Nursing Workforce Symposium

The Center for Nursing Workforce Symposium offers nurses, policy makers, business leaders, and other interested stakeholders an opportunity to come together to review and comment on nursing workforce data, to make recommendations for strategic action, and to evaluate the effectiveness of actions implemented. The Center was pleased to co-host the 2026 Symposium with the South Dakota Nurses Association and the South Dakota Nursing Education Deans & Directors. 

Over 100 individuals attended the 2026 Symposium. Program content included South Dakota’s current nursing workforce supply, education pipeline, recent legislative initiatives, and keynote presentation by Dr. Kathryn Shaffer, Director of Innovation in the College of Nursing at Thomas Jefferson University. Shaffer shared information on reclaiming joy and transformational belonging within nursing leadership.