Judy Beal, D.N.Sc., R.N.
Chair and Professor of Nursing
Associate Dean, School for Health Studies
B.S.N. Skidmore College
M.S.N. Yale University
D.N.Sc. Boston University
judy.beal@simmons.edu
Dr. Beal has been a faculty member since 1983. For the first seventeen years of her tenure at Simmons College, she was the Director of Research in the Graduate Program. She coordinated the Research-Theory core and has advised over 650 master's research projects. Since 2000 she has served as the chief academic officer of the combined graduate and undergraduate Nursing Programs.
Dr. Beal has a well-funded program of research focused on nurse practitioner role identity and outcomes. She serves as a collateral research reviewer for the Eastern Nursing Research Society and Sigma Theta Tau International, and is on the editorial boards of The Journal of Pediatric Nursing, the American Journal of Maternal-Child Nursing, and the Journal of Nursing Education. With more than 30 referred publications and 100 presentations, she is sought after nationally and regionally as a speaker. Dr. Beal received The Mary Ann Garrigan Award for Excellence in Leadership from Sigma Theta Tau and has been a Sigma Theta Tau Distinguished Lecturer since 1997.
Dr. Beal is actively involved in leadership activities of the Eastern Nursing Research Society and Sigma Theta Tau International. During her tenure as Chairperson of the Nursing Department and Associate Dean of the School for Health Studies, she has been successfully funded in programmatic support of over 1.5 million dollars. Recent grants include support from the Helene Fuld Trust for a Community Nursing Initiative and Health and Human Services for an Infant Behavior Institute .
Dr. Beal is currently working on expanding Simmons' partnerships and new program development for nurse educators, clinical nurse specialists, and several hospital-based initiatives. Recent agreements include a $1M contract to establish an accelerated second BSN program in Cairo, Egypt as well as a partnership with Emerson Hospital to develop their research infrastructure for AACN Magnet designation. state Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. in 1980.
Josephine Atinaja-Faller, M.S.N., R.N.
Clinical Assistant Professor
B.S. Rutgers University College of Nursing
M.S.N. Northeastern University
Ms. Faller joined the faculty full-time in 2004 after having taught clinically for Simmons for more than 10 years. Ms. Faller teaches medical surgical nursing, pediatric nursing, obstetrical nursing, and fundamentals of nursing. She maintains an active clinical practice at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston in postpartum and the neonatal intensive care unit.
Anne-Marie Barron, Ph.D., A.P.R.N., B.C.
Assistant Professor of Nursing
Associate Chair of Baccalaureate Nursing
B.S.N. Boston College
M.S. Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst
Ph.D. Boston College
annemarie.barron@simmons.edu
Dr. Barron is a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Psychiatric and Mental Health. Her clinical work has included psychiatric liaison nursing, psychiatric emergency nursing and staff nursing. She currently practices part-time as a Clinical Nurse Specialist on the Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant Inpatient Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital where she consults with the staff on the psychosocial dimension of oncology care.
Dr. Barron coordinates the clinical nursing course in Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing and integrates psychosocial nursing concepts throughout the curriculum. She is particularly interested in the psychosocial and spiritual aspects of nursing practice. Her doctoral dissertation, "Life Meanings and the Experience of Cancer", focused on the patterns of meaning and lived experiences of persons with cancer. It is her clear belief that nurses encounter patients and families at profound moments in their lives and offer compassion, caring, and transformational possibility. Dr. Barron's teaching, practice, and research interests are focused on meaning and illness and the understanding and alleviation of suffering. Her central goal in nursing education is to guide and support students as they develop perspectives and skills that enable them to offer healing presence in the lives of their patients.
Victor Bell, M.S.N., R.N.
Clinical Assistant Professor
B.S.N. Northeastern University
M.S.N. Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions
Mr. Bell joined the faculty in 2004 to teach medical surgical nursing. Prior to that, he worked at Regis College and Laboure'College while always maintaining his clinical practice in acute care. He recently co-authored an article on the effects of reducing interns' work hours on serious medical errors in ICUs in the New England Journal of Medicine. He was a primary data collector for that study. Mr. Bell is fluent in Russian and is ACLS certified as well as ANCC Board certified in Medical Surgical Nursing.
Kathleen Benedetti, M.S.N., R.N.
Clinical Assistant Professor
B.S.N. Fairfield University
M.S. in Nursing Simmons College
Ms. Benedetti joined the faculty in 2004 to teach medical surgical nursing. Prior to coming to Simmons, she taught for UMASS Boston. She received her M.S. in Nursing from Simmons College and is certified as an adult nurse practitioner. Ms. Benedetti maintains an active practice in the emergency room at Faulkner Hospital.
