Resume
Professional Experience
2025 - Present
Advocate Health
Enterprise Executive Leader/VP, Nursing Education and Professional Development
Provides strategic and executive leadership for the enterprise-wide Nursing Education and Professional Development department, supporting nearly 70 hospitals across six states (AL, GA, IL, NC, SC, WI) and over 40,000 nurses. Oversees nursing administration functions, including strategic planning, budgeting ($32 million), policy development, and personnel management of over 150 FTEs across multiple teams. Leads key domains including transition-to-practice programming, academic partnerships, role development, clinical advancement, life support education, continuing professional development, clinical education and competency, and technology integration.
2019 - 2025
Advocate Health
Enterprise Director, Nursing Education and Professional Development
Leads the development and implementation of key enterprise programs across the enterprise, driving nursing excellence through strategic initiatives in key areas, including academic partnerships, accreditation efforts, competency management, transition to practice programming, scholarly inquiry, and more. Manages an interprofessional team of NPD managers, program managers, and associates, advancing nursing development and fostering collaborative relationships across departments.
2017 - 2019
Advocate Lutheran General Hospital
Director, Nursing Practice, Professional Development, and Magnet
Provided organizational oversight for nursing practice, education, professional development, nursing research, and Magnet re-designation for a 645-bed hospital. Managed a team of advanced practice registered nurses (APRN) and NPDs that worked collaboratively to achieve nursing outcomes.
2015 - 2017
Presence Health
Regional Director, Interprofessional Practice, Nursing Education, and Staffing Services
Led interprofessional practice, education, and programs to promote and strengthen care delivery for Presence Health South Chicagoland Region, including Presence St. Joseph Medical Center (500-bed hospital), Presence St. Mary’s Hospital (182-bed hospital), intermediate centers, and over 20 outpatient clinics. Responsible for multiple clinical facing departments, including nursing education, nursing and support staff regional float pool (150 FTE), nursing supervision, staffing coordination, vascular access, wound care, nursing research, and Magnet designation.
2014 - 2015
Presence Health
Patient Care Manager, Medical-Surgical and Acute Care for Elders (ACE) Units
Led clinical operations for two 30-bed inpatient units, including a medical-surgical unit and Acute Care for Elders (ACE) unit, one of the first in the state of Illinois. Directed personnel management, staffing coordination, quality improvement, patient experience, regulatory compliance, budget management, and interdisciplinary partnerships to promote patient outcomes and efficient care delivery.
Skills and Competencies
Enterprise Leadership and Systems-Thinking: Led large-scale, enterprise-wide nursing initiatives across diverse healthcare settings, including multiple integration efforts after health system mergers.
Clinical Operations: Progressive leadership of multiple departments across hospitals sites, including administrator-on-call responsibilities, operational escalation management, personnel oversight, regulatory readiness, and executive support to drive safe, efficient, and high-quality patient care.
Academic Collaboration: Faculty Member, Wake Forest University (2025–Present). Serves as a strategic liaison to academic presidents, deans, and program directors across the country, driving partnerships that strengthen student preparation and workforce readiness.
Strategic Mindset: Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams to achieve impactful outcomes by optimizing resources, streamlining processes, and strategically reallocating FTEs and resources to areas with the greatest need for efficiency and growth.
Nursing Practice and Quality Improvement: Led multiple quality improvement initiatives, including nursing-sensitive indicator advancements and evidence-based practice integration, such as serving as leader sponsor over key efforts including CAUTI, CLABSI, Falls, HAPI, sepsis, and restraints.
Program Management: Spearheaded the development and successful execution of programs across micro, meso, and macro levels, driving initiatives in both clinical and non-clinical settings, and fostering collaboration between nursing and interprofessional teams.
Interprofessional Collaboration: Fostered collaborative relationships with nurses, physicians, pharmacists, social workers and other healthcare professionals to provide continuing education activities. Collaborated to support the transition of IPCE delivery using an electronic platform.
Education and Training: Responsible for education design and delivery at all levels throughout NPD leader tenure, including site, multi-site, state, region, and enterprise for orientation, onboarding, transition to practice, professional development, role development, and clinical practice.
Grant Funding and Nursing Research: Secured multiple grants to advance age-friendly initiatives, dementia care, and transition to practice support ($5,000 - $750,000). Contributed to multiple peer-reviewed publications and national presentations on a variety of topics, including nursing education, nurse engagement, interprofessional collaboration, transition to practice, and clinical practice.
Community Engagement and Service Learning: Coordinated volunteer opportunities for clinical nurses, connecting them with local food banks, health fairs, women's shelters, and high schools. Partnered with local high schools and non profits to implement "Pop-Up" approach for health promotion teaching.
Accreditation and Regulatory Compliance: Extensive experience managing accreditation processes for nursing programs, including securing accreditation and re-accreditation status for large-scale residency programs and aligning education efforts with national standards. Directed Magnet journey for two separate organizations, resulting in exemplar findings. Serve as an accreditation appraiser for national and worldwide programs.
Professional Leadership and Recognition: Active member and leader in the Association for Nursing Professional Development (ANPD), recognized with multiple awards including the Belinda E. Puetz Exemplary NPD Leadership Award, ANPD Champion for Scientific Inquiry Award, 40 Under 40 Nurse Leader honoree, and Nurse Leader of the Year.
Education
2020 - 2023
Doctoral Degree
Indiana University
PhD in Nursing Science
Minor: Executive Leadership (Healthcare) and Health Communications
2013 - 2015
Master's Degree
Loyola University Chicago
Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)
Track: Adult Gerontological Clinical Nurse Specialist
Bachelor's Degree
University St. Francis
Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)