“[Having] a genuine regional perspective — that can be hard to do, because our institutions have all been historically in our own little worlds,” said Erika D. Beck, president of California State University at Northridge. “For presidents and for leadership, it's showing up when it matters.” 

Faced with an ongoing nursing shortage, several institutions in Los Angeles County saw an opportunity to solve the problem through a coordinated effort aimed to understand the root causes of the work-force crisis — and to develop pathways and policies, in partnership with local government and in collaboration with regional health systems, that can increase the number of qualified nurses. 

Beck joined others involved in the initiative at a recent Chronicle virtual forum where they shared how a coalition of four-year and community colleges came together to tackle this issue. Read what they had to share in these key takeaways from the forum.