Charlene J. Berube, M.S.N., R.N., CS.
Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S. Saint Anselm College
M.S.N. Boston University
charlene.berube@simmons.edu
Ms. Berube has been an Assistant Professor of Nursing at Simmons College since 1993. She received her Masters Degree in Parent-Child Health Nursing from Boston University. Most recently, Professor Berube completed the Certificate for Advanced Graduate Study in both Adult and Women's Health Primary Care Nursing at Simmons College. Her background and clinical expertise in both Maternal-Child Health and Adult Health and their related issues have provided the foundation for her teaching. Ms. Berube has taught courses across the undergraduate curriculum. She maintains a clinical practice as an Adult Health Nurse Practitioner in southern New Hampshire. Ms. Berube is actively involved in professional organizations including Sigma Theta Tau International, where she serves as faculty counselor for the undergraduate nursing program at Simmons. Professor Berube has presented to various organizations and schools concerning adolescent pregnancy and children's response to loss.
Terry Buttaro, M.S., A.P.R.N., B.C.
Clinical Assistant Professor
M.S. in Nursing Simmons College
terry.buttaro@simmons.edu
Ms. Buttaro is an adult gerentologic nurse practitioner with certification in emergency room and critical care nursing. In addition to teaching at Simmons College, she is a BCLS and ACLS instructor for the Merrimack Valley Critical Care Consortium. She currently practices as a nurse practitioner caring for adult and elderly clients at home and in sub-acute and long-term care facilities at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Lahey Amesbury, and Seacoast Medical Associates. A member of the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners and Sigma Theta Tau, she is an author/editor of Primary Care: A Collaborative Practice published in 1999 and 2001 and A Guidebook for Pracititioners in Rehabilitation and Long-Term Care, which published in September 2004.
Jean Christoffersen, M.S., A.P.R.N., B.C.
Clinical Assistant Professor
B.S.N. S.U.N.Y Health Science Center at Brooklyn
M.S.N. Boston College
Ms. Christoffersen teaches Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing. Previously, she was a part-time clinical instructor at Simmons since 1997. Prior to coming to Simmons, she was on the faculty of Massachusetts Bay Community College. Ms. Christoffersen's clinical areas of interest have been working with chronically mentally ill. She has worked with anxiety-disordered and phobia patients as well. Presently, she practices as a Clinical Nurse Specialist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in the emergency department.
Margaret Costello, M.S.N., R.N.
Instructor of Nursing
B.S.N. Salve Regina College
M.S. in Health Care Administration, Simmons College
M.S.N. Massachusetts College of Pharmacy
Ms. Costello joined the faculty full-time in 2004 after having taught for us clinically since 2001. Ms. Costello maintains an active role as the nurse in charge at BWH on a surgical floor. At Simmons she teaches medical surgical nursing.
Terry Anne Davies, M.S.N., R.N., B.C.
Clinical Assistant Professor
A.S.N. Miami Dade Junior College
M.S. in Nursing Simmons College
Ms. Davies joined the faculty in 2004 to teach medical surgical nursing. She is a graduate of the Simmons College RN-M.S. Program in 1999 and practices as a nurse practitioner in the Emergency Room of Boston Medical Center. An experienced clinician, she taught part-time in the Simmons undergraduate nursing program for many years before joining the faculty full time.
Colette Dieujuste, M.S.N., R.N.
Clinical Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S.N. Columbia Union College, Maryland
M.S.N. Boston College
colette.dieujuste@simmons.edu
Ms. Dieujuste has taught at Atlantic Union College, Bunker Hill Community College and University of Massachusetts. Her clinical expertise is in the area of perinatal and obstetrical nursing and she has recently been the Perinatal/Child Clinical Nurse Specialist at Winchester Hospital.
Susan M. Duty, , Sc.D., M.S., R.N., CS.
Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S.N. University of Massachusetts, Boston
M.S. Simmons College
S.M. and Sc.D. Harvard School of Public Health
susan.duty@simmons.edu
Dr. Duty is an assistant professor in the undergraduate nursing program. She is certified as an Adult Nurse Practitioner with specialization in occupational health. Prior to becoming a nurse practitioner, she was certified in critical care nursing. She obtained her doctoral degree in occupational epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health in 2002 where she continues her research into the relationship between environmental exposures to phthalates and male reproductive outcomes. Dr. Duty has presented her research both nationally and internationally and published one of the first studies on the human health effects of phthalates. She maintains a clinical practice at South Shore Hospital in Weymouth, MA and is a member of the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners.
