By Sara Shepherd

For many pursuing the profession, nursing isn’t simply a job but a calling. However, attaining a nursing degree to fulfill that calling can be costly.

At the University of Kansas School of Nursing, more than 68% of students have documented financial need and over 21% qualify for Pell Grants, reserved for the highest level of need. Now a $1.6 million gift from a national effort to address nursing workforce shortages will help an estimated 170 KU students realize their goals.

The grant from the Bedford Falls Foundation – DAF (donor advised fund) is expected to provide approximately 170 in-state Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students with financial need an average annual scholarship of $5,000. Scholarships are being distributed over a four-year period. They automatically renew for each scholar’s second year of nursing school. The grant also established a $100,000 emergency fund for KU nursing students.

The first cohort of 26 Conway Scholars received their scholarships in fall 2025, and KU welcomed the second cohort of 11 scholars in spring 2026. The gift’s effect on nursing in Kansas already is taking form.

Heather Black, Ed.D., KU School of Nursing associate dean for student affairs, said that for some students, being named a Conway Scholar can be the difference of whether they are able to afford to attend the KU School of Nursing.

“Nursing students are passionate and empathetic, and they want to give back,” said Black said. “They want to care for people. They want to be advocates. They want to be a leader. They want to be all those things. We can help a student make that dream and that calling a reality.”

In personal letters to the founder of the Bedford Falls Foundation, scholars expressed gratitude, humility, determination and the kind of inspiration to succeed that’s sparked by realizing someone believes in you.

They reflected on what compelled them to nursing:

I knew early on that I wanted to be a voice for the unheard.

I feel strongly that I am on this pathway for a specific reason.

The path I’ve chosen in nursing is not just about the work I’ll do, but about the people I’ll have the privilege to help along the way.

I am so appreciative of your kindness, which will allow me to become a fourth-generation nurse.

I’ve always felt called to a profession where I can care for others and make a meaningful difference in people’s lives.

A need for nurses

It’s no secret nationally that there’s an “extreme” nursing shortage, said KU School of Nursing Dean Jean Foret Giddens, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, ANEF. That’s true in Kansas as well, where many counties are considered nursing care deserts.

According to the latest report by the KU-based Kansas Nursing Workforce Center, the number of RNs and LPNs licensed in Kansas has declined 9% since 2019. And despite a 12% increase in seats available in prelicensure nursing programs at Kansas Board of Regents schools over the past 10 years, the number of students enrolled has declined overall, from 14,543 in 2013 to 9,991 in 2025, though there has been a slight upward trend since 2023.

Giddens has a strategic plan to significantly increase prelicensure enrollment at the KU School of Nursing, and securing money for scholarships is a keystone of it.

“If you’re going to increase the number of students, you’ve got to match that enrollment increase with some support for them,” she said. “That’s why a gift like the one received from the Bedford Falls Foundation – DAF is huge.”

The Bedford Falls Foundation – DAF gift not only helps recruit students but also helps provide financial assistance they need.

“We don’t want to have people not go to nursing school because they don’t have the money. We don’t want people to come to nursing school, get about halfway through and drop out because they don’t have enough money,” Giddens said. “So, it’s imperative that we find funds to offset some of those expenses for them.”

Sticker shock

Even more than a typical undergraduate program, nursing requires a number of costly expenses beyond tuition, which is currently more than $15,000 per year for in-state students at KU.

With pre-screening requirements such as background checks and drug screenings, a nursing student may pay hundreds of dollars just to enroll, Black said. Then they’ll probably see their highest-yet book cost, which can be over $2,000 in their first semester. Plus, there are stethoscopes, scrubs and other specialized supplies to buy.

A rigorous courseload that includes clinical work in hospitals on top of classroom learning can make it extra challenging for nursing students to work many hours outside of school. 

“Educating nurses is expensive,” Black said. “Scholarships are really crucial for our students.”

For nursing students experiencing unexpected hardships that threaten their ability to stay in school, the emergency fund can keep them going. The fund, the first such fund at KU School of Nursing, is envisioned for situations such as a medical emergency or housing or transportation crisis.

KU already has used the fund to help students stay on track, such as one who lost her belongings, including her laptop computer, in a house fire, Black said.

Many students haven’t yet built savings to weather such emergencies, Black said. If a student must take a leave of absence to recover financially, they are less likely to return and complete their degree.

Proven success

The Bedford Falls Foundation, a private foundation, and Bedford Falls Foundation – DAF, a donor advised fund advised by the foundation, were each established by Bill Conway Jr., co-founder and co-chairman of the global investment firm The Carlyle Group, and his late wife, Joanne Barkett Conway. They named the foundation and the donor advised fund after the fictional town where the classic movie “It’s a Wonderful Life” took place — a nod to the good luck the couple experienced in their own lives.

In 2011, Bill Conway announced he would give away $1 billion to create jobs for low-income people. But how? After soliciting more than 2,500 suggestions from the public via his local newspaper, The Washington Post, Conway settled on funding nursing education.

“Nurses are essential to our nation’s health,” Conway said, in explaining his aims on the foundation website. “When we support students who want to get a nursing degree, we enable them to support themselves, their families, and ultimately the rest of us.”

The foundation and donor-advised fund have together awarded grants to more than 50 schools of nursing primarily in the eastern United States. They include Virginia Commonwealth University School of Nursing, where Giddens was dean for 11 years before joining the KU School of Nursing in 2024.

At Virginia Commonwealth University, Giddens said she and Conway established a good relationship, and she was able to deliver on what he intended, including increasing enrollment. Before she left for Kansas, she called to let him know. In follow-up correspondence she added, “If you ever want to expand west of the Mississippi, put me on your list.”

“We know that students from KU are going to become great nurses, and being able to help remove the financial barriers that may prevent them from pursuing their nursing degrees is something I am fortunate to be able to do,” Conway said.

Already, Conway scholarships appear to be contributing to an enrollment increase at the KU School of Nursing, Black said.

Scholarship availability is attractive to potential students, and Black has had applicants mention they’ve heard about the Conway Scholars program. Even students who would not qualify for this particular scholarship are impressed by a school with a clear investment in its students.

“It’s going to mean the world to our students and our ability to continue to keep our classes full to address that nursing shortage,” Black said. 

Next Story: Meet the Conway Scholars