American Association of Colleges of Nursing
Logo of AACN | |
| Abbreviation | AACN |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1969 |
| Headquarters | 655 K Street, NW Suite 750 Washington, D.C., United States |
| Membership | 876 members |
Board Chair | Jean Giddens, PhD, RN |
President/CEO | Deborah E. Trautman, PhD, RN |
| Website | www |
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) is the national voice for academic nursing. AACN works to establish quality standards for nursing education; assists schools in implementing those standards; influences the nursing profession to improve health care; and promotes public support for professional nursing education, research, and practice.[1] It was established in 1969, and represents more than 875 member schools of nursing at public and private universities nationwide.
News & Data
To view AACN's latest news, visit: https://www.aacnnursing.org/news-data.
Board of directors
- Chair: Jean Giddens, University of Kansas
- Chair-Elect: Julie Sanford, The University of Alabama
- Treasurer: Judith Karshmer, Arizona State University
- Secretary: Victoria Niederhauser, University of Tennessee Knoxville
Members-at-Large:
- Stephen Cavanagh, University of California-Davis
- Lorna Finnegan, Loyola University Chicago
- Eileen Fry-Bowers, University of San Francisco
- Mary Ellen Smith Glasgow, Duquesne University
- Rhoberta Haley, Pacific Lutheran University
- Valerie Howard, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Kimberly Hunter, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
- Shannon Bright Smith, Florida A&M University
- Julie Swann, Emory Saint Joseph Hospital[1]
President and Chief Executive Officer (ex officio): Deborah E. Trautman
Graduate Nursing Student Academy
The Graduate Nursing Student Academy (GNSA) is a national division of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing that serves master's, doctoral, and post graduate nursing students.[2] The GNSA functions as the national voice for graduate nursing students and promotes leadership, professional development, scholarly advancement, and advocacy engagement across graduate level programs in the United States.[3]
The GNSA provides webinars, leadership development programs, networking opportunities, academic support resources, mentoring, and career development programming tailored for graduate level learners.[4] The academy’s mission includes strengthening the graduate nursing pipeline and preparing students to assume leadership roles in clinical practice, academia, health systems management, and public policy.[5]
A signature initiative of the academy is the GNSA Advocacy Leader Program. This program selects graduate nursing students nationally to participate in structured policy training and health advocacy engagement.[6] Advocacy Leaders collaborate with AACN’s government affairs division, meet with federal stakeholders, promote awareness of nursing policy issues, and represent student perspectives within national policy discussions.[7]
The GNSA also manages recognition programs, travel support for national conferences, student leadership awards, and professional development funding opportunities.[8] Membership is free for all students enrolled in graduate nursing programs at AACN member institutions.[9]
Scholarship Opportunities
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing offers a number of different scholarships to nursing students around the country for outstanding academic performance, students who aspire to leadership positions in academic nursing, and/or those who are committed to making a positive impact on the nation's health and health care. They have partnered with companies like Liaison,[10] Uniform Advantage,[11] and Hurst Review[12] to provide thousands of dollars in scholarships each year to students that apply and meet the requirements. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, they have also started a scholarship program to help students that need financial support in order to complete their nursing programs and/or meet life expenses. Since the program was started in April 2020, they have disbursed a total of 158 awards.
References
- ^ a b "About AACN". www.aacnnursing.org. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
- ^ "About the Graduate Nursing Student Academy". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/gnsa/about. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "Graduate Nursing Student Academy Overview". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/portals/0/policy-resources/gnsa-fact-sheet.pdf. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "Leadership Opportunities for Graduate Nursing Students". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/gnsa/leadership-opportunities. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "GNSA Mission and Goals". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/gnsa/mission-goals. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "GNSA Advocacy Leaders". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/gnsa/advocacy-leaders. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "Government Affairs and Policy Engagement". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/policy-advocacy/government-affairs. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "GNSA Awards and Funding". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/gnsa/awards. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "GNSA Membership Information". AACN. https://www.aacnnursing.org/gnsa/membership. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
- ^ "Higher Education Admissions & Enrollment | LiaisonEDU". Liaison International. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
- ^ "Uniform Advantage Scholarship | American Association of Colleges of Nursing". www.uniformadvantage.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
- ^ "Hurst Review". Hurst Review Services, Inc. Retrieved 2022-03-04.