Faculty & Staff Detail

Clinical Practice and Research Interests: Women’s health; staff development; distance learning

Dr. Char Smith has extensive experience as a nurse educator in both practice and academic settings. She was the Director of Professional Practice and Development at Highland Hospital in Rochester, NY, an affiliate of the University of Rochester Medical Center, and currently is a per diem research coordinator and consultant to the Evidence-Based Practice and Nursing Research Council at Highland Hospital. Dr. Smith also works per diem at the University of Rochester Medical Center: Strong Memorial Hospital in the Center for Nursing Professional Development. In the past she taught at the University of Rochester School of Nursing and was an adjunct clinical instructor in Obstetrics at St. John Fisher College and SUNY College at Brockport. She is a full-time Associate Professor at the Wegmans School of Nursing, St. John Fisher College with teaching responsibilities in the BS, RN to BS online, MS in nursing education and doctoral level nursing programs. A registered professional nurse and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner, she has worked as a staff nurse, nursing supervisor, nurse educator, school nurse, clinical instructor, and clinical care manager.

Dr. Smith has an AAS from Monroe Community College, a diploma in nursing from Highland Hospital School of Nursing and a BS in nursing from Nazareth College. She received her MS in Education from SUNY College at Brockport and her MS in advanced practice nursing and Doctor of Nursing Science degrees from the University at Buffalo, SUNY.

Dr. Smith has presented regionally, nationally and internationally and consulted on topics related to educational design, competency assessment, and online learning. Her research interest and publications are primarily related to evidence-based education, nursing professional development, and online learning. A chapter author for the first edition of the Core Curriculum for Staff Development, she also authored a chapter in the fourth edition for the Association for Nursing Professional Development (ANPD) on teaching learning methodologies. She is board certified through both the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) in nursing professional development since 1992 and the National League for Nursing as a Certified Nurse Educator. Dr. Smith is a past recipient of the National Nursing Staff Development Organization’s (NNSDO) research grant award for her research comparing instructional design strategies for an online continuing education program on pain management for nurses. She is on the National Faculty for ANPD teaching the certification preparation course for the ANCC certification examination in Nursing Professional Development. She has been a member of ANPD (formally NNSDO) since 1991, in addition to her professional memberships in Sigma Theta Tau International, the Finger Lakes Research Alliance, the New York Organization of Nurse Executives, the National League for Nursing, the American Nurses Association -NY and the Finger Lakes Organization of Nurse Executives.