Program Agenda

• Access, Connection, and Engagement Opportunities at AACN
  Engage with colleagues to expand access, strengthen connections, and deepen engagement through AACN’s ACE programs, networking opportunities, and resources.
   
• Navigating Winds of Change in Academic Nursing
  Join colleagues for an inspiring exchange of top-of-mind ideas on how academic nursing leaders are harnessing the winds of change to advance innovation, strengthen partnerships, and create new opportunities for growth. 
   
• Shaping the Future of Emerging Technologies in Academic Nursing: A Facilitated Listening Session
  This interactive listening session will bring together deans and associate deans to share their perspectives on the opportunities, challenges, and institutional needs associated with the integration of emerging technologies across academic nursing. The conversation will explore the supports, resources, and leadership considerations needed to navigate rapid technological change. The session will provide an opportunity to hear directly from academic leaders about what they need to lead this transformation effectively and where AACN can provide the greatest value and support. Insights from the session will help inform the priorities and ongoing work of the Emerging Technologies in Nursing Task Force.

• AI in Action: Streamlining Item Generation and Student Remediation in Nursing Programs
  Sponsored and presented by NurseAchieve
  This session explores how AI is transforming nursing education through streamlined assessment development and personalized remediation. Attendees will see live demonstrations of NurseAchieve’s AI Item Writer and AI Remediation Tutor, showcasing how these tools support NCLEX alignment, reduce faculty workload, and enhance student outcomes.
   
• From Curriculum Mapping to Curriculum Intelligence
  Sponsored and presented by Enflux
  Most nursing programs still manage curriculum mapping in spreadsheets – static, hard to keep current, and disconnected from what actually happens in courses. This session introduces an interactive app where plans of study, SLOs, curriculum maps, and assignments live in one place and update in real time. Explore how faculty write program and course SLOs and map outcomes and assignments to competencies step by step. Discover how additional standards, like NONPF, COA, and AONL, can be layered onto the same map without extra spreadsheets.  Attendees will leave with a practical model for Essentials implementation, continuous quality improvement, and CCNE accreditation readiness.

Seating is limited, so register here to reserve a spot. Please reach out to nursingcas@aacnnursing.org for more information.

• AI, Aprons, and ATI - Intentional Integration of AI in Nursing Education
  State (Meeting Room Level)
  Sponsored and presented by ATI Nursing Education
  Nursing academic leaders don't need another AI overview — they need a clear-eyed way to think about it. Drs. Bonnie Ross and Beth Cusatis Phillips will share key ingredients (using a baking analogy) that shape how they think about AI in nursing education. We will explore intentional use of AI in your programs. Finally, we will strategize how we welcome AI solutions while preserving what makes nursing irreplaceable. Come join us in a conversation with peers. Along the way, we'll offer an inside look at Claire AI?, ATI's evidence-based assessment and learning engine, as one real example of what thoughtful AI adoption looks like in practice.
   
• Beyond the Spreadsheet: Simplifying Clinical Placements and AACN Essentials Reporting
  Sponsored and presented by PeopleGrove
  Clinical placement coordination and accreditation reporting are among the heaviest administrative burdens facing nursing programs. This session showcases how CORE by PeopleGrove gives nursing programs one connected system to manage clinical placements, map curriculum to the AACN Essentials, and track competency across students, preceptors, and faculty. Drawing on outcomes from programs currently using CORE, the session offers practical strategies for reducing administrative workload while strengthening compliance, visibility, and student outcomes.
   
• What Reshaping Curriculum Management to Achieve Results Should Actually Look Like
  Sponsored and presented by Benchworks by Elentra
  For many nursing programs, curriculum management happens across disconnected systems and manual processes. Even when the work gets done, it’s often hard to maintain, use consistently, and translate into clear next steps. This session explores how a more holistic approach to curriculum management can help nursing programs move beyond fragmented processes. We’ll discuss how better connecting curriculum, assessment, and reporting can help programs make change more actionable, stay accreditation ready, and generate clearer insights over time.

AACN Community Conversations
Connect with your colleagues in this dynamic forum designed to enrich your conference experience. Through group conversations on topics of shared interest, you’ll gain fresh insights, identify ways to address challenges, and build community. Whether you’re seeking inspiration or navigating complex concerns, this is your space to engage, collaborate, and shape the future of academic nursing.

