Chamberlain University Opens Its Doors in Cincinnati—And One Local Student's Nursing Degree Is Already Paid For
If you've thought about nursing school but the timing, cost, or program never felt right, Chamberlain's new Cincinnati campus is built to remove those barriers. Chamberlain University has opened a new campus here—its 25th nationwide—and the first cohort of nursing students starts class August 31.
Chamberlain University President Amelia Manning is joined by Executive Campus Director Priya Shastri, future Chamberlain student Damenika Jacobs, Chamberlain alumna Rachell Dumas, Ohio state Rep. Karen Brownlee, House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn, Cincinnati Regional Chamber President and CEO Brendon Cull, Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus, and Tiffany Mattingly, Chief Engagement Officer & Vice President, Clinical Strategies at The Health Collaborative, to cut the ribbon on Chamberlain's Cincinnati campus, its 25th nationwide.
A Surprise for a Deserving Recipient
The campus opening came with a surprise of its own: Chamberlain's inaugural Future Healthcare Hero Award, a full ride covering the entire cost of one BSN nursing degree at Chamberlain’s Cincinnati campus.
Chamberlain partnered with Zachery Dereniowski—better known online as "MD Motivator," with a combined following of more than 40 million across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube—to deliver the news to Damenika Jacobs in person, on camera. In the same video, Chamberlain revealed three more Future Healthcare Hero Awards would be up for grabs, with applications now open to any United States residents pursuing a nursing degree at Chamberlain’s Cincinnati campus.
Content creator Zachery Dereniowski, known to his more than 40 million followers as "MD Motivator," surprises Cincinnati resident Damenika Jacobs with a full-ride Future Healthcare Hero Award to Chamberlain University's new Cincinnati campus.
For Chamberlain President Amelia Manning, the award isn't a one-off gesture—it's the point of opening the campus and expanding access to education and future healthcare careers for Cincinnati residents. "Cincinnati has no shortage of amazing talent capable of becoming extraordinary nurses. What has been lacking is access," she said. "This scholarship and this campus are a direct response to that gap. Expanding access to nursing education is core to our mission at Chamberlain, and we intend to be a long-term partner in strengthening this region's healthcare workforce."
Why Cincinnati, Why Now
For prospective students who have been waiting for the right moment, this is it. Cincinnati is short on nurses, and it's a gap that aspiring nurses could help close: last year alone, Greater Cincinnati employers posted nearly 50,000 open healthcare jobs, and today there are six open healthcare positions for every graduate coming out of local programs, according to the Covista Care Capacity Monitor, 2026. Nationally, the same research found that 76% of clinicians say staffing shortages are already compromising the quality of care they can deliver.
Cincinnati is one stop in a much larger push: the campus is Chamberlain's 25th nationwide and one of several new locations opening within the next year as part of the university's broader national expansion. That scale is already considerable—Chamberlain serves roughly 40,000 students across 24 campuses today, with more than 155,000 alumni now practicing in all 50 states.
Training Practice-Ready Nurses From Day One
Students arriving August 31 won't ease into the program—they'll start hands-on right away. Chamberlain's Cincinnati BSN is a three-year path with flexible scheduling, evening and weekend options, no application fee, and no prerequisite coursework required to get started. From day one, students will train in the campus's SIMCARE CENTER™, rehearsing clinical skills in realistic, simulated patient-care scenarios before ever stepping into a real clinical rotation. From there, they’ll move into placements with health system partners across the region—graduating practice-ready into the Cincinnati workforce.
Chamberlain University faculty member and students in the Cincinnati campus SIMCARE CENTER™, where students will practice clinical skills in simulated patient care settings.
Priya Shastri, Executive Campus Director for Chamberlain Cincinnati, sees the campus as one piece of a larger, shared effort already underway in the city. "We're joining a city with strong nursing programs and health systems already doing this work, and our students will train alongside them," she said. "Closing this region's nursing shortage will take every program in this market working toward the same goal, and we're committed to being a serious partner in that effort."
Investing in Cincinnati’s Next Generation
Chamberlain isn't stopping at tuition. The campus is launching a three-year partnership with The Health Collaborative, backed by a $150,000 commitment, to reach students long before they'd ever apply to a nursing program. The partnership will fund year-round healthcare career exploration programming at youth centers across Cincinnati, giving middle and high schoolers real exposure to healthcare careers many may never have considered otherwise—so the pipeline continues to grow.
Future Healthcare Hero Award recipient, Damenika Jacobs tours the Simulation Lab at Chamberlain University's new Cincinnati campus with a faculty member.
Deirdre Beluan, CEO of The Health Collaborative, described the impact in personal terms. "We're incredibly grateful to Chamberlain and Covista for helping us create educational opportunities for students who might not otherwise see a path into healthcare," she said. "When students can meet real healthcare professionals and get hands-on experience early, it changes what they believe is possible for themselves, and it's exactly the kind of early exposure that helps build the nursing workforce our region needs. We're proud to deepen this work together over the next three years."
Cincinnati's Leaders Show Up to Celebrate
The ribbon-cutting drew more than Chamberlain's own leadership. Ohio state Rep. Karen Brownlee (House District 28), Ohio House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn (House District 24), and Cincinnati Regional Chamber President and CEO Brendon Cull all spoke at the event. Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus marked the occasion further, declaring Aug. 20 "Chamberlain University Day" in the county and presenting a proclamation to honor the campus opening.
Rep. Isaacsohn connected the campus opening to a broader argument about the region's future. "When we struggle to keep each other healthy, everything else gets harder: buying a home, raising a family, building a business," he said. "I have spent years working to lower costs and expand healthcare access for Ohioans, but none of that progress holds if we do not have enough professionals to deliver the care. That's why today is important: we are expanding our education capacity for the long run by welcoming Chamberlain University—the largest nursing school in the country—to our community."
Why Choose Chamberlain
This kind of access is central to how Chamberlain describes itself as an institution. In 2025, Chamberlain was named an Opportunity University by the Carnegie Student Access and Earnings Classification—recognition tied directly to how well a school expands access to education and translates that access into real post-graduation earnings for its students. Chamberlain University is also accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
Ready to Apply?
Applications for the Future Healthcare Hero Award are open now. Prospective students can find more details at https://www.chamberlain.edu/nursing-school/ohio/cincinnati.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can apply for one of the three remaining Future Healthcare Hero Awards?
Applications are open now and details on eligibility and how to apply are available at https://www.chamberlain.edu/nursing-school/ohio/cincinnati.
Do I need prerequisite coursework or to pay an application fee to apply to the Cincinnati BSN program?
No. The program was built to remove those barriers—there's no application fee and no required prerequisite coursework to get started.
What can I expect from clinical training at the Cincinnati campus?
Students first build clinical skills in the campus's SIMCARE CENTER™, a simulated patient-care environment, before moving into real clinical rotations with health system partners across the region.
How does the Health Collaborative partnership affect current applicants, if I'm not in middle or high school?
The $150,000, three-year partnership with The Health Collaborative is focused on building the region's future nursing pipeline through youth career-exploration programs. It runs alongside the Cincinnati campus and its scholarships, but is a separate initiative aimed at younger students not yet ready to apply.