About the CSU Shiley Institute for Palliative Care
Building the Palliative Care Workforce
The California State University Shiley Institute for Palliative Care, headed by Executive Director Jennifer Moore Ballentine and headquartered at California State University San Marcos (CSUSM), is a workforce development initiative dedicated to achieving our mission across California and around the world.
Our Mission and Activities
The mission of the Institute is to increase access to and awareness of palliative care by
- Educating current professionals,
- Educating the future workforce, and
- Building community awareness and advocacy
Professional education is accomplished through our large selection of generalist and specialty level online courses, ranging from short, self-paced topical courses to instructor-led comprehensive certificate courses across a variety of clinical disciplines in palliative care and care management.
Not just recorded webinars or voice-over-presentations, our courses deliver evidence-based clinical skills and foundational knowledge, developed by nationally recognized subject matter experts according to adult learning principles in a highly interactive and engaging learning management platform.
Our courses are affordable, accessible, and responsive to the needs of healthcare professionals and organizations across the world. Whether for individual career development or organizational improvement, our courses deliver the highest quality experience in online education.
Future professional preparation and community education are carried out through our work with campus partners in the CSU system, through the integration of palliative care education into undergraduate and pre-professional curriculum, and through community education and services to acquaint the public with the benefits of palliative care. Our annual National Symposium is unique in its focus on academic palliative care education and research.
Our National Advisory Board members and senior staff engage with multi-agency state and national associations, workgroups, and taskforces to advance policy agendas that will benefit citizens with serious illness and their caregivers.
Our Founders and Campus Host
The CSU Shiley Institute for Palliative Care is an initiative of the California State University system. CSUSM, a 21st century university and one of the fastest growing campuses in the 23-campus system, was selected to launch this initiative because of its history of innovation, interdisciplinary academic qualifications, model community engagement, and the commitment of its campus leadership.
The Institute launched in 2012 with generous support from early visionaries including then-president of CSUSM Dr. Karen S. Haynes, philanthropist Darlene Marcos Shiley, then-CSU Board of Trustees member Robert Achtenberg (center left to right above), and the California Health Care Foundation, Archstone Foundation, and Hearst Foundation.
The Impact of Darlene Marcos Shiley
San Diego philanthropist Darlene Marcos Shiley has had a profound impact on the Institute’s work and its ongoing mission. Her commitment to expanding access to palliative care was inspired by her experiences caring for her husband, Donald, as he approached the end of life.
Mrs. Shiley’s total giving to the Institute and the CSUSM Foundation has surpassed $6 million, establishing her as the most generous donor in the university’s history.
In May 2019, the CSU Board of Trustees approved changing the name of the Institute to the CSU Shiley Institute for Palliative Care, in recognition of Mrs. Shiley’s generosity and unwavering support.
Learn more about Mrs. Shiley’s contributions.