Priscilla Gazarian, M.S., R.N., CCNS
Clinical Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S.N. Univ. of Massachusetts, Dartmouth M.S.N. Univ. of Massachusetts, Boston
priscilla.gazarian@simmons.edu
Ms. Gazarian is currently enrolled as a Doctoral student at Boston College and she teaches Medical-Surgical Nursing in the undergraduate nursing program at Simmons College. She has taught at Massachusetts Bay Community College and recently was a Medical-Surgical Clinical Nurse Specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital. She is a member of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses and Sigma Theta Tau.
Rebecca Koeniger-Donohue, Ph.D., R.N., CS.
Clinical Associate Professor of Nursing
B.S.N., St Anselm's College
M.S.N. Boston University
Ph.D. University of Rhode Island
Dr. Donohue is recognized widely for her breadth and depth of knowledge in the primary care of women. Dr. Donohue received her nurse practitioner certificate in adult health from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1980. She received her master's degree from Boston University in 1987, and published her thesis work, "Patient Care Classification Systems" in the Journal of Home Care. In 1995, Dr. Donohue completed her Ph.D in nursing at the University of Rhode Island. Her most recent publication, in the Journal of Clinical Nursing, September 2003, "Nurse Practitioner-Client Interaction as Resource Exchange in a Women's Health Clinic", exemplifies her interest in empirical work that provides clear linkages between nursing practice, applied theory in nursing, and nursing research. Because of Dr. Donohue's expertise in qualitative research and women's health, the editorial board of the Journal of Clinical Nursing, an international journal based in the United Kingdom, invited Dr. Donohue to join the editorial review board.
Dr. Donohue's textbook, Women's Health Case Studies, published by Appleton & Lange, is used extensively in the United States and Canada to prepare women's health nurse practitioners for the National Certification Exam. Dr. Donohue has worked as an advanced practice nurse while pursuing ongoing educational and research opportunities for over 25 years. She taught undergraduate students at Boston University prior to joining the faculty at Simmons College, where she teaches at all levels of the program, though primarily at the graduate level. Her NP clinical practice for the last several years at Simmons College Health Center resulted in her writing and editing a new textbook for advanced practice nurses in college health. Dr. Donohue is also investigating the use of personal digital assistants at Simmons College nursing programs, specifically as a resource tool for bringing evidence-based practice to enhance client encounters.
Jocelyn Loftus, M.S., R.N., CS.
Clinical Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S.N. University of Massachusetts
M.S. Simmons College
jocelyn.loftus@simmons.edu
Ms. Loftus is coordinator of the Medical/Surgical I program and co-coordinator for Health Assessment. Ms. Loftus has a strong clinical background as an adult primary care nurse practitioner and currently practices at a community health center in an urban area. Her research interests include health promotion activities in middle-aged clients and co-ordinates a research program with the health center. Simmons College graduate students conducted a research study there on health beliefs about hypertension in Vietnamese adults. Ms. Loftus research is also focused on student progression and success in nursing programs.
Eileen M. McGee R.N., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Nursing
A.S.N. Laboure College
B.S.N. University of Massachusetts, Boston
M.S.N. University of Massachusetts, Boston
Ph.D. Boston College
eileen.mcgee@simmons.edu
Professor McGee has previous teaching experience at Laboure' College. She has many years of clinical practice in community health nursing specializing in health care for homeless populations. Professor McGee received a doctorate in 2004 from Boston College School of Nursing. Her doctoral dissertation was a phenomenological investigation of the concept of self-transcendence. Her research interests include nursing clinics as models for health care delivery, spirituality in nursing, and substance abuse recovery strategies with homeless populations. Professor McGee is involved in professional organizations including Sigma Theta Tau and the Eastern Nursing Research Society.
Linda R. Moniz, M.S.N., R.N., CRRN
Clinical Assistant Professor
B.S.N. Salem State College
M.S.N. Salem State College
Ms. Moniz joined the faculty in 2004 to teach medical-surgical nursing. Prior to her arrival at Simmons College, Ms. Moniz had been in a staff development position in varied settings as well as a clinical instructor in the Lawrence Memorial Hospital/Regis College Collaborative degree program. Ms. Moniz maintains an ongoing clinical practice that enriches her teaching in the clinical and classroom. Her Bachelor's in Education and Master's of Science in Nursing Education further strengthen her commitment to and skill in nursing education. Ms. Moniz is active in the leadership of the Massachusetts Association of Registered Nurses (MARN).
