Jackrabbits explore health policy at national summit

Three Jackrabbits attended meetings of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing in Washington, D.C., last February, gaining valuable insight into how healthcare and government intersect.

Amy Newstrom attended as a student. She is a clinical assistant professor in SDSU’s College of Nursing at the Rapid City site and is pursuing a Ph.D. in nursing from the university.

She said she was blown away by how invaluable the experience was for her.

Empowering nurse advocates

Newstrom attended the AACN Student Health Policy Summit with Sydney Gazzaniga, who graduated from SDSU with a bachelor’s in nursing in summer 2026, while SDSU College of Nursing Dean Mary Anne Krogh attended the AACN Deans’ Annual Meeting.  

The first day of the Student Summit featured presentations on topics at the intersection of public policy and the nursing profession. On the second day, attendees put what they learned in action.

On the final day, deans joined up with their students to meet with state congressional delegations on Capitol Hill. 

"Advocating for nursing and healthcare is such an impactful experience. Getting to do that with students for the first time was priceless,” Krogh said.

Attendees met with members of their state’s policymakers’ office — for South Dakota, that was representatives of Sens. Mike Rounds and John Thune and Rep. Dusty Johnson. 

Newstrom said the South Dakota staffers she met were enthusiastic about what the nurses had to say. Together, they discussed why funding nursing student aid, nursing organizations and nursing research was so important.

“Nursing is something that will touch and is touching every single American’s life. We all need nursing care at some point,” Newstrom said.

As the country deals with a nursing shortage, she said policymakers should focus on taking care of current nurses and supporting future ones, including those seeking advanced nursing degrees.

“Healthcare and policy are completely intertwined,” Newstrom said. “Everywhere you look, they intersect. And who better to discuss healthcare needs than nurses?"

Using your voice

One of the speakers at the summit was Alan Wheat, a former Missouri congressman. 

“He talked about how he had received letters from his constituents, and how those letters actually impacted how he advocated for policy,” she said.

That theme was present during Wheat’s talk, but also during Newstrom’s meetings with South Dakota’s representatives. She said that many of South Dakota’s lawmakers are easy to contact and are ready to listen.

“That’s what I heard throughout the whole conference is, ‘Hey, we're interested. We want to hear what your thoughts are, and we want you engaged in this process,’” Newstrom said.

Easy application

Newstrom found the entire experience valuable as a nurse educator and as a Ph.D. student.

“I can’t believe that you would submit one page of paper and could get this amazing experience,” she said.

A short essay is all it took for her to apply. At the time, Newstrom said she was thinking, “Why not?” Now, she’s encouraging her students to apply for the next student health policy summit.

“I hope any student who reads this will really consider it because it was invaluable,” she said.