The Rhode Island Student Loan Authority is offering two programs to lure more students into the nursing and nursing education fields and to keep them working in Rhode Island for at least four years.

Both offer interest-free Stafford Loans to help those who have completed nursing school pay off their student debt. Both also offer some loan forgiveness.

According to RISLA, the two incentive programs announced yesterday “are among the most generous incentives in the country for encouraging and retaining nurses and nurse faculty members.”

The first initiative, RISLA’s Nursing Rewards Program, is being offered to encourage nursing school graduates to work in Rhode Island upon graduation. The program offers an interest-free Stafford Loan and $1,000 per year of principal forgiveness during the first four years of repayment. To qualify for the program, an applicant must be an RN or LPN licensed to practice in Rhode Island and currently providing direct care to patients at a licensed Rhode Island facility.

The second program is being offered to offset a looming shortage of nursing faculty members in the state. To qualify, an applicant must be a nurse with a master’s degree and teaching at one of the state’s nursing school programs. The program offers an interest-free Stafford Loan to repay student debt, along with $5,000 per year of principal forgiveness during the first four years.

Noel Simpson, executive director of RISLA, said yesterday that the programs are being offered because there is a shortage of nurses and nurse educators in Rhode Island. According to a 2004 study by the RI SHAPE Foundation, there was an 8-percent shortage of nurses in Rhode Island hospitals — a shortage that was predicted to increase to as much as 25 percent in 2010 and 55 percent by 2020.

Simpson said there is also a growing shortage of faculty members in the state’s nursing schools which could lead to delays in students completing their nursing degrees and put further strain on Rhode Island’s health-care system.

tbreton@projo.com