Lynn McFarlane

Acting Director, Department of Marketing, Communications & Public Relations

Newark

ACK 308

(973) 353-3833

  • Marketing and Communications

Lynn McFarlane

Manager of Marketing and Communications (Acting Director)

Lynn McFarlane is Manager of Marketing and Communications and serves as Acting Director for the Department of Marketing, Communications & Public Relations at Rutgers School of Nursing. She is a strategic leader who has had a transformative impact on the School of Nursing since joining the institution in 2005.  

With a background that spans strategic public relations, marketing, journalism, and consulting for both corporate and non-profit clients, McFarlane leads a team that is dedicated to achieving organizational goals while maintaining a customer-centric approach.

McFarlane is a driving force behind numerous successful marketing and communication initiatives supporting the School of Nursing mission. She has played a crucial role in launching and advancing the growth of academic offerings including the state’s first doctor of nursing program and innovative advanced nursing specialty tracks such as the family nurse practitioner in emergency care. She laid a robust foundation for marketing the school’s comprehensive continuing education program that serves nursing professionals across the state and beyond.

She has produced School of Nursing publications that received statewide, national, and international awards, and was instrumental in the school gaining national recognition for higher education excellence in diversity.

McFarlane is highly skilled at conceptualizing, implementing and promoting special events and programs that help build the School of Nursing’s brand and celebrate its accomplishments. She helped spearhead the development and directed promotion of the acclaimed and often “sold-out” Distinguished Nurse Leadership webinar series launched by the School of Nursing’s Dean in 2023.

Earlier in her tenure, she co-chaired the school’s annual Convocation ceremonies for nearly a decade, helped launch a new alumni association, and conceived and implemented a major awards event that recognized 20 visionary health care leaders and successfully raised thousands of dollars for alumni scholarships. In recognition of these contributions, she received the Dean’s Award for Staff Excellence.

McFarlane’s influence extends beyond the School of Nursing to the university at large and the broader higher education marketing community. She is a Rutgers Health Strategic Plan Implementation Task Force member and co-chaired the university-level committee that developed and implemented internal communications plans supporting the historic integration of Rutgers and the former University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. She is a past co-chair of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing–Nursing Advancement Professionals (NAP) and a current member of the NAP marketing committee.

In a previous position at Rutgers, McFarlane directed communications for a National Science Foundation-funded research consortium comprised of Rutgers, Stanford, and Michigan State Universities and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has also served as the corporate director of communications for two large health care systems.

McFarlane earned a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Temple University, Philadelphia. She holds a Mini MBA in Digital Marketing from Rutgers Business School and a Certificate in Marketing, Positioning, and Branding from New York University. She is a former board officer of the multimillion-dollar Partners for Health Foundation and now serves on its Leadership Advisory Council.

Responsibilities:

  • Guides all aspects of School of Nursing marketing and communications efforts from strategic planning through development and implementation.
  • Responsibility for all external communications efforts.
  • Works internally with the departments and institutes, as well as Rutgers Central Administration, and externally with local and national media to promote the School of Nursing’s mission and initiatives.
  • Spearheads advertising, public relations, media outreach, social media, digital marketing, crisis communications, visual identity management, and branding efforts.