• Faculty Capacity
  Faculty recruitment, retention, compensation, workload, clinical faculty/preceptors, and leadership development
   
• Innovation
  AI, emerging technologies, curriculum transformation, scholarship, and research collaboration
   
• Transition to Practice
  Student preparedness, retention, attrition, clinical expectations, and transition to practice
   
• Sustainability
  Funding, budgets, program portfolios, clinical placements, nurse-led clinics, and academic-practice partnerships

How It Works

• 45 minutes: Community Conversation #1
• 15 minutes: Break and Transition
• 45 minutes: Community Conversation #2

• Advancing Excellence in A VUCA World
  In a healthcare environment defined by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA), nurse leaders have a powerful opportunity to shape the future with resilience, vision, and purpose. Even amid complexity and workforce challenges, nursing continues to demonstrate extraordinary strength, adaptability, and commitment to patients and communities. Dr. Stephanie Brodtrick will highlight how change agility enables leaders to respond with focus, flexibility, and confidence in dynamic settings. Join your colleagues to explore strategies to advance excellence while reinforcing the mission, vision, and values that define high-quality healthcare.
   
• Effective Approaches to Strengthening Financial Decision-Making: Financial Strategies for Today’s Academic Nursing Leaders
  Explore winning approaches to enhance your leadership skills and thrive in today’s dynamic financial environment! Tailored to the needs of academic nursing leaders, this dynamic session will enrich your financial and economic expertise to drive effective decision-making. Discover practical strategies for establishing accountability, managing budget limitations, and diversifying resources to ensure long-term financial stability. This interactive discussion will also cover the essentials of crafting persuasive business proposals, helping you communicate your vision with impact. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights and connect with peers facing similar challenges!
   
• Leading Academic Nursing in the AI Era: A Framework for Discernment and Action
  In this immersive leadership experience, Dr. Delaney La Rosa will bring the rapidly changing AI landscape to life while helping academic nursing leaders interpret what it means for their institutions. Participants will examine how emerging capabilities are reshaping learning, work, professional preparation, and the evidence used to judge competence. They will consider the interconnected implications for curriculum, workforce readiness, organizational capacity, equity, and governance, using an executive-level AI discernment lens to identify priorities and decision areas that support a responsible, context-appropriate institutional response. What we teach. Who is ready. How we govern.
   
• Who Defines Nursing? Reimagining Our Image, Influence, and Value
  Nursing’s image is more than a matter of public perception; it shapes who enters the profession, who remains, whose expertise is heard, and how nursing influences the future of healthcare. As healthcare is increasingly shaped by business imperatives, the Quintuple Aim, technology and artificial intelligence, and entrepreneurial innovation, nursing must more intentionally shape and communicate a contemporary professional archetype and image that reflects its scientific expertise, clinical impact, economic contribution, commitment to person-centered care, and broader societal value. Dr. Richard Ricciardi will examine how nursing is perceived both internally and externally, how those perceptions shape professional identity, and why academic nursing leaders must take a more intentional role in defining and communicating the importance of image on a profession’s perceived and defined value. Participants will consider the relationship between nursing’s image and critical workforce outcomes, including recruitment into and exit from the profession, turnover, workplace well-being, professional fulfillment, and nurses’ sense of meaning, purpose, and joy in their work.

• Associate and Assistant Dean Dialogue
  Associate and Assistant Deans are invited to this informal dialogue to discuss current and relevant issues unique to the role. Come ask your questions, connect with peers, and embrace the unique opportunity to engage in thought-provoking in-person conversation.
   
• Experienced Dean Dialogue
  Experienced deans are invited to this informal dialogue to collect and discuss current and relevant issues informed by the experienced leader. Come connect with peers and embrace the unique opportunity to engage in thought-provoking in-person conversation.
   
• New Dean Dialogue
  New deans are invited to this informal dialogue to hear about the AACN resources helping you boost your leadership journey. Come ask your questions, connect with peers, and embrace the unique opportunity to engage in thought-provoking in-person conversation.