Academy Spokesperson

Linda D. Scott, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FNAP, FAAN
President (October 2023 – October 2025)
Dean & Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing
Dr. Linda Scott is the dean of the University of Wisconsin—Madison School of Nursing. She was appointed the eighth dean of the School in July 2016 where she provides direction and leadership in educating nurses for the future of care, strengthening the school’s research enterprise, and forging partnerships to improve health outcomes. As a leading scholar in sleep and health services research, her research on workforce issues has influenced the direction of health policy formation as the nation struggles to provide patient-centered, quality health care amidst a significant nursing workforce shortage. Dr. Scott has also led diversity efforts across academic degrees and curricula such as the implementation of holistic admissions review; a strategy to enhance the diversity of the nursing workforce and improve patient outcomes by having a nursing profession that mirrors the populations in which it serves.
Dr. Scott assumed the role of President of the American Academy of Nursing in October 2023. In addition, she is a Fellow of the National Academies of Practice and a member of Sigma Theta Tau honor society for nursing. Through December 2022, Dr. Scott serves as an associate editor for Nursing Outlook, the official journal of the American Academy of Nursing. In June 2022, she accepted a nomination to become a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Board of Health Care Services.
Dr. Scott earned her PhD in nursing from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, her master’s degree from Grand Valley State in Allendale, Michigan, and her undergraduate degree from Michigan State University in East Lansing.
Guidelines for media and press attending Academy conferences or events:
- The Academy holds the right to approve or deny requests from media and press to attend the organization’s conferences or events.
- All speakers for the Academy’s conferences or events will be provided a speaker agreement form that identifies if the individual agrees to allow press at their session.
- If all speakers agree to allowing press, according to industry standards, on a case-by-case basis, the Academy will in some cases grant complimentary registration to credentialed journalists (i.e., professional reporters, editors, writers, news photographers, producers and online editors) who work for a publication, news service, broadcast outlet, or news site that is regularly issued and published primary for the dissemination of news, and operates independently from any commercial, political, government or special interest. The Academy reserves the right to use its discretion in granting such requests.
- Speakers will be informed if press attend the event.
- At in-person events, press will be provided a specific badge.
- For virtual events, when there is audience participation, it will be announced at the top of the event that press is in attendance.