Valley Children's celebrates first graduating class of ASN to BSN nursing pathway program

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Valley Children's Healthcare is celebrating the first graduating class of nurses from its ASN to BSN Pathway Program.

The program, offered in partnership with Fresno State, is designed to help nurses who hold an Associate of Science in Nursing earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.

Valley Children's covers all tuition costs for participants and provides paid study time and internal mentorship, allowing nurses to continue their education without financial barriers.

"To be honest, I never thought I was going to be going back for my bachelor's degree," said Keri Gavaletz, an RN and graduate of the program. "And they invited us, they had a little meeting about what Valley Children's was going to offer. And I heard that not only were they going to pay for the whole program but they were going to pay us a shift every pay period just to be in school and I realized that sounded like a pretty good deal."

The 14 nurses who graduated began their 18-month academic journey in January 2025.

A second group is already underway, with nine nurses currently participating in the program.