FDU and KNN Partner on Health Education Initiative Centered on Human Flourishing

Strategic partnership will expand access to programming that strengthens character, leadership growth and flourishing for the health professionals of today and tomorrow

September 2, 2026 — As the healthcare industry rapidly adopts AI and other advanced technology, two prominent organizations are collaborating to shape future health professionals and systems that are both technology-enabled and deeply grounded in humanity. Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) today announced a strategic partnership with the Kern National Network for Flourishing in Health (KNN) that will accelerate shared programming, offerings and scholarly research to equip current and future health professionals to navigate complexity with wisdom, lead with integrity and create cultures of flourishing for all.

This unique collaboration unites the innovative, community-engaged approach and instructional excellence of FDU, a globally recognized private institution of higher education based in New Jersey, with the deep expertise and national peer collaboration of the KNN, a fast-growing movement to advance human flourishing across the health ecosystem by integrating a guiding framework of character, caring and practical wisdom.

Collaborative undertakings will immediately enhance individual development and career preparedness while laying a long-term foundation for transforming entire care systems in ways that allow practitioners to thrive and improve patient care.

“Meeting the evolving needs of our students and the nation’s healthcare system demands bold thinking. In partnering with KNN, FDU is doing exactly that, creating learning experiences that are as distinctive as they are transformative, and building a model of healthcare where humanity and excellence align,” said Michael Avaltroni, president of Fairleigh Dickinson University.

“In today’s complex health systems, exceptional care and community impact are only possible when we create the conditions for all involved to bring their full humanity and strengths to every interaction. We are thrilled to partner with FDU on novel approaches for preparing professionals across health disciplines, sustaining purpose throughout careers of service and shaping learning and care settings that uplift everyone,” said Kimara Ellefson, national director of strategy and partnerships for the KNN.

Both organizations share a bold vision and a commitment to transforming healthcare so that humanity and flourishing take root alongside scientific innovation and clinical mastery. FDU and KNN each contribute complementary methods that support health professionals in creating environments of meaning, purpose and belonging; leading with authenticity and integrity; and upholding the human dignity of all within their care.

Early collaborations will build on each organization’s proven offerings:

• Character-Driven Leadership Programs: FDU’s Institute for Character and Leadership provides experiential, data-driven programs for organizational leaders that illuminate key elements of character, uncover strengths and provide evidence-based strategies for enacting them.
• Bridging Across Differences Toward Flourishing: Applying lessons from its multi-institutional national demonstration project, the KNN partners with organizations to develop mindsets and skills for forming connections and finding common ground, strengthening professional relationships and patient care.

• Empathy Research and Training: Dedicated to evidence-based empathy instruction and measurement in healthcare education, FDU’s The Empathy Center for Research and Training teaches individuals and organizations to hone this quality, supporting collaboration, accountability and respect. Learn more about The Empathy Center on the Institute for Character and Leadership website.

• Relational Leadership Development: KNN’s Rooted leadership development experience transforms organizational and team dynamics by cultivating authenticity, relationships and shared growth. Applied across cohorts of faculty, staff and learners, Rooted blends reflection, applied learning and praxis in community.

The partnership represents a natural extension of FDU’s HealthPath Forward strategic initiative, an ambitious approach that brings together education and industry to reimagine how the future health workforce is educated and prepared. In 2023, FDU Health was formed as a hub for interdisciplinary healthcare training, spanning undergraduate through doctoral studies. Most recently, FDU announced HealthXHumanics, an integrated center and program portfolio that will blend curricula, real-world experiences and community-engaged partnerships to ensure technology supports, not supplants, human excellences.

For the KNN, the partnership reflects a deepened commitment to advancing flourishing-centered cultures across the health ecosystem — from pre-health pipeline programs to health systems and clinical settings. The insights and models unlocked by this collaboration will generate new knowledge, practices and momentum that spread across the more than 50 institutions already engaged with the movement in a variety of ways. The KNN FOREST learning consortium will provide a home for the virtual and in-person experiences made possible through this partnership.

By combining forces, FDU and KNN are uniquely positioned to champion human-centered health education and practice, benefiting both organizations’ constituencies, communities and collaborators nationwide. This strategic partnership will elevate approaches that harness the power of technological advances while serving the needs of patients and communities — keeping human connection and flourishing at the heart of health systems and society.

About Fairleigh Dickinson University

Fairleigh Dickinson University is a globally recognized private institution of higher education committed to academic excellence, innovation, professional preparation and community engagement. With campuses in New Jersey and beyond, FDU offers a wide array of programs that prepare students to excel in their fields while making meaningful contributions to society. In 2023, the University launched FDU Health, which has become the coordinated collaboration of its health and health-related disciplines, and which focuses on key areas of education, workforce development, innovation and community engagement to create communities of health in New Jersey and beyond.

About KNN

The KNN is a national movement to advance flourishing across the health ecosystem through a framework of character, caring and practical wisdom. In partnership with health institutions, the KNN helps organizations unlock their full potential and achieve excellence through flourishing-centered cultures that transform organizations and elevate everyone. Through strengths-based methods, a robust guiding framework, scholar-practitioner approaches, deep subject matter expertise and national peer collaboration, the KNN helps organizations solve complex culture and workforce challenges by harnessing their strengths to build cultures where all who learn, work, receive care or lead in health can flourish.