Siletz Tribe Grant Helps Nursing Students

On Wednesday, January 14, 2026, students in Anatomy & Physiology II at Oregon Coast Community College stepped into the brain – literally – using the Virtual Medicine virtual reality simulator to identify and explore brain structures in an immersive 3D environment. Wearing Meta Quest 3 headsets, students worked in small groups during lab to interact with anatomical structures in VR, bringing a challenging unit to life in a way that’s hands-on, visual, and highly engaging.

This innovative learning experience was made possible through a generous grant from the Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribution Fund (STCCF), which funded both the VR headsets and a multi-year license for Virtual Medicine. VR-enhanced A&P supports OCCC’s pre-nursing pathway by strengthening foundational anatomy learning for students pursuing Nursing and other allied health fields – and it’s a smart investment: VR helps reduce long-term replacement costs for physical models that wear out over time, while also supporting students with a wider range of learning styles.

This VR lab is part of OCCC’s larger push to expand access to allied health programs across Lincoln County. In recent years, the College has increased seats in its first-year nursing program and launched an LPN-to-RN pathway, helping address the severe nursing shortage in rural communities—while keeping more locally trained nurses working right here on the Central Coast. In addition, nursing faculty recently completed two days of advanced simulation training with Laerdal in OCCC’s Newport simulation lab, strengthening instruction using high-fidelity mannequins and supporting updates to older simulation equipment—also funded through STCCF.

Oregon Coast Community College is deeply grateful to the Siletz Tribal Charitable Contribution Fund for investing in innovative, high-impact learning tools that strengthen the nursing pipeline and help prepare the next generation of healthcare professionals for Lincoln County.