Kirby Medical Center, EIU announce education partnership for workers

Eastern Illinois University is announcing a new partnership with Kirby Medical Center that will help employees with tuition.

The new corporate education partnership with the Monticello medical center will provide its employees access to discounted tuition rates and scholarships for EIU’s online undergraduate and graduate degree programs.

“Kirby Medical Center remains an award-winning hospital, in part, because of the opportunities employees have to grow their skills and education through partnerships with outstanding academic institutions like EIU,” said Dr. Andrew Buffenbarger, Chief Compliance Officer for Kirby Medical Center.

Kirby is promoting EIU’s academic programs to its employees through channels, including its Human Resources website, employee benefit fairs, corporate newsletters, digital brochures and promotional emails in this agreement. EIU is providing Kirby employees assistance from a corporate partner specialist and degree completion coordinator as well.

Additionally, EIU is offering these employees up to $1,000 in scholarships per academic year, applicable to any online undergraduate or graduate degree program. The scholarship, valued at $125 per three-credit-hour course, is renewable for up to 48 credit hours, or $2,000 total.

In order to maintain eligibility, students must make adequate, incremental progress while in the academic program.

“This partnership reflects our shared commitment to supporting the educational goals of Kirby Medical Center employees and investing in the future of our collective regional workforce,” said Josh Norman, EIU Vice President of Enrollment Management.

This three-year agreement is renewable for up to 10 years. One of the goals of the agreement is to demonstrate the long term commitment of both organizations to fostering a culture of lifelong learning and professional development.

Any employees at Kirby who are interested in learning more about this opportunity are encouraged to contact EIU program coordinator Kenia Gonzales at kigonzalez@eiu.edu or call 217-581-5027.