The Cohen Scholars Program

Dr. Hal Cohen was the first Executive Director of the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission (HSCRC) from 1971 to 1987. As an economist, he was quick to understand the importance of nurses and their impact on the health systems quality and cost of care. He had a talent for compromise and a high level of political acumen. He is credited with controlling hospital costs, demonstrating decades of cooperation between industry and government. His distinguished service to Maryland was recognized by Senator Ben Cardin when he said that Dr. Cohen "was a public servant of the highest caliber". He considered the interests of hospitals, insurance companies and patients in a fair and equitable process. NSP II honors Dr. Cohen for his long, distinguished career in healthcare and his wife, Jo, as a nurse who advocated for her profession. He was a staunch advocate for nurses and started the first Nurse Education Support Program in 1986 at the HSCRC. In the April 2012 revisions to the Nurse Support Program II Graduate Nurse Faculty (GNF) Scholarship, it was renamed to honor Dr. Hal Cohen and his wife Jo. In Spring 2020, the GNF was transitioned to the Cohen Scholars program under the NSP II staff oversight. The Nurse Support Program II provides funding for Cohen Scholars to complete the graduate degrees (MS, MSN, DNP, PhD, EdD) and core education coursework, including post-master's teaching certificates, necessary to prepare to become a nurse educator, nurse faculty, clinical educator in one of Maryland's nursing degree programs, professional development specialist, nurse residency specialist or other nurse educator in hospital education roles. Maryland institutions with nursing degree programs may nominate a limited number of new Cohen Scholars each academic year. The Cohen Scholars are recognized as the next generation of nurse educators to fill the positions needed now and in the future. The program is administered through the NSP II with grants across participating nursing programs to award Cohen Scholars. The Cohen Scholars will serve as new nursing faculty and clinical educators to produce the additional nursing graduates required by Maryland's hospitals and health systems.

Details

• Agency: Salisbury University
• Financial Assistance: Project Grant

Program website: https://nursesupport.maryland.gov/Pages/nsp-ii-grants-si-cs.aspx