As Steward Health's Chapter 11 bankruptcy situation plays out, a major decision is made regarding a local nursing school operated by the company.

According to a statement from a company spokesperson, Sharon Regional Medical Center's School of Nursing is closing.

Below is a statement from a Sharon Regional Medical Center Spokesperson.

"Due to complications from the Steward Health Care Chapter 11 Bankruptcy filing, the Sharon Regional Medical Center School of Nursing will not be starting January 2025 classes. The School of Nursing has taken great pride in preparing nursing students to practice as Registered Nurses in partnership with both Penn State Shenango and Thiel College. We value this collaboration and know how important it is to provide this valuable training and hands-on experience to our future RNs. Our current focus is completing the education of the current class of nursing students set to graduate in May 2025. We are encouraging nursing students looking to start training to explore other options and to work directly with Penn State Shenango, Thiel College, and Meadville Medical Center to do so."

The Sharon School of Nursing has been preparing students to practice as Registered Nurses since 1899. The 20-month program graduates 25 students on average.

The Board of Directors at Sharon Regional made the decision to close the school of nursing after they found out they couldn't get any more Title IV funding because of Steward's bankruptcy.

Title IV funding comes from the U.S Department of Education and provides financial aid for students to cover tuition and other costs to attend the school.

To help fill the need for nurses, Meadville Medical Center announced it will establish a new school of Nursing to preserve nursing education in the region.

“Our school of nursing program has been incredibly successful graduating thousands of students over the years to become Registered Nurses. Not only has our community benefited from the school’s graduates, but so has the entire region. While it saddens me that after 125 years we must close the school, I am excited to lead the charge to establish a new program along with Meadville Medical Center,” stated Crystal Brest, MSN, RN Sharon Regional School of Nursing Director.

MMC still must go through a lengthy and comprehensive process to attain licensure by the State Board of Nursing prior to promoting the new school or accepting students.

“Our interest in establishing a School of Nursing is to help current and future students as well preserve a pipeline for local healthcare agencies to have options for new Registered Nurses. There is still much work to be done but we are looking forward to whenever we can enroll our first students,” stated Valerie Waid, Chief Nurse Executive at Meadville Medical Center.

Once licensed, the School of Nursing at Meadville Medical Center will join the recently licensed Practical Nursing program at Meadville Medical Center under the newly created Institute for Healthcare Professionals.

Amid its bankruptcy, Steward Health Care is trying to sell all of its hospitals including Sharon Regional, Hillside Rehabilitation Center, and Trumbull Regional.

Robert Rogalski, the President of Sharon Regional Medical Center, told 21 News the issues with the school of nursing are “separate from the bid process for the sale of Sharon Regional.”