Today@Sam Article

SHSU Pioneers Innovative Program to Address Nursing Faculty Shortage and Improve Student Outcomes

May 7, 2025
SHSU Media Contact: Campbell Atkins

By Karen Leonhart

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Sam Houston State University has developed an innovative solution to tackle the critical nursing faculty shortage and its impact on Texas' healthcare workforce. The Shared Nurse Academic Practice Partnership Initiative (SNAPPI) is transforming the way healthcare systems and nursing schools collaborate, providing a scalable model that could reshape nursing education across the state and beyond.

Texas is facing an unprecedented shortfall of 47,000 registered nurses (RNs), the second-largest nursing shortage in the nation. The shortage is further compounded by a lack of qualified nursing faculty, making it difficult to expand nursing education programs. SNAPPI addresses these challenges by seamlessly integrating experienced bedside nurses into clinical faculty roles without disrupting their existing practice positions.

Through SNAPPI, SHSU and its healthcare partners are working to eliminate traditional barriers, including compensation disparities between clinical and academic roles, integrating teaching responsibilities into full-time clinical practice positions and streamlining scheduling and administrative duties. This innovative approach is designed to empower experienced nurses to become educators while maintaining their commitment to patient care.

The program, funded by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board's (THECB) Nursing Innovation Grant Program (NIGP), has already produced promising results in its four-site pilot study, which involved over 50 participants across multiple healthcare institutions, including: St. Luke’s Health-The Woodlands Hospital, Memorial Hermann Cypress Hospital, HCA Houston Healthcare North Cypress, Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital and Nurseify.

Key findings from the pilot include:

  • The generation of 1.7 new faculty full-time equivalents (FTEs), reducing SHSU’s adjunct faculty needs by 10%
  • An 83% response rate from participating nurses, students, and administrators
  • Significant improvements in nurse job satisfaction and retention rates
  • Enhanced student clinical experiences and stronger connections with healthcare systems

Students have praised the program for improving their clinical education.

One participant said, "I definitely felt more confident and comfortable with the [hospital's] staff knowing that my instructor is their coworker."

Recognizing SNAPPI's transformative potential, the Governor's Task Force on Health Care Workforce Shortages has highlighted the program as a model for addressing the state's healthcare workforce challenges. Additionally, due the of the success of the pilot program the THECB has awarded the SON and SNAPPI program an additional $999,500 in grant funding from the FY2025-2027.

This expansion, with appropriate support, will create a sustainable solution to the nursing faculty shortage, enabling nursing schools to train more nurses and bolster Texas' healthcare workforce.

SNAPPI’s planned expansion will requires sustainable funding to scale the program to additional healthcare systems and nursing schools, develop implementation resources and best practices, establish program evaluation and quality improvement frameworks and create coordination infrastructure for participating institutions.

By supporting SNAPPI's expansion, Texas has the opportunity to lead the nation in innovative solutions to the nursing shortage, ultimately ensuring high-quality healthcare for all Texans.

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