Elaine Marieb College of Nursing Deans, Program Directors, and Faculty, 2023–2024

*Indicates Graduate Faculty Status 

Deans  

Allison Vorderstrasse, Dean (Professor) : BSN, Mount Saint Mary College, 1996; MSN (Adult Nurse Practitioner-Diabetes Specialty Concentration) Yale University School of Nursing 2002; DNSc (Chronic Illness Self-Management) Yale University School of Nursing, 2006; Certificate, NIH/NINR Summer Genetics Institute, 2011. Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.

Mary Ellen Burke, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs; Clinical Associate Professor) - BSN., Rutgers, 1988; Frontier College of Midwifery and Family Nursing Community-Based Nurse-Midwifery Education Program, KY; MSN, Frances Payne Bolton College of Nursing, Case Western Reserve, 2000; Post Master’s Certificate in Nursing Education, Graduate School of Nursing University of Massachusetts Worcester, 2012; DNP, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2018. 

Michael J. Lepore*, Associate Dean for Research; BA, Philosophy & Psychology, Assumption University, Worcester, MA 1998; MA, Sociology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, 2005; Graduate Certificate, Gerontology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, 2005; PhD, Sociology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 2008; Postdoctoral training, Health Services Research, Brown University, Providence, RI, 2010.

Undergraduate Program Directors  

Celeste Surreira*, Undergraduate Program Director; Clinical Assistant Professor, Diploma in Nursing, Baystate Medical Center School of Nursing, Springfield, MA, 5/1985; Bachelor of Science in Nursing, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 5/1996; Master of Science in Nursing and Clinical Nurse Leader, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 5/2011; DNP/FNP, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 5/2014.

Simulation Director

Gina Grabowski, Simulation Director (Amherst/Springfield) Lecturer; BS in Nursing, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2001; MS in Nursing, Sacred Heart University, 2018.

Graduate Program Directors

Gabrielle Abelard*, Director Master’s program. Associate Professor, BS, University of Massachusetts Amherst Nursing, 1997; MS in Mental Health Nursing, Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist, 2001; Post Master's Certificate, Nursing, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, 2013; DNP (Integrative Health), Regis College, Weston MA, 2014.

Karen Kalmakis*, Director DNP/CNL Programs, Associate Professor: RN. N.E., Baptist College, 1976; BSN., Elms, 1986; MSN., University of Massachusetts Amherst, 1993; PhD, Nursing, 2008

Rae Walker*, Director PhD Program, Associate Professor: BS Nursing 2007, PhD in Nursing 2013, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing

Full-Time Faculty, Elaine Marieb College of Nursing

Pamela Aselton*, Clinical Associate Professor, BSN., Southern Connecticut University; MPH, University of Massachusetts Amherst; MSN; Ph.D.; Certified Family Nurse Practitioner.

Ann Becker*, Clinical Associate Professor, BS in Nursing, Simmons College, 1984; DNP, Public Health Nurse Leader, 2017

Terrie Black*, Clinical Associate Professor, BSN, Pennsylvania State, 1988; MBA., Western New England, 1996; DNP, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2015. Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.

Carrie-Ellen Briere*, Assistant Professor, BS, University of Connecticut, 2009; MS, University of Connecticut, 2013, Ph.D., University of Connecticut, 2014.

Lucinda Canty*, Assistant Professor, Associate of Liberal Arts, Hartford College for Women, CT1989; BSN, Columbia University, NY, 1991; MSN Yale University, CT, PhD (Nursing), University of Connecticut, CT 2020.

Jeungok Choi*, Associate Professor, BSN, Seoul National University, Korea, 1983; MSN, 1987; MPH, Tufts, 1999; PhD, Boston College, 2001.

Joohyun Chung*, Assistant Professor, BS, Korea University, Seoul Korea, 1999; PhD Nursing Informatics, University of Utah, 2013; MS Statistics in Biostatistics, University of Utah, 2013.

Tracey Cobb, Clinical Instructor, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Samuel Merritt College & College of California, 12/1998, Master of Science in Nursing, Elms College, Chicopee, MA, 12/2013, PhD Candidate, University of Connecticut.

Christopher Diaz, Clinical Assistant Professor, BS in Nursing, Quinnipiac University, Hamden, CT, DNP (Family Nursing Practice), University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2023.

Jessica Dillard-Wright*, Assistant Professor, BS in Science, Technology, and Culture, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004; MA, Women's History, Sarah Lawrence College, 2006; MSN (CNL), Medical College of Georgia, 2009, MSN (Community-based Nurse-Midwifery), Frontier Nursing University, 2015; PhD in Nursing, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, 2020

Kimberly Dion*, Clinical Associate Professor, AS (Nursing), Holyoke Community, 1996; BS, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2001; MSN, University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT, 2006; PhD, University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Nursing, 2015; Fellow in International Academy of Addictions, Nursing, 2023.

Lindsay Dubois, Clinical Instructor, ADN, Springfield Community College, 2009; Bachelor of Science Nursing, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2011; MSN, American International College, 2015.

