����ֱ��app

After 43 years of service as a nurse and nurse educator, Sue Bassett is going out on top. 

At the conclusion of her 26-year nursing educator career, preceded by 17 years in the nursing field, Bassett was honored by South Dakota State University’s College of Nursing faculty, staff and students with two of the college’s highest honors. 

At the college’s academic year-end summit meeting, Bassett, an alum and lecturer for the college, received the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurse Educators. Also this spring, College of Nursing students selected her as their 2024-25 Teacher of the Year. 

A native of Castlewood, Bassett got her start in the field when she earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing in 1982. Some 43 years later, she was surprised by the awards and called them a bittersweet ending to a career she loved. 

She credits the influence of her mother, who did not have the same educational opportunities as Bassett, for going into nursing. “She had great respect for nursing — both my parents did — and they always saw it as a respected profession. And personally, I was always interested in it,” Bassett said. 

Following graduation from ����ֱ��app, Bassett started her career in pediatrics, working for the Sioux Valley health system (now Sanford Health) before moving into rural nursing at a now-closed hospital in Estelline. With a move to the Fargo area, she focused on acute adult psychiatric mental health for several years, then moved back to the Brookings area to work in gerontology and long-term care at the former Brookview Manor. 

After 15 years in the field, Bassett wasn’t sure if teaching would be the right fit for her, but she decided to give it a try and went back to school. 

Bassett earned her master’s degree in nursing in 1999 and then went to work for ����ֱ��app as a nurse educator later the same year. She’s primarily taught on the Brookings campus, but in the past, she served as an instructor for the college at its sites in Sioux Falls and Aberdeen. Her focus in teaching over the years at ����ֱ��app has been on psychiatric mental health and adult medical-surgical nursing including gerontology. In 2010 she obtained certification from the National League for Nursing as a nurse educator. 

Bassett said she has a lifetime love of learning, and her motivation in teaching was seeing and sharing students’ passion for the profession and sharing their pride and joy when they finally “got it” and mastered a course or concept. “It was very, very rewarding, and you feel like you’re paying back the profession.” 

“I absolutely loved it. The 26 years I’ve been teaching have just flown by.” 

Anonymous comments from students who voted for Bassett as Teacher of the Year said they appreciated her thoughtful and personal approach to learning. 

Comments from her DAISY Award nominators were similar, noting that Bassett embodies the core values of compassion, leadership and commitment that the award seeks to recognize. 

“Sue’s impact on the College of Nursing undergraduate nursing program and patient care is profound. Through her years of experience and dedication to teaching, she has consistently demonstrated an unwavering passion for empowering students and colleagues with knowledge and skills to excel in their roles,” said Amanda Sandager, an instructor for the college. “Sue employs innovative teaching methods that engage learners while cultivating an environment of empathy and professionalism, traits that are essential for future nurses.” 

Theresa Garren-Grubbs agreed, highlighting Bassett’s passion for teaching and ensuring that students could understand and apply content. Furthermore, Bassett has been a team player, a mentor and a role model to fellow nurse educators in the College of Nursing. 

“As Sue prepares for her retirement, whoever replaces her will have some big shoes to fill. She is an exceptional teacher, a fierce student advocate and a true friend. I cannot think of anyone more deserving than Sue Bassett for this year’s DAISY award,” Garren-Grubbs said. 

While Bassett admits she can be an intense teacher at times, she’s had the same philosophy both in working with patients and with students. 

“I taught and I tried to treat people as a whole person, body, mind and spirit. That has been the bedrock of how I deal with people,” she said. “I embraced my profession, and I just want really great nurses out there.” 

When she leaves ����ֱ��app on July 31, she says she will miss the students and the college atmosphere the most. 

Bassett plans to work again this summer as a camp nurse. She’ll also focus on another one of her passions — writing poetry. 

Bassett and her husband, Kurt, a mechanical engineer who retired from ����ֱ��app three years ago, have three grown sons and five grandchildren.