CAPES Academy
On This Page
About CAPES Academy
The CAPES Academy prepares nurses to serve as qualified clinical nursing faculty and preceptors to newly hired or transitioning licensed nurses for a variety of care settings in health professional shortage areas. CAPES is designed to optimize health equity and increase access to care by recruiting 128 trainees from medically underserved areas in the Southeast.
Program Highlights
About CAPES
As RNs or APRNs transitioning into the role of clinical faculty or preceptors from medically underserved areas within the Southeast (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee), program participants received stipends and travel support to participate in the CAPES Academy's online training modules, a week-long training intensive at Emory School of Nursing, and a shadowing experience at CAPES Academy’s clinical partners’ sites. The grant also funded trainees’ ongoing professional development, monthly engagement activities, and membership in professional nursing organizations.
Resources
Sustaining CAPES Academy
CAPES Academy selected its final cohort in Fall 2025. To sustain our highly rated clinical education curriculum, Emory Nursing developed a free Train-the-Trainer curriculum and a series of introductory modules rooted in evidence-based practices. These resources support the professional growth of nurses across clinical and academic settings. Clinical instructors and preceptors interested in these resources can register for a free account to access the modules and earn complimentary CE credits.
Leaders
Meet the Leadership Team
Quyen Phan, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN, is an Associate Clinical Professor with more than 20 years of teaching experience — both in acute care and public health and community settings. Her areas of expertise include nursing education, population-based and public health nursing, primary care, and care of disfranchised populations.
Desireé Clement, DNP, APRN, CNM, FNP-BC, FACNM, FAANP, FAAN, is a navy veteran, certified nurse-midwife, and family nurse practitioner. A nationally recognized expert in women’s health and health policy, her area of research also focuses on innovative teaching strategies. She is an Associate Professor and Assistant Dean for Clinical Advancement who also holds Fellowships in the American College of Nurse Midwives, American Association of Nurse Practitioners, and American Academy of Nursing.
Maggie Pustinger, MPH, is an Evaluation Specialist in the Center for Program Evaluation and Quality Improvement at Emory Centers for Public Health Training and Technical Assistance in the Rollins School of Public Health. She has dedicated her entire career to the advancement and betterment of public health. In her role on the evaluation team for CAPES, she assists in the evaluation design; collects primary data through conducting interviews, focus groups, or surveys; verifies evaluation plans; performs qualitative evaluation activities; and develops evaluation reports.
Jeannie Weston, EdD, MS, RN, is an Assistant Professor who is responsible for the coordination of pediatric clinical and pediatric simulation experiences for undergraduate nursing students at Emory School of Nursing. She also provides clinical instruction in acute care pediatrics and teaches an interprofessional course in Pediatric Critical Care. Her research has centered around development of a six-module course that teaches best methods for preparing nurse clinicians for the role of clinical instructor.
Elizabeth Woods, DNP, RN, is an Assistant Clinical Professor and the Director of the Spring Start Master of Nursing pre-licensure program. Her work centers on the design, implementation, and evaluation of clinical education models that prepare practice-ready nurses. She has particular expertise in preparing clinical instructors and preceptors to effectively teach, evaluate, and support nursing students in increasingly complex health care settings.