Nursing and Health Faculty & Staff

Roxanne Roth

Dr. Roxanne Roth is an Assistant Professor in the College of Nursing and Health. Dr. Roth joined Madonna’s full time faculty in 2016. She completed her DNP work at Madonna University in 2016 with a focus on communicating with comfort among advance practice nurses.

Prior to joining the Madonna University nursing faculty, she held leadership and clinical positions in the field of hospice and palliative care, outpatient services and oncology. Her recent experience includes system design and implementation of education, research and innovation strategies. Her research and practice interests include advanced illness management, communication skills at end of life, population health, global health, and nursing education.

Bess Bertolis

Beth Bertolis has been a Clinical Instructor at Madonna University, School of Nursing for 3 years.  She is a University of Michigan alumni from 2001.  She obtained her Master Degree from Wayne  State University in 2005, with her Pediatric Nurse Practitioner certification.

She has over 20 years experience working with the Pediatric population with pediatric surgery, pediatric anesthesia, and leadership roles teaching in the clinical setting.

Denise Brothers

Diane M. Burgermeister

Dr. Diane Burgermeister has been a faculty member since 2005. She is an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse who specializes in psychiatric mental health nursing. She is also certified as an adult psychoanalyst. She received her doctoral degree in 2003 from Wayne State University and in 2005 completed post-doctoral studies at the University of Michigan in Health Promotion, Risk Reduction.

She was awarded a National Institute of Nursing Research grant to pursue these studies which resulted in a paper widely read worldwide titled, "Childhood Adversity: A Review of Measurement Instruments", and was published by the Journal of Nursing Measurement.

In 2009 she was a member of the task force that helped to develop the Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.) at Madonna University and helped write the grant that resulted in an award titled, "Impacting Health Disparities by Developing Consortium Model for D.N.P. Programs in Partnership with Health Systems", funded by the Health Resources Service Administration.

Dr. Burgermeister teaches courses in mental health and research methods on the undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral levels in the College of Nursing and Health. She enjoys collaborating with students and faculty on research projects and has been active on many University and Department committees.

Clarisse Carter

Janice Cecil

Janice Cecil is a full-time faculty member in the College of Nursing and Health. She joined the faculty in 2014. Janice is the course facilitator for Health Assessment and Health Promotion. She also team teaches in Holistic Care of Women and Families. Janice maintains clinical practice as a Clinical Nurse Specialist.

Her clinical interests include quality and safety. Jan’s teaching interests include active teaching strategies such as simulation as well as mentoring students to ensure their progression through the undergraduate nursing program.

Angela Dobbie

Jaclyn Fontaine

Jaclyn Fontaine is a full-time faculty member in the College of Nursing and Health. She joined the faculty in 2013. Jaclyn is the course facilitator for the Introduction to Professional Nursing course and Holistic Care of Women and Families nursing course. She also teaches clinical and facilitates Academic Service-Learning in the surrounding community. Jaclyn also serves as an undergraduate coordinator.  

Jaclyn's interests include striving for active and effective classroom and clinical strategies for nursing students. She is also passionate about Academic Service-Learning, where nursing students engage in service with community partners. Jaclyn earned a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) certificate from the National League for Nursing, which exemplifies excellence in nursing education. 

Diane Gale

Diane Gale began her nursing career as a diploma nurse, where she witnessed a historic and interesting milestone at her school of nursing — the graduation of its first male student nurse. Throughout her career, Diane has accumulated extensive experience across various acute care settings, including the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Operating Room (OR), Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU), and medical-surgical floors.

Her professional journey includes working for a general surgeon in Plymouth and later transitioning to a local hospital, where she served in multiple departments. Diane’s roles spanned the surgical floor, Short Stay Unit, and Community Outreach, where she collaborated with local communities to deliver health education classes. Her diverse background also includes experience in assisted living, home care, and hospice. Among her many roles, Diane found the greatest fulfillment in post-operative care and community health settings.

Diane earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Detroit Mercy and subsequently completed a master’s-level certificate in Nurse Health Education at Madonna University. Following this achievement, she was invited to join Madonna’s faculty, teaching in the nursing skills lab while also serving in a local hospital’s education department, where she facilitated nurse competencies and orientation programs.

