The School of Nursing promotes health care and planetary health at state, national and global levels. Faculty and staff are engaged across public and private sectors and disciplines globally. A commitment to service and practice informed by pragmatic realism provides a framework for both students and faculty to work effectively in complex, high-needs environments.
Hearst, Austin named Fulbright Specialists
Professor Mary Hearst, PhD, and Associate Professor Robin Austin, PhD, DNP, DC, NI-BC, FAMIA, FAAN, were named Fulbright Specialists by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The program pairs highly qualified U.S. academics and professionals with host institutions abroad to share their expertise, strengthen institutional linkages, hone their skills, gain international experience, and learn about other cultures while building capacity at their overseas host institution. Hearst’s research focuses on optimizing health and life chances for women and children, with an aim to elevate and interrupt the social and structural factors that result in health inequity. Austin will collaborate with colleagues in Brazil to advance global nursing informatics.
White Delaney chairs AAN AI Task Force
Dean Connie White Delaney, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI, FNAP, served as chair of the American Academy of Nursing Artificial Intelligence Task Force. The Task Force developed the position statement Artificial Intelligence in Health Care, which was published in March.
Faculty helps shape ICN topic brief on planetary health
The International Council of Nurses (ICN) released the topic brief Nursing for Planetary Health and Wellbeing, outlining key responsibilities for nurses in advocating for and contributing to sustainable and climate-resilient health care systems, authored by Clinical Professor Teddie Potter, PhD, RN, FAAN, FNAP.
Multisector Blueprint for Aging
Developed by the Minnesota Department of Health through collaboration with thousands of Minnesotans, including several School of Nursing faculty, the Multisector Blueprint for Aging guides efforts to make communities more age-inclusive across health, housing, transportation, social connection and financial security. Associate Professor Siobhan McMahon, PhD, MPH, GNP-BC, is leading an implementation team, including Associate Professor Rozina Bhimani, PhD, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, CNE, CRRN, FARN, and Postdoctoral Scholar Rebecca Watry, PhD, RN, PHN, to advance equitable opportunities in physical health, mental health and wellbeing.
Wilson selected as next ONS president
Clinical Assistant Professor Ryne Wilson, DNP, RN, OCN, CNE, began serving as the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) president. ONS, a professional association with more than 35,000 members that represents 100,000 nurses, is committed to promoting excellence in oncology nursing and the transformation of cancer care.
White Delaney co-chairs AACN Emerging Technologies in Nursing Task Force
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing announced Dean Connie White Delaney, PhD, RN, FAAN, FACMI, FNAP, was named co-chair of its Emerging Technologies in Nursing Task Force. The task force will develop a national strategy to guide AACN’s approach to emerging technologies across academic nursing.
Faculty contribute to Native maternal health policy briefs
Professor Margaret Moss, PhD, JD, RN, FAAN, FADLN, an enrolled member of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation with DakhĂłta lineage, and Clinical Professor Misty Wilkie, PhD, RN, FAAN, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa/MĂ©tis, were among the 55 American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian maternal health experts who created a landmark set of five reports outlining the current state of Native maternal health.
Densford Center event discusses updated Code of Ethics
The Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership hosted the Celebration of the Nursing Code of Ethics in October, with a discussion of the newly updated American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics for Nurses and how it shapes nursing today.
Nursing Knowledge: Big Data Science Conference focuses on practice-ready AI
Nurse leaders, data scientists and informaticists from across the country gathered in Minneapolis in June for the 2026 Nursing Knowledge: Big Data Science Conference to discuss the implementation, governance and impact of artificial intelligence. Leyla Warsame, MD, associate chief medical information officer at M Health Fairview, delivered the keynote Making AI Governance Work: Operational Lessons from a Health System.
Gender-based violence in Bolivia focus of UN Women webinar
The Katharine J. Densford Center for International Nursing Leadership hosted a parallel event in March during the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70) Forum about Gender-Based Violence, Femicide, and Criminalization in Bolivia. Associate Professor Sarah Hoffman, PhD, MPH, RN, served as a panelist with community partners from Etta Projects.
Acclaimed author Kao Kalia Yang inspires at Summer Institute in Adolescent Health
Kao Kalia Yang, the author of The Latehomecomer and other biographical books about her family’s experience as Hmong refugees, discussed how youth flourish when they are affirmed in their identities at the Center for Adolescent Nursing’s Summer Institute in July.
CNEE hosts Minnesota Nursing Workforce Forum
The Center for Nursing Equity and Excellence hosted its annual Nursing Workforce Summit in October at Anoka-Ramsey Community College. The summit convened more than 80 of Minnesota’s nursing leaders, educators, policymakers, and community partners to create a strategic action plan to enhance and maintain a robust nursing workforce in Minnesota.
Nurses encouraged to be coalition builders at Planetary Health Guest Lecture
AnnMarie Walton, associate professor at Duke University School of Nursing, delivered the keynote The Cancer-Climate Connection: Environmental Drivers of Cancer in the Climate Era at the seventh annual Planetary Health Guest Lecture in February.
Planting Seeds of Innovation Conference equips leaders to navigate complex change
Whitney Line, DNP, RN, PHN, delivered the keynote The Alignment Advantage: Leadership and Innovation in Complex Systems at the 2026 Planting Seeds of Innovation Conference at the Fairview Community Health and Wellness Hub in April. The conference is designed to equip healthcare and nursing leaders to navigate complex systems change and drive innovation in healthcare.