Nancy Jo Thompson secures HRSA funding for nearly $3 million nursing workforce expansion initiative 

Four-year TAPP-STEPS project will expand pathways into nursing, strengthen academic-practice partnerships, and advance innovative clinical education and simulation across North Carolina. 

Nancy Jo Thompson, DNP, MSN, RN, associate professor and director of prelicensure programs at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing, will lead a four-year nursing workforce expansion initiative supported by nearly $3 million in anticipated federal funding from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). 

The University received $753,129 in first-year funding, with anticipated federal support totaling $2,995,013 through August 2030, contingent upon continued funding and satisfactory project progress. 

The initiative, Transition-to-Practice through Academic-Practice Partnership, Student Training, Experiential Preparation, and Simulation (TAPP-STEPS), is supported through HRSA’s Nurse Education, Practice, Quality, and Retention–Transition to Practice Program. 

TAPP-STEPS will expand pathways into nursing, strengthen clinical education capacity, advance competency-based learning, and connect academic preparation with professional nursing practice. The initiative builds upon the School of Nursing’s existing rural and community health efforts and academic-practice partnerships while creating new educational opportunities for students and clinical educators across North Carolina. 

Thompson’s vision for TAPP-STEPS draws on her nursing leadership experience at UNC Chatham Hospital and her work as Principal Nurse Residency Consultant to UNC Hospitals. These experiences have informed her commitment to strengthening clinical education and supporting nurses as they transition into professional practice. 

“TAPP-STEPS is about expanding opportunities to enter nursing, reimagining where and how students learn, and strengthening the partnerships that connect nursing education to workforce needs,” Thompson said. “By bringing together the expertise of our faculty and clinical partners, we have an opportunity not only to prepare more nurses, but to prepare them differently for the communities they will serve.” 

A two-tiered approach to nursing workforce expansion 

TAPP-STEPS will implement two complementary initiatives over four years. 

Tier 1: Carolina STEP-IN Rural Ready Scholars 

The Carolina STEP-IN Rural Ready Scholar Pathway will recruit and support at least 40 undergraduate nursing students preparing for initial registered nurse licensure, with an emphasis on individuals with prior health care experience and interest in serving rural or medically vulnerable communities. 

The project will explore opportunities to connect experienced health care personnel with nursing education through UNC-Chapel Hill’s emerging assured admission initiatives. 

Scholars will receive academic and financial support, mentoring, rural career development, and at least 100 additional experiential learning hours beyond required clinical rotations. These experiences will include rural hospital micro-immersions, community and mobile health activities, and simulation-supported preparation. 

Tier 2: Shared educational and simulation infrastructure 

The second tier will expand educational resources and clinical learning capacity for the School of Nursing’s broader prelicensure student population. 

Through the TAPP-STEPS SIM-to-Rural Practice Labs, the project will connect virtual simulation, standardized patient encounters, telehealth, clinical judgment development, and supervised community and hospital learning experiences. 

The initiative will also strengthen competency-based education, faculty and preceptor preparation, clinical evaluation, and educational resources that support the School of Nursing’s continued enrollment growth. 

An experienced team advancing nursing workforce innovation 

TAPP-STEPS brings together an accomplished team of nursing educators, researchers, simulation specialists, academic-practice leaders, and experts in nursing workforce development. 

The collaborative team is integral to the project’s success. Its members will contribute complementary expertise to the development, implementation, evaluation, and sustainability of the four-year initiative. 

Paige Randall, PhD, RN, CNE, will serve as Transition-to-Practice and Educational Innovation Lead, bringing expertise in nursing workforce development, student success, educational innovation, and transition-to-practice. Her experience as a Scholar in Residence with the National Council of State Boards of Nursing will help inform the project’s approach to nursing workforce readiness. 

Elizabeth Stone, PhD, RN, CPEN, CHSE, FAEN, will serve as Simulation Faculty Coordinator, leading the educational development and implementation of the SIM-to-Rural Practice Labs. Stone brings extensive expertise in simulation-based nursing education and the use of virtual reality to prepare students for complex clinical situations. 

