Clare Whitney, an assistant professor at Stony Brook University School of Nursing, has been named a 2025 Macy Faculty Scholar. This national program aims to develop early-career educators in nursing and medicine into effective leaders. Whitney is the first from Stony Brook to receive this recognition and joins four other educators nationwide in the class of 2025.
The Macy Faculty Scholars program offers participants the opportunity to work on a project while accessing professional development programs, formal mentoring, and educational opportunities. The program begins on July 1.
Whitney's project focuses on the Alda Healthcare Experience for Nursing (AHE-N), which is an interprofessional communication skills training designed specifically for nurses. Her goal is to develop, implement, and evaluate AHE-N with the aim of advancing sustainable solutions for burnout prevention and enhancing collaboration among student nurses.
Her research at Stony Brook targets reducing burnout and improving healthcare professionals' well-being. She has established an interdisciplinary research program that addresses relational and ethical issues within the healthcare workforce.
“This is an exciting honor and a meaningful recognition of my passion for advancing nursing education,” said Whitney. “As I continue to grow in my career, this will allow me to collaborate with and receive mentorship from other educators and leaders, strengthening my ability to educate the next generation of nurses and hopefully make a lasting difference in the profession.”
School of Nursing Dean Patricia Bruckenthal expressed pride in Whitney's selection as a Macy Faculty Scholar: “Given her expertise in bioethics and health communication science, she will no doubt make an impact on promoting collaboration among health professionals and preparing future nurse leaders to deliver ethical patient-centered care in our complex healthcare environment.”
Whitney also serves as an affiliated faculty member at Stony Brook's Center for Medical Humanities, Compassionate Care, and Bioethics within the Renaissance School of Medicine.
Holly J. Humphrey, MD, president of the Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation that sponsors the program added: “As an early career faculty member, Dr. Whitney has an impressive body of scholarship related to addressing relational and ethical issues among health professionals.”