Dominguez recently graduated from nursing school at Fresno City College. With three children under age eight, an externship (a program college students join to supplement work experience during their education) and many late nights spent studying for her state nursing exam, she knows what it’s like to juggle competing priorities.
 
“It’s stressful,” said Dominguez.
 
But one thing that reduced her stress considerably was the “Reach for the Stars” scholarship program.
 
“Reach for the Stars” is a full-ride nursing scholarship available to all Community Health System employees. It covers school costs including tuition, materials and other educational expenses like parking and supplies.
 
The scholarship is made possible through an anonymous donor’s generous, ongoing support. Any Community employee looking to become a registered nurse (RN) may apply for the “Reach for the Stars” scholarship. Employees don't have to work in a specific profession or department to apply, as long as they meet eligibility requirements.
 
“I'm extremely thankful [to “Reach for the Stars”], because if it wasn’t for the scholarship, it would be just an added stressor for me to have to figure out how I was going to pay for everything,” Dominguez said.
 
The anonymous donor providing the scholarship aims to positively impact and support the professional development of those who want to become RNs.
 
For Dominguez, working to become an RN felt like the right path for her. A nurturing and caring person since childhood, she often helped her grandmother around the house, and later spent years caring for her father who was on dialysis before he passed.
 
“I like to make people happy. I like to help people,” said Dominguez. “So, it's always been in me.”
 

Community employees benefit from nursing scholarships

Ten employees received scholarships from the “Reach for the Stars” program in 2022. After graduating from nursing school and passing state exams, that means more nursing boots on the ground — something highly needed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
 
“We’re grateful for this kind of generosity to inspire and assist employees aiming to grow their careers with Community,” said Danny Davis, Community’s chief nursing officer. “Our healthcare system continues to expand to meet the growing needs of our region, and we’ll need many more nurses in the years ahead.”

Nuella Nica Gaspe, a patient care technician on the float team at Community and another recipient of a “Reach for the Stars” scholarship, is well on her way to becoming one of those nurses. She shared the deeply personal reason she’s working to become an RN.

"My dad passed away at a young age, and I was fairly young myself. As I grew older, I realized the reason he passed was due to underlying health issues. But also, he didn't get the adequate healthcare that he needed because he lived in a third-world country," said Nuella Nica, who was 10 years old when her father passed away during cardiac arrest in the Philippines. "I feel like if he'd had the opportunity to get help earlier on, it would have prevented his death and prolonged his life."

Like Dominguez, Gaspe said receiving the scholarship has lessened her worries about the financial aspect of going to nursing school. And she’s glad that she already has a job lined up after she graduates, since recipients work for Community for 24 months after nursing school.
 
“The main thing I like about the scholarship is that I’m able to give back to Community, and they are able to give back to me. So we help each other,” said Gaspe. “It is really an honor to serve here at Community, be able to move up in my career and work here afterward.”
 
Gaspe attends nursing school at Fresno City College and expects to graduate in December 2024. She wants to pursue a career in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and eventually become a nurse practitioner, bringing healthcare support to more people here in the Valley where it’s critically needed.
 
Scholarships are just one of the ways Community cares for employees and encourages them to continue growing their careers. The health system also provides generous tuition reimbursements, free online professional development classes, reimbursement to achieve professional certifications and job shadowing opportunities for employees who want to learn about other roles.
 

Recruiting and keeping top nursing talent is vital for the Central Valley

The Valley suffers from a serious shortage of nurses. Many train here and then go elsewhere in California. A study done before the pandemic projected a 35% rise in demand for nurses by 2030 and a shortfall of 6,000 to 10,000 RNs to meet that demand in the Central San Joaquin Valley. The pandemic worsened that shortage by increasing demand while many in the profession were taking early retirements.
 
Nurses make up almost half of the workforce at Community and they, along with other healthcare staff, help make up the glue holding the system of care together. Last year, Community’s hospitals and clinics trained nearly 1,400 nursing students.
 
They come primarily from eight Valley universities and colleges for 8- to 18-week rotations working from 5 to 12 hours a shift. They go through the same orientation process that Community employees do. Experienced preceptors (mentor nurses) provided nearly 116,000 hours of supervision and teaching at a cost of $1,175,718 for the hospital system in fiscal year 2022.
 
Additionally, Community provided over $268 million in uncompensated care, medical education, outreach and patient support services in the Valley last fiscal year. California requires hospitals to invest in the people and communities they serve as part of their nonprofit designation and to report it publicly in an annual Community Benefit Report.
 
Scholarships like “Reach for the Stars” and others made possible by generous donors are vital to ensuring the Valley recruits and keeps top nursing talent. The scholarships also help grow nurse leaders and encourage other staff to become nurses as Community’s patient population only continues to increase.
 

Dominguez looks forward to becoming an RN

Dominguez recently took her NCLEX-RN exam — the National Council Licensure Examination — which is used to determine if recently graduated nursing students are safe to practice. While she waits for her results, she is sure of one thing. She wants to stay with Community on the float team after becoming an RN.
 
“I want to stay on the float team, because we're able to learn everything. I don't want to just go on a medical-surgical floor or a telemetry floor and just do that one thing,” said Dominguez.” I want to learn med-surg and tele and then train in NICU. I want to know it all.”