The Education and Licensing Committee of the Board of Registered Nursing on Oct. 22 deferred consideration of an enrollment increase request from Marsha First School of Nursing for two Los Angeles campuses (Glendale and West Covina), citing incomplete documentation and concerns about reported attrition rates.

Why it matters: Marsha First requested a combined annual increase of 90 students (45 at Glendale and 45 at West Covina). Committee members said the request affects an already impacted Region 8 (Los Angeles) and asked for a full clinical collaboration form listing all clinical sites, verification of the specific placements those additional students would use, and clarified attrition and graduation statistics measured from program start to completion.

What the committee heard: Marsha First representatives said the campuses have multiple clinical partners (including Kaiser Permanente locations, Inland Empire hospitals and others) and that the requested increases would be accommodated through existing and agreed‑to clinical affiliations. Gloria Blati (program director) and campus assistant directors were on the call to describe clinical partners and program staffing. The school reported it maintains 31 full‑time faculty and 72 adjuncts and said it presently tracks an attrition rate that has fluctuated year to year; the school reported a recent year at about a 16.4% attrition rate and said it is tracking lower this year (about 12.8%) and maintains NCLEX pass rates above 90%.

Committee concerns and staff guidance: Committee members pressed the school to provide clearer, board‑ready documentation. Laurie Melby, the board executive officer, said the committee requires a collaborative form that documents which hospitals and other programs will be affected by the enrollment growth and how many slots would be used, because 16 CCR 1427 and the board's evaluation criteria require evidence that a school considered the "effect of one clinical group" on clinical sites. Committee members also asked the school to separate attrition that results from students transferring into other programs from true attrition and to report both pre‑nursing attrition and nursing‑program attrition measured from the beginning of the program through graduation.

Outcome and next steps: The committee did not vote to approve the increase. Staff said Marsha First will provide the full clinical collaboration form, corrected attrition/graduation numbers aligned with board reporting conventions, and documentation of which outside institutions accept the school's credits. The matter will be pulled from the consent agenda and presented to the full board for discussion in November; staff offered to help the school prepare the required form and to circulate examples.

Public comment: No public commenters spoke for or against the Marsha First request during the committee's public comment period.