New appointments

Jaycee Anderson, BA, joined the school as the Doctoral Education Pathway for American Indian/Alaska Native Nurses adviser. She previously worked with Upward Bound programs at the University of North Dakota and University of Minnesota. She earned bachelor’s degrees in American Indian Studies and English from the University of North Dakota.

Geoff Davis, BS, joined the school as a pre-award grants and contracts professional in the Office of Nursing Research and Scholarship. He previously served as a senior finance and accounting professional at the University of Colorado Department of Physics. He earned a bachelor’s degree in astrophysics from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Oscar Omar Díaz, PhD, joined the school as the assistant director for the Undergraduate team. He most recently worked as a lead senior academic adviser for the President’s Emerging Scholars program in the College of Liberal Arts. He earned a PhD in cultural studies in education, master’s degree in community and regional planning and Latin American studies, and a bachelor’s degree in electronic media from University of Texas.

Mark Erickson, MS, joined the school as chief administrative officer. He most recently served as finance director at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. He earned an executive master’s degree in health care administration from the University of Minnesota and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of St. Thomas.

Nathaly Romero Jara, BS, joined the school as a bilingual data collection lead for the Food-at-Home study. She earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from St. Catherine University. Previously, she served as a lab service technician at Regions Hospital. 

Kimberly Johnson, MS, joined the school as a career navigator for the Center for Nursing Equity and Excellence Pre-licensure Nursing Apprenticeship Program. She earned a master’s degree in counseling and student personnel from Minnesota State University Mankato and a bachelor’s degree in marketing, speech communication and sociology from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Most recently, she worked for a missions organization helping individuals develop the job search tools to take their careers abroad.

Kate Knight, BS, joined the school as an executive office and administrative specialist in Rochester. Knight earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Texas at Arlington. She previously served as a student recruiter and admissions specialist at University of Texas Arlington.

Dave Lienesch, BS, joined the school as a Doctor of Nursing Practice recruitment and enrollment coordinator. Lienesch previously worked for St. Catherine University as the director of Recruiting. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communication from the University of Cincinnati.

Jenn Searles, BS, joined the school in the Office of Student and Career Advancement Services as the Bachelor of Science in Nursing academic adviser in Rochester. Searle brings over 25 years of higher education experience including work with nursing and pre-nursing students. Her most recent role was director of transfer partnerships and pathways at St. Catherine University. She earned a bachelor’s degree in speech communications from St. Catherine University.

Najmo Yusuf, MS, joined the school in the Office of Student and Career Advancement Services as the student engagement manager located in Rochester. Previously, Yusuf served as the assistant director of Multicultural Student Engagement at the University of Minnesota. She earned a master’s degree in human resources and development and a bachelor’s degree in communication studies at the University of Minnesota.