{"id":240829,"date":"2026-02-05T07:25:17","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T12:25:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=240829"},"modified":"2026-02-06T16:47:56","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T21:47:56","slug":"new-gift-opens-doors-for-waterbury-students-uconn-launches-nursing-and-stem-initiatives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2026\/02\/new-gift-opens-doors-for-waterbury-students-uconn-launches-nursing-and-stem-initiatives\/","title":{"rendered":"New Gift Opens Doors for Waterbury Students: UConn Launches Nursing and STEM Initiatives"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The University of Connecticut will launch three bold initiatives at UConn Waterbury, offering early college opportunities for Waterbury high school students, a new Waterbury campus pathway for nursing students, and innovative STEM experiences. Made possible by transformational investments from the Elisabeth C. DeLuca Foundation, these combined efforts will expand college access, accelerate student success, and address critical workforce shortages in nursing and STEM fields across the state. These initiatives advance the Because of UConn campaign\u2019s core pillars \u2014 Students First, Academic &amp; Innovation Excellence, and Health &amp; Wellness of People &amp; Planet \u2014 while strengthening Connecticut\u2019s future.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Meeting the Moment<\/strong><br \/>\nConnecticut faces urgent shortages in nursing and allied health professions, while Waterbury students continue to encounter systemic barriers to higher education \u2014 only 49% enter college, and STEM retention rates are behind state averages. UConn Waterbury\u2019s integrated approach tackles these challenges head-on by linking two transformative strategies:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Husky Prep Academy:<\/strong> supports Waterbury Public School (WPS) high school students in grades 9\u201312, creating a health\/STEM pathway to UConn Waterbury, college credit, and hands-on learning. Students participate in UConn coursework on campus, including the Summer Academy, and via Early College Experience (ECE) at their high school, earning up to 30 UConn credits (about one year of study) plus experiential learning through I2A Lab projects and field trips. Students will also receive an\u00a0early designation of admissibility,\u00a0a clear signal they are on track for admission if they meet requirements.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Ideas to Action (I2A) Lab<\/strong>: an experiential learning hub that introduces students to health and STEM careers through hands-on activities. Using tools like virtual and augmented reality, medical equipment, and interactive learning modules, the lab helps students gain practical skills and explore future career possibilities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cWaterbury students are talented and ambitious,\u201d says UConn Waterbury Campus Dean Fumiko Hoeft. \u201cWhat\u2019s too often missing is a clear, supported pathway. This investment builds that pathway from ninth grade through a UConn degree, a cradle-to-career pipeline in Waterbury. High school students can earn real college credit and immerse themselves in STEM experiences on campus, enter a new nursing route, and find out earlier if they\u2019re on track for UConn Waterbury.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Waterbury Campus: Student Success Investment<\/strong><br \/>\nHusky Prep Academy and Ideas to Action Lab represent a combined\u00a0$5.45 million investment, including\u00a0$1.65 million in matching funds\u00a0from the DeLuca Foundation for the Ideas to Action Lab. For every dollar raised, UConn can draw upon this $1.65 million commitment, amplifying the impact of community and philanthropic support.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis match means more students will have access to life-changing opportunities,\u201d says Amy Yancey, CEO of the UConn Foundation. \u201cEvery dollar raised unlocks additional resources for programs that prepare Waterbury students for college and careers in high-demand fields. It\u2019s an investment in their success, and in the strength of our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Introducing the Nursing at Waterbury Pathway<\/strong><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foundation.uconn.edu\/stories-and-updates\/uconn-school-of-nursing-receives-largest-gift-in-universitys-history\/\">The Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing<\/a>, which has already demonstrated significant impact through increased enrollment at UConn Storrs, will implement a four-year nursing pathway at UConn Waterbury. A $5 million investment, the pathway will be the first of its kind, supporting nursing students during their early courses in Waterbury and transitioning their learning to the state-of-the-art Deluca Hall at UConn Storrs in their junior and senior years. The pathway will include critical scholarships for students, a new Nursing Simulation Center, and expanded course offerings at UConn Waterbury. Additional resources will be invested in expanding faculty and staff to accommodate increased enrollment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis new pathway represents a major step forward in making nursing education more accessible and responsive to the needs of Connecticut\u2019s communities,\u201d says Victoria Vaughan Dickson, professor and Dean of the Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing. \u201cBy allowing students to begin in Waterbury and providing state-of-the-art resources like the Nursing Simulation Center, we\u2019re creating opportunities for talented individuals who might otherwise face barriers to entering the profession. This initiative will help ensure a robust, well-prepared nursing workforce for future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With the new Nursing at Waterbury pathway, student enrollment in the Elisabeth DeLuca School of Nursing will grow to 300 students by 2028, strengthening Connecticut\u2019s health care workforce for decades to come.<\/p>\n<p>These initiatives give UConn Waterbury a strong foundation in preparing students for healthcare and STEM careers. The campus is seeking additional partners and supporters to fully realize its goal of becoming a leading center for developing healthcare and STEM professionals and contributing to Connecticut\u2019s workforce.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>$5 million nursing pathway and $5.45 million STEM investment to strengthen Connecticut\u2019s workforce<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68,"featured_media":200380,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[147,1715,1877,2472,2649,2650,2194,2235,2225,90,2227,2233],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[1902],"class_list":["post-240829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-community-impact","category-nur","category-gifts-donors","category-blue-pride","category-blue-impact","category-new-haven-county","category-today-homepage","category-uconn-storrs","category-uconn-waterbury","category-uconn-edu-homepage","category-university-news"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-05 05:14:40","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/68"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240829"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240829\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":240849,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240829\/revisions\/240849"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/200380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240829"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=240829"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=240829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}