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Frontier Nursing University holding ribbon cutting ceremony

VERSAILLES, Ky. — Frontier Nursing University (FNU) will celebrate the official opening of its new location on the beautiful, newly renovated Versailles Campus with a ribbon cutting and land acknowledgment ceremony on Friday, September 9, at 10:00 a.m. Founded in 1939 in Hyden, Kentucky, today FNU is one of the largest not-for-profit universities offering advanced nursing and midwifery education. In October 2017, FNU finalized the purchase of the 217-acre Versailles property previously occupied by The United Methodist Children’s Home to better serve its students and to continue its longstanding commitment to its mission. Renovation and construction for FNU’s new campus and the move from Hyden began in 2018. The opening of the Versailles campus to students was delayed by the pandemic until the Fall of 2021.

“We are so excited to officially open our doors to our state and local leaders and the people of this great community who have welcomed us with open arms,” said FNU President Dr. Susan Stone, CNM, DNSc, FAAN, FACNM. “We are also humbled to acknowledge that Versailles, Kentucky, is the traditional territory of the Shawnee and Cherokee people. The land acknowledgment ceremony recognizes the Indigenous presence in our everyday life.”

The land acknowledgment ceremony will be held immediately after the ribbon cutting. A sign at the trailhead of FNU’s 5K walking path will inform visitors of the land’s history with the Shawnee and Cherokee people. After the ribbon cutting and land acknowledgment ceremonies, guests will be invited to take tours of the campus and enjoy light refreshments at the President’s House.

FNU’s distance education format allows students to pursue their advanced degrees while continuing to serve the communities in which they live. During their time at FNU, students travel to campus on two separate occasions for 4-5 day learning sessions. The new campus offers convenient access to Bluegrass Airport and major thoroughfares, provides more lodging for visiting students and faculty, and increases classroom and simulation instruction capacity. It also provides greater opportunities for community engagement and events, such as collaborating with the Woodford County Health Department to serve as a COVID vaccination site in 2021.

The university’s current enrollment of 2,500 students hail from across the country. In the last decade, a total of 561 Kentucky residents have graduated from FNU, and the spring term enrollment included 82 Kentucky residents. FNU has nearly 250 employees.

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