Rebecca Hill, PhD, DNP, FNP-C, CNE, FAAN, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, and Michelle Edmonds, DNP, MSN, RN, Assistant Dean for Prelicensure Programs, will provide strategic academic leadership for TAPP‑STEPS. Dr. Hill brings expertise in nursing education, academic affairs, and academic-practice integration; Dr. Edmonds brings extensive experience in prelicensure program leadership, nursing workforce pathways, student success, and educational innovation. Together, they will advise on educational implementation, clinical partnerships, and sustainable clinical learning opportunities. 

Victoria Soltis-Jarrett, PhD, PMHNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN, Carol Morde Ross Distinguished Professor of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing, will serve as Project Advisor, bringing extensive HRSA-funded leadership in rural workforce development, behavioral-health integration, and academic-practice partnerships to inform sustainable implementation and transition-to-practice readiness in underserved North Carolina communities. 

The team will also work with Carol F. Durham, EdD, RN, ANEF, FAAN, FSSH, Professor Emerita, an internationally recognized expert in health care simulation and former President of INACSL, whose consultation will support competency-based integration of the AACN Essentials, innovative simulation design, faculty development, and educational quality. 

Hanna Beers, MSW, an experienced HRSA Project Manager, will support project coordination, implementation, performance monitoring, and reporting. 

Together, the team will work with faculty, clinical instructors, preceptors, students, and academic-practice partners to strengthen educational capacity and support the preparation of future nurses.

Building upon academic-practice partnerships 

TAPP-STEPS will build upon the existing Tar Heel Academic-Practice Partnership between the UNC School of Nursing and UNC Health to expand clinical education opportunities and strengthen connections between nursing education and workforce needs. 

The project will explore new clinical education models in rural hospitals, community settings, mobile health environments, and other nontraditional learning spaces. 

It will also prepare clinical instructors, preceptors, and mentors through the project’s COACH and GUIDE initiatives, strengthening support for students as they progress through nursing education and transition into professional practice. 

“Preparing nurses to serve North Carolina means connecting education with the needs of our communities,” said Valerie Howard, EdD, MSN, RN, CNE, ANEF, FAAN, dean of the UNC School of Nursing. “This grant will help us support students through mentoring, simulation and clinical experiences that prepare them for rural practice. Working with UNC Health, we can help students build careers in communities where nurses are needed.” 

Advancing simulation and experiential learning 

Consistent with HRSA‑26‑086 requirements, at least 45% of TAPP‑STEPS project funding in each project year will support simulation-based experiential learning. These investments will integrate high-fidelity, virtual, standardized-patient, and adaptive case-based experiences across the transition-to-practice pipeline, preparing students for practice in rural and medically underserved environments.

Cornerstone investments will expand the standardized patient program, including video-based learning repositories, and create an immersive, sensory-rich clinical learning space. This adaptable environment can transform into rural, community, acute-care, home, or transitional-care settings, giving students repeatable opportunities to practice clinical judgment, communication, teamwork, and safe decision-making. Additional investments in telehealth, remote patient monitoring, and advanced simulation technology will further strengthen learning across prevention, chronic disease management, and care transitions.

“Great nurses are built through experience. Simulation gives students the opportunity to learn, practice, reflect and try again in a supportive environment,” said Tiffani Chidume, DNP, RN, CHSE-A, CHSOS, FSSH, ANEF, incoming associate dean for simulation and experiential learning. “These investments will help ensure our graduates are prepared to provide safe, high-quality care from day one.”

Preparing North Carolina’s future nursing workforce 

Over four years, TAPP-STEPS aims to support at least 40 Carolina STEP-IN Rural Ready Scholars, provide 4,000 additional experiential learning hours, strengthen rural and community clinical partnerships, and prepare 60 COACH completers and 40 GUIDE mentors. 

The project will also evaluate student recruitment and retention, competency development, experiential learning, clinical partnerships, and graduate transition-to-practice outcomes. 

By bringing together faculty expertise, academic-practice partnerships, innovative clinical education models, and targeted student support, TAPP-STEPS seeks to establish sustainable approaches to nursing workforce expansion across North Carolina. 

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