Case Western Reserve University Nursing School Gifted $5 Million to Create Leadership Academy

The Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing recently received a $5 million gift from Marian and Michael Shaughnessy to create an academy to develop and support a new generation of nursing leaders.

The Marian K. Shaughnessy Nurse Leadership Academy will aim to prepare new nurse leaders to be involved in design, planning, management, and delivery of care in the development and implementation of health policy. Marian Shaughnessy explained in a press release about the academy, “My vision is to transform health care for all populations and to improve the nation’s health. We are designing a dynamic toolkit for the development of nurse leaders.”

Marian Shaughnessy received her master’s and doctorate degrees in nursing from Case Western Reserve University and has held positions as a practitioner, educator, and administrator in critical care and perioperative nursing care. Michael Shaughnessy is the founder and former president of Color Matrix. The family has previously donated $1.25 million to establish an endowed chair for nursing education to create professional nursing development programs at university hospitals.

Nurses are the largest segment of the healthcare workforce at 3.6 million, but typically aren’t part of the decision making process. According to 2014 American Hospital Association governance data, nurses hold only 5 percent of board seats in health care institutions.

The university has mapped out a five point plan for the academy which includes leadership development for current staff and faculty; administrative and executive leadership education for doctoral students; continuing education in executive leadership for practicing nurses at the school; research and scholarship on the science of nursing leadership; and recruitment of new leadership faculty.