UW’s Wyoming Institute for Disabilities Receives Federal Award to Strengthen K-12 School Health Workforce

The Wyoming Institute for Disabilities (WIND), part of the University of Wyoming College of Health Sciences, has received a competitive federal award from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to strengthen Wyoming’s school health workforce through technology-enabled education, mentorship, clinical training and telehealth.

WIND is one of eight organizations nationwide selected for funding through HRSA’s Technology-Enabled Learning Collaborative Program. The three-year award provides $475,000 for the first year, with recommended future support of $475,000 annually for the following two years, for a potential total investment of $1.425 million through August 2029.

Working in close partnership with the Wyoming School Nurses Association (WSNA), WIND will develop a statewide workforce development model designed primarily for K-12 school nurses while also supporting other school personnel whose roles contribute to student health, safety and access to care.

Wyoming’s rural and frontier geography can make it difficult for school nurses to access continuing education, peer support and pediatric specialty expertise. Many school nurses practice independently and serve multiple schools while managing increasingly complex physical, behavioral and mental health needs. The new initiative will build upon UW’s established Project ECHO and telehealth infrastructure to bring education, mentorship and specialty-informed support directly to school health professionals across Wyoming.

“School nurses are often on the front lines of supporting the health and well-being of Wyoming’s children, particularly in rural communities,” says Canyon Hardesty, WIND associate director and principal investigator for the project. “This award gives us an opportunity to build on the strong work already happening across the state and create a connected system of education, mentorship and specialty support for the professionals caring for students every day.”

The project will focus particularly on two priority areas: mental health and substance use disorders, and chronic disease prevention and management. Wyoming’s Maternal and Child Health Needs Assessment identifies behavioral health, chronic health conditions and healthcare workforce shortages among significant challenges affecting children and adolescents in the state.

The initiative will bring together five interconnected strategies: UW Student Health Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes (UW ECHO) sessions providing virtual case-based learning and specialty consultation; flexible, self-paced learning opportunities; a regional school nurse champion network; regional hands-on clinical skills and competency training; and a school nurse telehealth pilot program designed to expand access to real-time nursing consultation and support in schools with limited onsite nursing resources.

WSNA will serve as a key statewide partner in the initiative, helping connect the project with school nurses across Wyoming and supporting workforce development, continuing education, mentorship and regional implementation. Existing WSNA leadership intends to extend regional supports to further provide peer mentorship while helping identify regional needs, training priorities and opportunities for case-based learning.

The project also will build upon UW ECHO in Student Health, an established statewide professional learning network created to support school nurses and other school health professionals. Since its launch, the network has delivered 130 sessions to 886 individual attendees, resulting in more than 3,200 total attendances, demonstrating strong statewide engagement in accessible professional development and specialty-informed learning opportunities.

“This project is about building a sustainable network around Wyoming’s school nurses,” says Program Director Tai Baker. “Our partnership with the Wyoming School Nurses Association is critical because school nurses, themselves, need to help shape the education, resources and support this initiative provides. By combining that statewide expertise with UW’s ECHO, telehealth and workforce development infrastructure, we can create a model that responds to the realities of school health practice in Wyoming.”

In addition to WIND and WSNA, the multidisciplinary collaboration will include the Wyoming Department of Education state school nurse consultant; UW’s Fay W. Whitney School of Nursing; UW’s Division of Kinesiology and Health; the Wyoming Cent$ible Nutrition Program; Children’s Hospital Colorado pediatric providers and School Health Program; and the Wyoming Telehealth Network. Partners will contribute expertise in school nursing, pediatric and behavioral health, chronic disease prevention, nutrition and wellness, clinical training, workforce development and telehealth implementation.

Over the three-year project period, WIND and its partners will build, expand and evaluate the model with the goal of establishing a sustainable statewide learning and support network. Expected outcomes include increased school nurse capacity, improved access to specialty-informed care, reduced professional isolation, stronger workforce retention, increased implementation of evidence-based practices and, ultimately, improved student health outcomes.

“This national investment recognizes both the unique challenges of delivering health services across a rural and frontier state and the opportunity Wyoming has to develop innovative solutions,” Hardesty says. “When school nurses have access to the training, professional connections and specialty support they need, Wyoming students and families benefit.”

About the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities

The Wyoming Institute for Disabilities (WIND) is an academic unit within UW’s College of Health Sciences and a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities. WIND works to advance health, education, independence and quality of life for people with disabilities and their families through education, training, research, technical assistance and community partnerships.

For more information about WIND, go to www.uwyo.edu/wind/?utm_source=chatgpt.com.