When it opens in April, the Butler Tech Adult Education at the center will be able to double its enrollment capacity for its Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) and LPN to RN Bridge programs, significantly increasing access to accelerated nursing education across southwest Ohio, said Butler Tech officials.
The career school is a main employee pipeline designed to help ease the regional shortage of new nurses in Butler County and beyond.
“We’ve known for several years that the nursing and healthcare workforce shortage continues to impact our region,” said Sarah DeLong, associate director of health programs at Butler Tech.
“With the expansion of the Bioscience Center, we’re able to double our capacity and increase the number of program start dates throughout the year and beginning in April, we’ll welcome new LPN and LPN-to-RN Bridge cohorts, reducing wait times for students and getting qualified healthcare professionals into the workforce faster. This expansion is really about access — for students and for our healthcare partners,” said DeLong.
The expanded facility adds five classrooms and two advanced simulation labs for Adult Education, increasing annual nursing enrollment by approximately 140 additional seats beginning this year.
This expansion builds on the Butler Tech LeSourdsville Adult campus footprint, creating a centralized healthcare education hub closer to downtown Cincinnati and the region’s major healthcare systems, said school officials.
Designed for working Licensed Practical Nurses seeking to advance their careers, the LPN to RN Bridge program offers a flexible hybrid model that includes one day of on-campus lab instruction per week, one to two days of clinical placements, and online coursework.
With expanded space and increased capacity, Butler Tech will now offer quarterly start dates for both the LPN and LPN to RN Bridge programs.
Butler Tech Assistant Superintendent Nick Linberg said “the expansion of adult healthcare programs at the West Chester Campus positions Butler Tech (creates) a one-stop regional hub for healthcare talent for both adults and high school students.”
“By aligning education, credentials, and employer needs, we are supporting workforce development, improving access to care, and driving sustainable regional growth.”
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