Susan Neary, Ph.D., R.N., CS.
Clinical Associate Professor
Associate Chair Graduate Nursing
B.A. Emmanuel College
B.S.N. St. Louis University
M.S. Simmons College
Ph.D. Boston College
susan.neary@simmons.edu
Susan Neary, Ph.D., A.P.R.N., B.C., has been a member of the Simmons faculty since 1989, and also serves as the Associate Chair for Graduate Nursing. She maintains a clinical practice in Primary Care at the Neponset Health Center in Dorchester, MA. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, the Eastern Nursing Research Society, and the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners.
Janet Sweeney Rico, M.S.N., MBA, R.N., CS.
Clinical Assistant Professor of Nursing
Director of the Direct Entry Nursing Program
B.S.N. Saint Anselm's College
M.S.N. University of North Carolina
M.B.A. Boston University
janet.rico@simmons.edu
Ms. Rico holds certifications as a family and geriatric nurse practitioner. She holds joint appointments with Simmons College and the Harvard School of Public Health. Ms. Rico's expertise in nursing and management brings unique contributions to the program. Presently, Ms. Rico practices in the emergency department at Boston Medical Center. She has presented numerous continuing education programs for occupational health nursing and has prior clinical experience in occupational health, geriatrics, emergency/critical care and sub-acute care. Her interests are health policy, geriatrics, and developmental disabilities.
Patricia Rissmiller, D.N.Sc., R.N.,CS.
Associate Professor of Nursing
Director of Research
B.S.N. Catholic University
M.S.N. and D.N.Sc. Boston University
patricia.rissmiller@simmons.edu
Dr. Rissmiller is the coordinator of the Parent-Child concentration. Her focus during the past year has been in the area of interdisciplinary collaboration within the health care community. She is currently a director for the U-Mass Simmons School Health Institute which is a project implementing regional continuing education for school nurses. She is also actively involved in a collaborative project with the Brazelton Group at Children's Hospital to develop an assessment tool based on the Brazelton Scale. She also has a joint appointment at Children's Hospital's Institute for Community Inclusion as a director for training for nurses working with developmentally disabled children and families. Research interests include high risk children and families and school health. Dr. Rissmiller practices in the Maternal-Child Health Department at Cambridge Visiting Nurse.
Julie Steller, APRN, RNP, M.S.N.
Clinical Assistant Professor
B.S.N. College of Our Lady of the Elms
M.S.N. University of Massachusetts
C.A.G.S in Family Nurse Practitioner/Adolescent Health, University of Rhode Island
Ms. Steller joined the faculty in 2004 to teach medical-surgical nursing. She also practices as a consultant and nurse practitioner in gynecologic-oncology at the Caritas Christi Health Care System and as a nurse practitioner and women's health clinic coordinator at the Rhode Island Free Clinic. Ms. Steller jointly established and coordinates this well established and respected gynecology service in Providence that offers comprehensive medical care to uninsured, primarily Spanish-speaking women. She is actively involved in this community through an ongoing lectures on women's health. She is most recently involved with Dr. Donohue in a funded research project exploring the portable percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation device as adjunct treatment for gynecologic oncology patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Karen Harvey Teeley, M.S., R.N.
Clinical Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S.N. Fairfield University
M.S. Boston University
karen.teeley@simmons.edu
Ms. Teeley is the coordinator for community health. Ms Teeley has practiced in the community setting for over twenty years in home care, public health and occupational health. She has taught at Emmanuel College and University of Rhode Island and is enrolled in the Ph.D. program at the University of Rhode Island. Ms. Teeley's research interests are in holistic nursing and she has presented numerous workshops on alternative healing interventions. She is currently writing a book on nurse-patient relationships called Nurses' Stories: Beyond the Cap.
Sarah Volkman, Sc.D.
Associate Professor of Nursing
B.A. University of California, San Diego
Sc.D. Harvard University
sarah.volkman@simmons.edu
Dr. Volkman Cooke is an Associate Professor in the nursing programs at Simmons and has been involved in preparing nursing students in the basic science content since 1989. She teaches Normal and Abnormal Physiology as well as the Integrative Sciences Curriculum for the Direct Entry Program including Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Anatomy and Physiology. She holds a joint appointment at the Harvard School of Public Health in Immunology and Infectious Diseases. In addition to her teaching at Simmons, she continues to teach Infectious Diseases and the Human Organism at Harvard University, where her scientific research interests involve understanding the mechanisms of drug resistance in the human pathogen, Plasmodium falciparum. Besides her teaching and research interests, Dr. Volkman is currently writing a textbook on human pathophysiology, which uses clinical case scenarios to examine the mechanisms of human disease. She has received several awards including the Young Investigator Award by the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and was a Senior Teaching Fellow at Harvard University.
