The AACN/AONL Academic–Practice Partnership Playbook
The Academic-Practice Partnership Case Model Repository
March, 2026
The Academic-Practice Partnership Case Model Repository features member-submitted examples of academic–practice partnership models aligned to the AACN/AONL Academic-Practice Partnership Playbook. These case models are peer reviewed by members of the AACN/AONL Academic-Practice Advisory Committee and highlight real-world approaches to advancing nursing education, workforce development, and care delivery.
Help Expand the Repository of Academic–Practice Partnership Models
Does your academic-practice partnership align with the AACN/AONL Academic-Practice Partnership Playbook? AACN and AONL are seeking additional resources for the Case Model Repository.
Submit your partnership model for consideration. Submit a case model.
The AACN/AONL Academic–Practice Partnership Playbook: From Shared Vision to Action
November, 2025
AONL has partnered with American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to announce the release of a new playbook to guide academic and practice leaders as they develop successful, sustainable partnerships. The AACN/AONL Academic-Practice Partnership Playbook: From Shared Vision to Action was developed by the joint AACN/AONL Academic-Practice Advisory Committee and combines practical strategies with exemplars, financial models, and more. The Playbook will be available online on November 24, 2025.
Additionally, AACN and AONL hosted a webinar to showcase the Playbook, highlight early implementation successes, and preview the committee’s exciting next steps.
Developing Confident, Practice-Ready Nurses: Data-Driven Insights for Academic and Health System Leaders
New graduate nurses are arriving at the bedside ready to practice—but emerging data reveals important opportunities to better support their transition into professional environments. The Nursing Catalyst’s 2025 New Graduate Nurse benchmarking study, which surveyed more than 2,300 new graduate nurses, uncovered a new, consistent pattern: nurses begin their first year with evolving needs in emotional readiness, professional identity formation and preparation for the technologies reshaping care delivery. The result is a workforce that meets clinical expectations on paper while needing support to build confidence. Oftentimes it’s confidence, not competency, that is a key predictor of nurse retention.
This AACN and AONL joint webinar, in collaboration with The Health Management Academy, examines findings from the study, which reveals what it takes to develop and sustain confidence across year one. Academic and health system leaders will explore how curriculum, clinical experience and transition-to-practice design can work together to better support early-career nurses, including how intentional alignment can improve outcomes for both nurses and the systems they serve.