New Nursing Building

The new Nursing program at Pitt-Greensburg, which began this year, is currently the only on-site bachelor of science (BSN) Nursing program in Westmoreland County. Pitt Greensburg worked closely with the Pittsburgh School of Nursing to create the program. Partnerships with local health organizations, such as Excela, UPMC, Redstone Highlands, Quest, and St. Emma’s, were also significant in the program’s development.

By creating this nursing program, Pitt-Greensburg hopes to address a growing need for nurses in the community and in the nation. Many current nurses from the Baby Boomer generation will soon retire, which will create shortage of nurses.

The program also hopes to make a difference in the state and region by creating good jobs in the community. It hopes to not only increase the number of BSN certified nurses working in the community, but also to increase the number of students that go on to graduate school to become nursing educators.

“The role of a state related university like Pitt is rather special, it transcends the educational mission to make a difference in the state and the region in which they’re located.” said Dr. Sharon Smith, President of Pitt Greensburg.

In addition to the nursing program, Pitt Greensburg has also added a Healthcare Management major that would allow another way for students to work in the healthcare sector. Other goals of these programs are to increase enrollment at Pitt Greensburg and to help the university accommodate the increasing number of students in science majors.

Pitt Greensburg also hopes to do this by adding a new life sciences building to the campus in the future. The new building would be approximately 67,000 square feet and fill up the current Smith parking lot, completely changing the look of the campus. The new building would be attached to Smith hall by a two-story glass atrium, which would serve as lounge and meeting area. The addition of this new science building would create more space for labs to accommodate the growing number of students entering science majors. The building is still in the planning stages.