Patricia White, M.S.N., R.N., CS.
Assistant Professor of Nursing
B.S.N. Boston College
M.S.N. Boston College
Ph.D,University of Rhode Island
patricia.white@simmons.edu
Patricia White has been teaching at Simmons College in the Nursing Programs since 1987. She is the Co-coordinator of the Adult and Geriatric Nurse Practitioner Programs and is also involved in teaching in the undergraduate research and community health courses. She maintains a clinical practice at Compass Medical Associates in Brockton, Massachusetts where she provides primary care to adults and also provides care to elders in long term care and in the home. She has previously worked in private practice in Weymouth, Massachusetts and in Norwood, Massachusetts and at the Home Care Program at Beth Israel, Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts.
During her doctoral work at University of Rhode Island she conducted a study describing how nurse practitioners assess and care for clients in primary care who have grief as a health issue. She has made presentations on the clinical topics of polypharmacy, ethics, and bereavement at many NP conferences and has also been working with faculty at Simmons in presenting departmental research on the Direct Entry nursing program experience to NONPF and AACN. She is a member of a new learning collaborative for accelerated models of nursing education (LCANE) with her Simmons colleague Janet Rico and a number of nursing faculties from around the country and recently presented to NONPF about the activities of this group. She is active in NONPF on the faculty practice committee and is a member of the MCNP, Sigma Theta Tau and ENRS.
Part-time Nursing Faculty
The School for Health Studies is proud and fortunate to have the support of highly qualified part-time faculty who provide valuable mentoring, teaching, and research. Areas of expertise, interests and/or teaching are indicated below.
Gabrielle Abelard, R.N., M.S.N.
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
Psychiatric Nursing
Elizabeth Backstrom, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston College
Psychiatric Nursing
Kathleen Bareford, R.N., B.S.N.
Saint Anselm College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Pooja Bhalla, R.N., B.S.N.
Simmons College
Community Health Nursing
Deborah Brooks, R.N., M.S.N.
MGH Institute of Health Professions
Fundamentals of Nursing, Obstetrical Nursing
Kimberly Chamberlain, R.N., M.S.N.
Catholic University of America
Pediatric Nursing
Joanne Devine, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston University
Psychiatric Nursing
Frances Dilks, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Obstetrical Nursing
Rose Doble, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Pediatric Nursing
Lisa Dumouchel, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Advising Independent Practicum Students
Sara Fisher, R.N., M.S.N.
Yale University
Psychiatric Nursing
Holly Fontenot, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston College
Obstetrical Nursing
Pamela Fox, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Obstetrical Nursing
Stacy Garrity, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston College
Obstetrical Nursing
Sara Gibbons, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Pediatric Nursing
Grace Good, R.N., M.S.N.
University of Massachusetts-Boston
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Donna Glynn, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Gail Grammatica, R.N., M.S.N.
University of Rochester
Community Health Nursing
Kimberlyn Huenink, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Obstetrical Nursing
Amy Israelian, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Carolyn Phillips Jordan, R.N. M.S.N
Simmons College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Susan Kilroy, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Barbara Lagerbom, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston University
Psychiatric Nursing
Catherine Loycano, R.N., M.S.N.
Boston University
Obstetrical Nursing
Barbara McGee, R.N., M.S.N.
Fitchburg State College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Paula Moreau, R.N., M.S.N.
University of Massachusetts-Boston
Obstetrical Nursing
Michelle Moynihan, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Obstetrical Nursing
Deanne Dalphond Munroe, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Community Health Nursing
Patricia Normandin, R.N., M.S.N.
University of Massachusetts-Lowell
Medical-Surgical, Obstetrics, Pediatric Nursing
Eleanor North, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Patricia Rabbett, R.N., M.S.N.
Salem State College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Maureen Ricotta, R.N., B.S.N.
Simmons College
Pediatric Nursing
Marybeth Schmidt, R.N., M.S.N.
University of Rhode Island
Psychiatric Nursing
Kathleen Shubitowski, R.N., M.S.N.
MGH Institute for Health Professions
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Suzanne Silvernail, R.N., B.S.N
Stonehill College
Obstetrical Nursing
Susan Stevens, R.N., M.S.N.
MGH Institute of Health Professions
Psychiatric Nursing
Lisa Spellane, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
Susan Wood, R.N., M.S.N.
Simmons College
Medical-Surgical Nursing
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