Illinois FY27 Nursing School Grant

Illinois competitive grants for eligible nursing schools to expand or improve nursing programs, faculty capacity, clinical partnerships, classrooms, labs, equipment, student supports, and evidence-based instructional strategies.

Funding$10,000 to $150,000 per award; FY2027 program funding listed at $1.5 million

DeadlineOctober 2, 2026 at 4:00 PM CT

Last verifiedAugust 28, 2026

Required next actionConfirm the Illinois nursing program meets the FY27 accreditation and program-eligibility requirements, prepare the application, budget and performance plan, and submit through AmpliFund by October 2, 2026 at 4:00 PM CT.

Broad Eligibility

Illinois institutions offering eligible registered professional nursing programs, including associate, baccalaureate and qualifying advanced nursing programs, subject to current accreditation and FY27 notice requirements. Applicants should use the active IBHE/Illinois GATA notice as controlling where a catalog summary differs from the current opportunity.

Atlas Analysis

Strong healthcare-workforce opportunity for nursing schools with a measurable plan to expand enrollment, improve completion or licensure, strengthen clinical partnerships, add faculty, or upgrade labs and equipment. It is not primarily a telehealth grant, so Atlas ranks it below the state RHT technology opportunities while flagging the equipment, lab and clinical-partnership pathways as especially actionable.

The Illinois Board of Higher Education is accepting FY27 Nursing School Grant applications from eligible Illinois institutions offering registered professional nursing programs. The program is designed to increase the number of registered nurses graduating from Illinois institutions while improving program quality, completion, licensure outcomes, and equity.

IBHE’s current FY27 application page states that applications are due October 2, 2026 by 4:00 p.m. and must be submitted through the state AmpliFund portal. The underlying CSFA catalog contains a September 30 summary date, so Atlas treats the current IBHE FY27 application page and AmpliFund opportunity as controlling for this cycle. Awards range from $10,000 to $150,000 from a $1.5 million FY2027 appropriation.

Source verificationOfficial state agency source · www.ibhe.orgAtlas last verified this record August 28, 2026. Always use the funder's current application materials, amendments and portal instructions as the controlling source.View source and application materials ↗