In March of 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). McAllister & Quinn closely tracked the bill and helped our clients access the funding upon passage. The bill provided universities with competitive grant funding through several different federal agencies, including $1.5 billion to the Economic Development Administration (EDA) to help communities “prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.”
Illinois College was awarded $237k through the EDA program after receiving assistance from McAllister & Quinn. The funding will help the college establish a new BSN nursing degree program, which will provide a critical source of trained nursing professionals, who are in high-demand because of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the local hospital serving as a partner, students will gain hands-on experience during their training, and the hospital’s commitment to employ students will ensure that they have a clear path to employment in their chosen field.
EDA’s funding will also provide training equipment for students in the nursing and nursing-related training programs as well as students at nearby community college, to serve as a resource for the community as it attempts to fill regional gaps in nurse and nursing assistant positions. Once completed, the project will help the region with recovery efforts from the coronavirus pandemic, strengthen the regional economy, and advance economic resiliency throughout the region with 1,111 estimated new jobs created.