A Catholic liberal arts women's college has chosen Mesa for its first expansion outside Wisconsin. Founded in 1887 by the School Sisters of St. Francis, Alverno College is offering a Direct Entry Master of Science in Nursing program, where anyone with at least a bachelor's degree can begin working on a career change into nursing. Alverno, based in Milwaukee, expanded its pre-licensure nursing program to Arizona because of its severe nursing shortage, said Linda Shanta, associate director and director of Alverno's Direct Entry Master of Science in Nursing (DEMSN) program.