Program Director:

Mary Ann Laxen, MAB, PA-C, Associate Professor                                                                                                   Originally from a nursing and hospital administration background, Mary Ann became a PA in 1990. After clinical work in Haiti and on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, she served as Associate Director of the PA program at Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri. In July 1999, she became the Director of the UND PA Program.  mlaxen@medicine.nodak.edu

Medical Director:

Eric Johnson, MD                                                                                                                                                 Dr.  Johnson is a member of the Department of Family and Community Medicine.  He works part time in Primary Care at Altru Hospital and Clinic and is the Assistant Medical Director for the Altru Diabetes Center.  In addition to this, he is the physician consultant for the North Dakota Tobacco Quitline program, and is also the Medical Director for STEP Chemical Dependency Treatment Program for Women.  ejohnson@medicine.nodak.edu

Program Faculty:

Annette Larson, MS, PA-C, Assistant Professor                                                                                                          Annette has been on the UND PA faculty since 1991. She coordinates the major portion of the clinical didactic sessions when students are on campus.  She maintains clinical practice one half day a week in Urgent Care. Prior to her work at UND, she practiced as a PA in Bismarck and in Mandan, North Dakota. Since joining the program, she also spent 6 months in Jeremie, Haiti, working in maternal and child health.  alarson@medicine.nodak.edu

Susan Kuntz, PhD, MT(ASCP), CLS(NCA), Assistant Professor                                                                           Susan joined the faculty in April of 2004. She teaches in both the pre-clinical and clinical didactic portions of the program, is the coordinator of the transitional masters program and functions as the technology support person for the program. She maintains clinical practice in her specialty on an as needed basis. Prior to joining the PA faculty, she was a faculty member of the Clinical Laboratory Science program at UND in charge of the UND/Mayo cohort project.  skuntz@medicine.nodak.edu

Vikki McCleary, LRD, Ph.D., Assistant Professor                                                                                                  Vikki joined the PA Program as full-time faculty in November of 2006. She is the primary instructor and coordinator of the preclinical courses. Prior to joining the program full time, she had been a part-time faculty member for the PA Program since 2003, while working full-time as an Assistant Professor in UND's School of Medicine & Health Sciences Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Therapeutics. vmccleary@medicine.nodak.edu

Jeanie McHugo, PhD, PA-C, Assistant Professor                                                                                                Jeanie began as a member of faculty in July of 2004. She coordinates the initial clinical didactic portion of the program, and the specialty clerkships.  Prior to her work at UND, she practiced as a PA in orthopedic surgery, general medicine and acute care. She moved here from Aberdeen, SD. jmchugo@medicine.nodak.edu

Program Staff:

Rhonda McDaniel, Administrative Assistant                                                                                                        Rhonda coordinates the application process, is Mary Ann's administrative assistant, and serves as the program's administrative contact for graduate matters. She has been with the Program since 1989. mcdaniel@medicine.nodak.edu

Avis Reynolds, Administrative Secretary                                                                                                                Avis works with the Didactic Coordinator, preparing for the people and materials needed for each of the didactic sessions. Avis joined the program in 1982. reynolds@medicine.nodak.edu

Pam Boltz,  Administrative Secretary                                                                                                                   Pam works with the Clinical Coordinator, preparing for the people and materials needed for clinical testing at UND, support staff for specialty clerkships and handles all affiliation agreements between the program and preceptorship sites.  Pam has been with the program since 2003. pboltz@medicine.nodak.edu

Jackie Pic, Administrative Secretary                                                                                                                   Jackie is the newest member of the Program, joining in 2008.  Besides serving as phone receptionist, Jackie works with Mary Ann and Rhonda as the primary staff person for the HRSA Grant activities within the Program.  jackiepic@medicine.nodak.edu

Program Adjunct Faculty:

(Pictured from R to L) Kenneth Korn, EdS.,PA-C ~ Rhonda Wallace, MPAS, PA-C~ Teri Sigurdson, MPAS, PA-C  ~ Patrick Litster, MPAS, PA-C (not pictured is Jacqueline Nelson, MPAS, PA-C)

The above members function as Clinical Adjunct Faculty, bringing to the Program their clinical expertise in Family Medicine, Oncology, General Surgery, Women’s Health and Emergency Medicine. kkorn@medicine.nodak.edu; rwallace@medicine.nodak.edu; tsigurdson@medicine.nodak.edu; plitster@medicine.nodak.edu; jnelson@medicine.nodak.edu