Austin Community College District (ACC) received a $750,000 Nursing Innovation Grant from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to develop a new approach to expanding clinical education opportunities for nursing students.
The two-year NightShift+ Preceptor Academy initiative focuses on creating additional evening and night-shift clinical placements and helps ACC address a longstanding challenge in nursing education: limited clinical capacity. For ACC, the NightShift+ Preceptor Academy represents an opportunity to explore a different approach to clinical education that expands beyond traditional daytime placements while building stronger connections between nursing education and healthcare employers.
The College is currently in the planning stages for the initiative, which will bring together experienced nurses, nursing faculty, students, and local healthcare employers to develop the new clinical model.
Through the grant, ACC plans to:
- Create approximately 20 additional clinical placement opportunities over two years.
- Train at least 20 experienced nurses to serve as night-shift clinical preceptors.
- Provide participating students with specialized onboarding and simulation-based preparation before beginning their clinical experiences.
- Provide faculty coaching and support for the evening and night-shift clinical model.
- Strengthen partnerships with local healthcare employers to expand clinical opportunities.
By developing evening and night-shift placements, students will get additional scheduling options while expanding the number of clinical experiences available through ACC’s nursing programs.
The project is also designed to support student persistence by providing preparation and resources that can help students navigate barriers to completing their nursing education. The two-year initiative will help develop a model that could be expanded to additional clinical partners in the future.
More About the Grant
The Nursing Innovation Grant Program supports new and expanded projects designed to strengthen nursing education and expand healthcare workforce capacity across Texas. Funded projects can include adding clinical sites and preceptors, developing new approaches to nursing education, and creating pathways for students.
ACC is one of eight Texas colleges and universities receiving a combined $5.6 million in 2026 Nursing Innovation Grant funding. The grants support projects during the period from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2028.
ACC provides a full nursing career pathway, from the fast-track certified nurse aide (CNA) to an advanced certificate in vocational nursing (LVN) or an associate degree in professional nursing to become an RN. The College also offers a pathway toward a bachelor’s degree in nursing through the RN-to-BSN program.
Tags: Clinical, grant, Health Care, NightShift+ Preceptor Academy, nursing
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