DAVID W. ABBOTT, M.D.
Associate Professor and Director
Psychiatry Residency Training Program
David W. Abbott is an Associate Professor and Director, Psychiatry Residency Training Program, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Originally from Fargo-Moorhead, Dr. Abbott received his B.A. from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, and his M.D. degree from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. He completed his psychiatry residency training at Tulane and the University of Minnesota. He has practiced in various capacities in Fargo, North Dakota, since 1977 and has been a member of the faculty of UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences since 1978. His clinical work focused for many years in eating disorders, an area in which he has also published. He is currently interested in predictors of resident performance. One of the original planners of the residency program, he has been its director since 1995.
R.P. ASCANO, PH.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
R.P. Ascano is a Clinical Assistant Professor, Clinical Neuroscience Department, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Dr. Ascano earned his Ph.D. in clinical psychology in 1979 from California School of Professional Psychology, Berkeley, California, and thereafter enrolled in a post-doctoral training program in forensic psychology. He is a Fellow of the American College of Forensic Psychology. Dr. Ascano's experience includes being the Chief of Psychology Services - United States Air Force Hospital, McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas; Clinical Director - Methadone Clinic Westside Mental Health Center, San Francisco, California; Director of Mental Health - St. Francis Medical Center, Breckenridge, Minnesota, and Clinical Director of Sex Offender and Victim Treatment Program - Lakeland Mental Health Center, Fergus Falls, Minnesota. He has been admitted as an expert witness in state district court and federal court. In 2001, he obtained a Doctor of Practical Ministry (theology) from Wagner Leadership Institute to pursue his interest in providing pastoral-care and mission-care intervention. He is a consultant to several mainline protestant denominations/synods in the area of psycho-sexual risk assessment and ministry burnout.
RONALD M. BURD, M.D.
Clinical Professor
Ronald M. Burd is a Clinical Professor, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Dr. Burd's current clinical work is primarily with Chemical Dependency and general psychiatry in Partial Hospital and outpatient with MeritCare. A native Montanan, Dr. Burd received his undergraduate degree from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. He earned his M.D. degree at the University of Utah and did his residency in General Psychiatry at the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Burd is particularly interested in clinical quality improvement, psychopharmacology including medication treatment of chemical dependency and psychotherapy. Other activities include leadership within the American Psychiatric Association and expertise in coding and reimbursement.
DAVID L. CARLSON, M.D.
Associate Professor and Director, Undergraduate Medical Education in Psychiatry and Third Year Psychiatry Clerkship
David L. Carlson is an Associate Professor and the Director, Undergraduate Medical Education in Psychiatry and Third Year Psychiatry Clerkship, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. He is also the Director of Mental Health Services and Chief of Psychiatry at the Veterans Administration Medical Center, Fargo, North Dakota. Dr. Carlson received his BA degree from Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota, his M.Div. degree from Luther Theological Seminary, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and his M.D. degree and residency training from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Dr. Carlson was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha as a medical student and selected as AMA - Education &Research Foundation Rock Sleyster Scholar in Psychiatry. He was both a Ginsberg and Post-Ginsberg Fellow with the Alcoholism & Addictions Committee of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry (GAP). He previously served as director of the Fargo Veterans Administration Medical Center’s Substance Abuse Treatment Program. Dr. Carlson is Assembly Representative to the American Psychiatric Association, and President of the NDPS. He is a diplomat of the American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology in General Psychiatry with a subspecialty certification in Addiction Psychiatry. Dr. Carlson has served as a reviewer for the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Psychiatry Subject Exam and as a member of the United States Medical Licensing Exam (USMLE) Step Two Test Development Committee in Psychiatry and the NBME Subject Exam Committee. He is a member of the Association of Directors of Medical Student Education in Psychiatry (ADMSEP), the Association of Medical Educators and Researchers in Substance Abuse (AMERSA), and the Association of Academic Psychiatry (AAP).
KENNETH E. CHRISTIANSON, PH.D.
Clinical Professor
Kenneth E. Christianson is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences and a Clinical Psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at MeritCare, in Fargo, N.D. His subspecialty is in the treatment of affective disorders and sex therapy. Dr. Christianson is a native of North Dakota and attended the Fielding Institute in Santa Barbara, Calif., where he earned his Doctor of Philosophy degree. One internship was completed at the Center for Marital and Sexual Studies with Drs. William Hartman and Marilyn Fithian. He has lived and worked in Fargo since 1988.