She went on to complete a Master of Science in Nursing Education from Capella University and currently teaches theory and skills lab in the undergraduate traditional nursing program. Diane considers her most rewarding professional experience to be her work in nursing education, guiding and mentoring the next generation of nurses!

Rebecca Gibbs

Chelsea Girolamo

Chelsea is a full time faculty member of the College of Nursing and Health. She currently works in the Emergency Department and has a wide range of clinical experience in pediatrics and emergency nursing.

She is certified Pediatric Nurse and a Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse.

Angela Gogolowski

Angela is a full time faculty member in the College of Nursing and Health. She joined the faculty in 2019. Prior to that she functioned as the Simulation Lab Coordinator and Facilitator. Angela works as a nurse in Labor and Delivery as well.

Teaching interests include incorporating active teaching strategies such as simulation, and the use of simulation to improve student learning/clinical practice. Research interests include the use of simulation in education, health disparities, and psychosocial determinates of health.

Angela is a member of The Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses professional organization, and the American Nurses Association. She also serves as a board member of the Kappa Iota chapter of Sigma Theta Tau.

Vickie Gordon

Adlah Hamlan

Dr. Adlah Hamlan is an Associate Professor of Nursing at Madonna University and a Board-Certified Family Nurse Practitioner. She earned her PhD in Nursing Science from the University of Jordan and recently completed her MSN as a Family Nurse Practitioner at Madonna University. With over two decades of academic and clinical experience, Dr. Hamlan has taught across diverse nursing specialties, including pharmacology, maternal and newborn nursing, pediatrics, and medical-surgical nursing. She also maintains clinical practice as a Family Nurse Practitioner at American Internal Medicine in Dearborn, MI.

Dr. Hamlan’s career spans international and U.S. contexts, with faculty roles at Madonna University, Brookline College, National American University, and Mu’tah University in Jordan. She has contributed to curriculum leadership, faculty development by serving as chair of the curriculum and testing committees. Her research and publications focus on maternal-child health, breastfeeding, infertility, and clinical learning environments. In addition, she is a peer reviewer for the Journal of Pediatric Nursing and has presented at national and international conferences. Passionate about advancing nursing education and practice, Dr. Hamlan is also a Certified Nurse Educator through the National League for Nursing.

Jessica Henson

Hannah Hester

Aimee Kantzler

Claude W. Lauderbach Jr

Claude (Bud) Lauderbach has been a nurse for over forty years and a healthcare executive for more than thirty years with experience in nursing, acute care, ambulatory, behavioral, home health and hospice care settings, physician hospital organizations, and population-based health management. He joined the Madonna University College of Nursing and Health faculty in 2017 where he serves as Assistant Professor and Program Director for MSN Administration, MSN/MBA, and MSN Leadership degree programs. 

In addition to his full-time faculty work, Dr. Lauderbach works on a part-time basis as a family nurse practitioner at Campus Health Center, Wayne State University. He is also active in international health care consulting with Global Health Services Network, Famington, Michigan. 

Zachary McAllister

Zachary is serving as the faculty advisor for MUNSA

Member of APNA and NACN-USA

Greg Patterson

Stephanie Piazza

Stephanie Piazza, MSN, RN, AGPCNP-BC, is an Assistant Professor faculty member in Madonna University’s Department of Nursing. She has experience working in Internal Medicine and Nephrology as a nurse practitioner. She currently provides part-time clinical care in cardiac electrophysiology, caring for patients with heart-rhythm disorders in collaboration with interprofessional teams. Stephanie earned her MSN in 2017 and her BSN in 2010 at Madonna University. She is pursuing a Doctor of Nursing Practice with expected graduation in July 2026.

Her faculty specialties include medical-surgical nursing, pharmacology, and health assessment. In her teaching, she integrates current clinical practice with evidence-based pedagogy to strengthen students’ clinical reasoning, communication, and patient-safety skills. Her professional interests include cardiovascular care, quality improvement, and helping students translate evidence into compassionate, practice-ready nursing. Stephanie serves as Chair of the Faculty and Scholarship Committee and is a member of the Lab Committee at Madonna University as well.

