BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts nurses could soon benefit from a $300,000 national grant awarded to the state to help support higher academic achievement in the profession.

Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray and other state officials announced Tuesday that Massachusetts was one of nine states to receive a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The grant will help more Massachusetts nurses achieve a bachelor's or master's degree in the field, which officials say will improve the quality of health care in the state. Officials say the funding will be used to support the collaboration between the state's Department of Higher Education and the Organization of Nurse Leaders, a nonprofit group whose goals include promoting professional nursing.

It will also build on the state's plan to improve workforce development in health care, life sciences and other sectors.