relies on this college to provide them with their nurses for the future. So we want to support that as much as we can,” Walsh shared.
Applications for the program are currently open and can be found on the college’s website.