Jennifer Reynolds

Kathleen Rittenhouse

Katie brings over thirty years of nursing experience in clinical practice and education. Her background includes psychiatric nursing at Michigan Medicine and Mott Children’s Hospital, along with 25 years as a population health nurse serving in the public schools. For the past 10 years, she has served as a nurse educator at Madonna University, where she has taught community health, behavioral health, and introductory professional nursing, as well as overseen community clinical placements.

Her scholarship interests focus on holistic care and the perceived stress of undergraduate nursing students, with an emphasis on resilience, self-care, and supportive learning environments. In 2022, she earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree and the Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) designation from the National League for Nursing.

Katie views teaching as both a responsibility and a privilege. She is committed to mentoring the next generation of nurses while contributing to the advancement of nursing education and practice.

Adam Savine

Dr. Savine is an Associate Professor and has taught for Madonna University since 2018, specializing in the ABSN program.

He is the chair of the faculty scholarship and development committee. He also as a leader of the National FirstChoice program with Trinity Health where he manages nurses and builds programming to best support the growing mobile nursing workforce.

Dr. Savine is also active in the ANA and American of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) professional organizations.

Steven Schenk

Steve Schenk, MSN, RN is an Assistant Professor faculty member in Madonna University’s Nursing Program. He has been an Adjunct Clinical Faculty member for the ABSN program since March 2023. His specialties are medical-surgical nursing I and II, pharmacology, nursing leadership, and fundamentals and lab with a strong simulation background.

He has a background in Intensive Care, Cardiac Stepdown, and as an IV Specialist concentrating on hard start IVs, midline catheters, and PICC line placements. During his role as a nurse, he volunteered as a preceptor for new-hire nurses, students in their immersion programs, and shadowing students that wanted to see what the ICU was like.

He earned his BSN from the University of Michigan – Flint's ABSN program in 2018. He earned his MSN in Nursing Leadership in Healthcare Systems in 2025. Steve will be obtaining his Doctorate in Nursing Practice degree starting in January of 2026.

He retired from the military in 2018 after almost 30 years of combined service between the Navy and the Michigan Army National Guard. He was a combat/flight medic, medical logistics sergeant, and a civilian paramedic while serving in the reserves and had tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Susanna Sirianni

Has worked 40 years in Nursing

Her doctoral research focused on improving sepsis care throughout 4 adult hospitals within DMC

Nurse practitioner with the surgical intensive care unit at Sinai Grace Hospital

Professor at Madonna University in the Acute Care NP program

Kinjal K. Talati

Dr. Kinjal Talati is the Department Chair for ABSN Program at Madonna University. She is a Madonna alumna and has been with Madonna for  over 5 years. Dr. Talati is a dual certified Nurse Practitioner in the area of Acute Care and Family Practice. She currently works in the Intensive Care Unit.

Dr. Talati's teaching philosophy, and beliefs instills the mission and the vision of Madonna University. Her passion for teaching values engagement, respect, humility, and commitment to serving others. 

Laura Van Horn

Professor Van Horn enjoys working with students to develop their hands-on nursing skills in the lab and in simulation to build confidence and critical thinking skills.

Kristen Kalmbach

Kristy earned her BA in Advertising from Michigan State University. She has worked at Madonna since 2021. She first worked in the Registrar's office and Enrollment center, then transitioned into Student Advising and Success as a Success Coach for pre-Nursing and the traditional nursing program. She has served as the Clinical Coordinator for the College of Nursing and Health since October of 2024. Kristy enjoys working with nursing students!

Megan Rankin

Megan graduated in 2025 with her MBA from Madonna University. She also earned her bachelor's at Madonna, double majoring in Mathematics & Spanish ('22). Megan previously worked as the ABSN, pre-ABSN, pre-Nursing, and Psychology Success Coach (Academic Advisor) from 2023-2025. Then, Megan began working for the College of Nursing in Health in April of 2025 as the Office Manager & Program Specialist. She also teaches UNV 1020. Basically, she has a deep love for Madonna!

Outside of MU, Megan serves as the scholarship representative for the American Business Women's Association, Novi Oaks Charter Chapter. Her many side hustles have included tutoring, consulting, bookkeeping, cashiering, serving, etc. Megan plans to become a licensed realtor, invest in stocks/real estate, and open a private psychology practice with her husband, Shane ('25 MSCP, Madonna).