Susan Bakewell-Sachs Appointed New Chair of AACN Board

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing has announced the appointment of Susan Bakewell-Sachs, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean and vice president for nursing affairs at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) School of Nursing as Chair of the AACN Board of Directors.

During her two-year tenure as Board Chair, Dr. Bakewell-Sachs says she plans to “support coalition building and AACN’s leadership around addressing faculty and workforce needs, building inclusive learning environments, and accelerating the move to competency-based education to improve practice, research, and education.”

Known nationally both as a scholar and as a clinical expert in the care of premature infants, Dr. Bakewell-Sachs has previously taken the lead in a number of key positions in faculty and advocacy. Among her previous roles, she has served as director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s (RWJF) New Jersey Nursing Initiative, chair of the New Jersey Association of Baccalaureate and Higher Degree Programs, member of the March of Dimes National Nursing Advisory Council, and on the steering committee of the Oregon Action Coalition. Dr. Bakewell-Sachs was an RWJF Executive Nurse Fellow, Cohort 2007, where her leadership development project focused on strategic effectiveness and nursing education.

Upon her appointment by the AACN, she stated, “As Board Chair, I look forward to working collaboratively to continue AACN’s lead role in academic nursing during this extraordinary time and to supporting nurse leaders across the country. AACN will remain a catalyst for excellence and innovation in nursing education, research, and practice,” said Dr. Bakewell-Sachs. “I am fully committed to working with my fellow Board members to advocate for quality nursing education and research while amplifying the impact AACN has on improving the nation’s health and health care.”

For further details on the 2020 AACN Board of Directors and Nominating Committee, visit the AACN website.

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Koren Thomas

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Koren Thomas (pictured with Assistant) was the associate editor of DailyNurse from late 2019 through July, 2022—and she was not joking about the "issue postage stamps saluting US nurses" idea. Send your article ideas, submissions, Nurse of the Week suggestions, comments, and corrections to the current Editor in Chief at [email protected].