ALSN (formerly known as CGEAN) was established in 1970 as the Council on Graduate Education for Administration in Nursing as a formal organization dedicated to collegial relationships and intellectual exchange among nurse educators whose focus was nursing administration at the graduate level.  ALSN has now evolved to an organization with over 200 members and an expanded focus on nursing administration and leadership education and research at both the graduate and undergraduate level. To reflect this expanded scope, ALSN is no longer referred to as the Council on Graduate Education for Administration in Nursing, but the "Association for Leadership Science in Nursing."

Today, ALSN claims a wide span of influence on nursing leadership and administration research and educational standards through its many ongoing activities:

•    Membership from both academic and practice settings

•    Affiliate with the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL)

•    Sponsorship of the biennial International Nursing Administration Research Conference (INARC)

•    Regular columns in the Journal of Nursing Administration

•    Annual research awards that support work to enrich and inform nursing leadership practice and education

•    Position statements on educational standards for nursing administration and leadership