Labouré College of Healthcare, a private college in Milton, Mass., will shut down its nursing program this December, following a decision from the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing, Fox affiliate WFXT reported June 20.
The decision comes after the college's associate degree registered nurse program was approved, but given an initial warning from the board in September 2022, according to documents. The warning was related to the program's failure to achieve an 80 percent first-time pass rate of the NCLEX exam.
However, as of June 20, the board notified the school of its vote to "withdraw approval" of the program entirely. The college stated in its own news release it has petitioned for a hearing with the board to appeal the decision.
"We believe our case for appeal is strong and persuasive. Labouré's program was placed on warning by [the Board of Registration in Nursing] in September 2022 for not meeting the threshold of an 80 percent first-time pass rate in the NCLEX exam," the school stated in its release. "Upon being placed on warning, significant steps were taken to assist our students. The cohort of students who graduated in December 2022 and took the NCLEX passed at a rate of 81 percent. Self-reported results for students who graduated in Spring 2023 also indicate an 81 percent passage rate. … The improvements made to the Labouré ASN program are measurable, and they are having a direct impact on student success."
As of now, the board has reportedly agreed to a hearing with the school, which is set for July 12. If the decision stands, the 1,340 students enrolled in Labouré ASN program will be forced to find new places to continue their degrees.
Becker's reached out to the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing for comment on the matter and received the following statement: "The Board voted on June 14, 2023, to withdraw approval of the Labouré Associate Degree Nursing program. Students enrolled in the graduating cohort(s) may write the NCLEX contingent upon the parent institution providing evidence of completion of all program requirements. The parent institution shall notify in writing all enrolled students who are not in the graduating cohort that the Board has withdrawn the program’s approval and provide information regarding transfer and NCLEX eligibility."