Lisa Duffy*, Associate Professor for EMCON/IALS, BSN Fairfield University, Fairfield, CT, 1996; MSN Boston College, Boston, MA, 2002; PhD Boston College, Boston MA, 2013; MPH Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, 2015.

Brenda Fionte, Clinical Instructor, BS (Nursing) University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2015; MS (Nursing Education) Grand Canyon University, 2018.

Constance Flynn*, Clinical Assistant Professor, BS 1982/MS University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA, 1987; DNP University of Massachusetts Lowell, MA. 2018

Karen Giuliano*, Associate Professor, BS in Nursing, Boston College, 1983; MSN, University of Rhode Island, 1989; PhD Nursing, Boston College, 2005. MBA, Global Management, Babson College, 2009. Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.

Gina Grabowski, Lecturer/ Simulation Lab Director, BS in Nursing, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2001; MS in Nursing, Sacred Heart University, 2018.

Katharine Green*, Clinical Associate Professor, BSN, University of Pennsylvania, 1982; MS, University of Minnesota, 1991; PhD, University of Massachusetts Amherst 2018.

Heidi Haghighi, Lecturer/ Simulation Lab Tutors, BA, Smith College, 2000, BS in Nursing (Accelerated), University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2001, MS in Nursing, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT, 2018.

MaryAnn Hogan*, Clinical Assistant Professor, BS, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 1976; MS, Anna Maria, 1985; PhD, University of Massachusetts Amherst 2022.

Favorite Iradukunda*, Assistant Professor, Diploma (Nursing and Midwifery), Ecole des Sciences Infirmières Sainte Elisabeth, Kabgayi, Rwanda 2007; BS (Nursing) University of Rwanda, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Kigali, Rwanda, 2012; MS (Nursing) University of Cape Town Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Department of Nursing and Midwifery, Cape Town, South Africa, 2016; PhD (Nursing) University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2020.

Raeann LeBlanc*, Clinical Associate Professor, BA, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 1989; MSN, Southern Maine, 1996; DNP, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2012; PhD (Nursing) 2018.

Maud Low, Clinical Assistant Professor, BSN, Simmons, 1983; MS, Boston College, 1987, PhD (Nursing) University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2021.

Lori Anne Lyne*, Lecturer, BS., University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Nursing, 1993; MSN, University of Massachusetts Worcester; DNP, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2018.

Julia McDougal Ronconi*, Clinical Instructor, BA (Biological Sciences) University of Colorado, Boulder (1992); BS (Nursing) University of Utah, Salt Lake City 1996; MS (Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing) University of Utah, Salt Lake City 2004; DNP, University of Massachusetts, Boston, 2021.

Yeonsik Noh*, Assistant Professor with a joint appointment in the College of Nursing and the Electrical Computer Engineering Department, BS (Biomedical Engineering), Yonsei University, South Korea, 2006; MS (Biomedical Engineering) Yonsei University, South Korea, 2008; PhD (Biomedical Engineering) Yonsei University, South Korea, 2013.

Hyeyoung Park*, Assistant Professor, BS Seoul National University College of Nursing, 2009; MS in Nursing, Seoul National University College of Nursing, 2013; PhD, Duke University School of Nursing, 2019.

Sheila Pennell, Clinical Assistant Professor, BS (Nursing), 2008, MS in Nursing, 2017, PhD, 2017, University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Kristy Pereira, Clinical Assistant Professor, BS (Nursing), College of Our Lady of the Elms, 2002; MS (Nursing), American International College, 2012; PhD, Elaine Marieb College of Nursing, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2023.

Kalpana Poudel-Tandukar*, Associate Professor with tenure, CGM, Certificate in General Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Nepal, 1992; MPH 2001; BPH, 1997; MPHC, 2007, Flinders, Australia; PhD, Tokyo, Japan, 2007.

Memnun Seven*, Assistant Professor, BSN, Gülhane Military Medical Academy, School of Nursing, Ankara, Turkey, 2003; MSN, Gülhane Military Medical Academy, Health Science Institute, Ankara, Turkey, 2008; PhD, Gülhane Military Medical Academy, School of Nursing, Ankara, Turkey; 2012; Postdoctoral Fellowship: University of Iowa, College of Nursing Iowa City, IA, USA (Genetics), 2015.

Leonora Thomas, Clinical Instructor, Placement Coordinator, BS, Boston College School of Nursing, 1985; MS, Boston College, 1990; Post-Masters Program, Rush University College of Nursing, Chicago, IL, 1996.

Lisa Wolf*, Associate Professor, BA, Anthropology/English, Amherst College, MA, 1988; MFA, Creative Writing and Literature, Emerson College, MA, 1990; Diploma – Nursing, St. Elizabeth’s Hospital School of Nursing, MA, 1996; MS, Nursing/Nursing Education, Molloy College, NY 2006; PhD, Nursing, Boston College, MA 2011.

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