2026 South Dakota Center for Nursing Workforce Symposium

Please join us at the 2026 South Dakota Center for Nursing Workforce Symposium! The registration deadline is April 10. The registration fee is $50. Lunch will be provided. Contact Hour-based accreditation is pending.

The Center for Nursing Workforce, the South Dakota Nurses Association, and Nursing Education Deans & Directors are pleased to be co-hosting this year’s symposium.

You will have the opportunity to network with colleagues, learn about South Dakota’s current nursing workforce supply and education pipeline to meet the state’s future workforce needs, and gain insights. Your double-keynote speaker will be Kathryn Shaffer, RN, EdD, MSN, CNE. 

Dr. Shaffer serves as the Director of Innovation at Thomas Jefferson University, College of Nursing, where she leads initiatives that integrate creativity, trauma-informed pedagogy, and belonging into nursing education and practice. With over 30 years in nursing and 20 years as an educator, Kathryn is a nationally recognized voice on reimagining how nurses heal, lead, and innovate. She is also the Co-Founder of Fifth Window, a wellness platform by nurses for nurses supporting their well-being by nursing your joy and reconnection through live and virtual experiences. Her work bridges science and story, inviting nurses to reconnect with the heart of their profession.

Joining Kathryn in presenting for the event are speakers Lindsay Olson, MS, RN, CNP, Program Director, SDCNW; Bryan Wermers, MSN, RN, CNP, Associate Director of Education, SDBON.

Joining the presenters are moderator Deb Fischer Clemens, RN, SDNA President and former S.D. legislator; and esteemed panelists Sydney Davis, CRNA, S.D. State Senator; Taylor Rehfeldt, CRNA, S.D. State Representative; Melissa Magstadt, CNP, S.D. Secretary of Health; and Jean Hunhoff, RN, Former S.D. Senator & Representative

Contact SDNA Executive Director Eric Ollila for event or venue questions, or if you need to submit registration via mail or payment via check: email at contactus@sdnurses.org or call at (605) 271-7708.