(Santa Ana, Calif.) Santa Ana College (SAC) recently announced that its Registered Nursing (RN) program has earned “continued approval" from the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) along with “continued accreditation" from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). The approval and accreditation are for eight-year terms.
“For our outstanding RN program at Santa Ana College to complete the approval and accreditation process concurrently and to earn these designations with no further recommendations or non-compliance is truly stellar," said Dr. Annebelle Nery, president of SAC. “This affirms that our exemplary nursing students are receiving the highest quality education and the most comprehensive training here at Santa Ana College."
(Students and staff in the new space within the Health Sciences Building)
The concurrent BRN and ACEN processes come at a time when nurses are in high demand, explained Mary Steckler, SAC's director of Nursing and associate dean of Health Sciences.
“Facilities cannot get enough nurses, ever since the COVID pandemic," Steckler said, adding that the intensity of the pandemic led to increased burnout and early retirement for many in the field, amping up the need for newly trained nurses.
Whether SAC's RN graduates go directly into nursing or pursue additional training to earn a bachelor of science in Nursing (BSN), Steckler says they are finding outstanding employment opportunities. She said SAC graduates are working at more than 25 local hospitals, including UC Irvine Medical Center, Providence St. Joseph Hospital Orange, Providence Mission Hospital Laguna Beach, Hoag Hospital Irvine, and Fountain Valley Hospital, to name a few.
The new approval and accreditation status comes as the 200-student Registered Nursing program has moved into the new 55,563-square-foot, state-of-the-art Health Sciences Building. This new building was partially funded by measure Q along with state and other local funds. The new facility houses programs for allied health fields, including SAC's Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Occupational Therapy, Medical Assistant, Pharmacy Technology, and Nursing programs.
Steckler said RN students will benefit from expanded simulation suites in the new building, which will provide the latest in high-technology healthcare training.
Thanks to the relatively low cost of SAC's RN program, the department regularly sees more than 600 applicants per semester, enrolling 60 RN students each Fall and 40 RN students each Spring. In 2023, the cost for SAC's two-year RN degree was approximately $6,000, compared to $60,000 or more at a private college, Steckler said.
“Our students at Santa Ana College really appreciate their education and they want to give back to their community," Steckler added, stressing that community college RN programs are vital to ensuring diversity and inclusion in the nursing field. “When private institutions require students to pay high tuition to earn a nursing degree, they are excluding diverse communities from the workforce."
For more information about the Registered Nursing program at Santa Ana College, visit the SAC RN Program Website. The application period for Fall 2024 admission is February 1-15, 2024, while the application period for Spring 2025 admission to the RN program is September 1-15, 2024. SAC's Nursing department can be reached at (714) 564-6825 or by visiting sac.edu/nursing.
To learn more about Santa Ana College, please visit www.sac.edu. Questions about this press release can be directed to Dalilah Davaloz, public information officer at davaloz_dalilah@sac.edu.
About Santa Ana College:
Santa Ana College (SAC), founded in 1915, serves more than 54,600 students yearly for credit and noncredit classes. At present, SAC students can work toward completing an associate degree, university transfer, career/workforce training or a bachelor's degree in occupational studies. In 2025, the college will offer a second bachelor's degree in legal studies. As part of Santa Ana College, the School of Continuing Education located at Centennial Education Center offers free classes throughout the community for adults of all ages and academic backgrounds. Santa Ana College is an award-winning college and was recently ranked as one of the nation's top two-year colleges awarding associate degrees to Latino and Asian students and named one of the best community colleges in California by Intelligent.com. The college is also recognized throughout the state for its comprehensive workforce training programs for nurses, firefighters, law enforcement and medical personnel.
