NAC President and CEO C. Grace Whiting applauds the work of the NAC team as she looks ahead to a bright future for the organization
Organization Taps Chief Operating Officer as Interim CEO for 2022
Washington, D.C. – December 15, 2021 – The National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC) announced today that C. Grace Whiting, J.D., has stepped down from her role as President & Chief Executive Officer of the organization as of December 31, 2021.
“It is with mixed sadness and gratitude that we accept Grace’s resignation,” said Janet McUlsky, NAC’s Chair of the Board of Directors. “Grace played an integral role in institutionalizing NAC’s strengths under its founder, Gail Gibson Hunt, and shepherded the organization into its current role as a leading voice in national and global conversations.”
“I’ve been so honored to be a part of the caregiving community and in various roles at NAC over the last eight years,” said Ms. Whiting. “How invigorating to meet the scientists, innovators, policymakers, and caregiving advocates who are working to make life better for the more than 53 million Americans who care for a friend or family member! NAC is an incredible organization, and I’m excited to see what comes next.”
The organization has identified Patrice A. Heinz, NAC’s Chief Operating Officer, to take the helm as Interim CEO beginning in January 2022. Ms. Heinz joined NAC in 2017, following previous roles at Women Enabled International and the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities. With more than thirty years of experience serving the nonprofit sector, Ms. Heinz was the proprietor and principal consultant of Heinz Consultants, a business she founded in 1984. With expertise in strategic planning, organizational analysis, program development and evaluation, and board and leadership development, Ms. Heinz looks forward to assisting NAC during this next phase.
“It is a privilege to serve in the interim CEO role during this transition period,” said Ms. Heinz. “NAC is well-positioned to continue the work begun by founder Gail Gibson Hunt and formalized by Grace. Led by our strategic plan and with a dedicated, passionate team, we’ll continue moving the needle to empower family caregivers through our partnerships in research, advocacy, and innovation.”
Since the retirement of NAC’s founder Gail Gibson Hunt in 2017, the organization has capitalized on the growing interest in family caregiving in the United States. Milestone achievements in the past four years have included:
- Completing a strategic plan for NAC through 2024 that prioritizes an authentic, genuine commitment to improving the lives of caregivers at home, work, and life so they can thrive
- Commissioning new original research on family caregivers of people living with rare disease, inflammatory bowel disease, sandwich caregivers, and the Caregiving in the U.S. 2020 study conducted in partnership with AARP
- Supporting the passage of the RAISE Family Caregivers Act and the initial report to Congress to support a national caregiving plan, with stories on the diversity of the care experience from NAC advocates
- Expanding the coalition of groups and organizations fighting for federal paid family and medical leave, and developing technical support for family caregiving coalitions across the country through the 50-state strategy
- Hosting the virtual World Carers Conversation to capture research and practice insights from caregiving NGOs around the world, and ongoing engagement with global coalitions such as the World Dementia Council, Embracing Carers, and the International Alliance of Carer Organizations
- New projects in caregiving and medical product development, including a multi-stakeholder whitepaper on caregiver roles in clinical trials; public comments to the FDA, CDC, and ICER; and new work on recruiting diverse families to research
- Expansive digital guidebooks created by caregivers, for caregivers, for medically complex care situations such as IBD, rare disease and serious illness, and new resources like TakeCare.Community to help families navigate COVID-19
- Community insights captured in white papers on caregiving as a public health issue, public-private partnerships in caregiving research, billing codes/economic incentives to support caregiver services, and caregiving and career issues during the past year’s pandemic.
About the National Alliance for Caregiving
NAC’s mission is to build partnerships in research, advocacy, and innovation to make life better for family caregivers. As a 501(c)(3) charitable non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., we envision a society that values, supports, and empowers family caregivers to thrive at home, work, and life. Learn more at http://www.caregiving.org.