ROSS CROSBY, PH.D.
Clinical Professor
Ross Crosby is a Clinical Professor, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences; Director of Biomedical Statistics & Methodology, Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, and Professor, Department of Psychology, North Dakota State University, all in Fargo, North Dakota. He earned his B.A. at the University of Minnesota, Psychology, 1975, and his Ph.D., University of Nevada, Social Psychology, 1989. His research interests include statistical applications in psychiatric research, and treatment outcome research in eating disorders. Dr. Crosby has published over 200 peer-reviewed publications.
AMADOR M. DIZON, M.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Amador M. Dizon is a Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Dr. Dizon earned his B.S. and M.D. at the Far Eastern University, Institute of Medicine, Manila, Philippines, and did his psychiatry residency at the Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center at the New York Medical College, where he was Chief Resident. He completed a two-year fellowship in child and adolescent psychiatry at Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York. Dr. Dizon was an Adult/Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist at Prairie St. Johns, Fargo, North Dakota, for ten years. He currently serves as an Adult/Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist at Lakeland Mental Health Center, Moorhead, Minnesota, where his special interests include mood disorders, psychotic disorders, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD/ADD) and disruptive behavior disorders.
STEFANIE HANISCH, M.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Stefanie Hanisch is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences and practices child psychiatry at MeritCare Health System both in Fargo, North Dakota. Dr. Hanisch is a native South African who received her medical degree from the University of Pretoria, South Africa. After an internship in pediatrics and OBGYN, and some clinical practice in medical oncology in South Africa, she worked in emergency medicine in the United Kingdom. She pursued her psychiatry residency and child psychiatry fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and is board certified in both general and child psychiatry. She has worked as an outpatient child psychiatrist since 2003 and joined MeritCare Health System, Fargo, North Dakota, in 2007.
HOLLY HEGSTAD, PH.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Holly Hegstad, Ph.D., is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. She is a North Dakota local, having graduated from the University of North Dakota in 1992, then attending North Dakota State University where she received her Master’s Degree in 1995, and her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of North Dakota in 1999. She completed her Internship at the Norfolk Regional Center in Norfolk, Nebraska, and her Residency at Southeast Human Service Center in Fargo, ND. She is a practicing psychologist at Knowlton, O’Neill, and Associates, specializing in treatment of adults with anxiety and depressive disorders, with emphasis on cognitive behavioral interventions. She also teaches graduate and undergraduate courses at North Dakota State University.
MICHELLE JORGENSEN, M.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Michelle Mayfield Jorgensen is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, Dr. Jorgensen earned her B.S. in Communication Sciences in 1990 and M.A. in Audiology in 1992 from University of Texas in Austin. She practiced Educational Audiology in Western Iowa working with Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children in the public schools for several years. She returned to medical school at the University of Nebraska Medical Center graduating with her M.D. in 2001. Dr. Jorgensen attended University of Nebraska/Creighton University Adult Psychiatry Residency and Child Psychiatry Fellowship finishing her training in 2006. She joined MeritCare Health Care System in 2006 and is currently the medical director for the Eating Disorder Inpatient Unit at MeritCare Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota, where she is the hospitalist for that program. In addition, she serves as the medical director for Child Psychiatry/Psychology for MeritCare and has a small general child psychiatry outpatient practice.
ERIC W. LEONHARDT, D.O.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Eric W. Leonhardt is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences and is a Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist at Prairie St. John's in Fargo, North Dakota, working with patients in inpatient, partial hospital and clinic settings. A native of Fort Myers, Florida, he received his Bachelor’s Degree in Biology with an emphasis in Anatomy Physiology/Cell Biology from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. Dr. Leonhardt graduated Magna cum Laude and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Beta Beta Beta (National Biology Honor Society) and Alpha Epsilon Delta (Pre-Medical Honor Society). He earned his Doctor of Osteopathy degree from University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kansas City, Missouri. His Residency was completed at Henry Ford Hospital Department of Psychiatry in Detroit, Michigan. He completed a two-year Child and Adolescent Psychiatry fellowship with the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine, where he was named Chief Fellow. Education is a special focus of Dr. Leonhardt. Throughout his education and career, he has been a leader in planning, implementing and teaching innovative programs for staff at all levels who work with patients. Dr. Leonhardt’s special interests are in the fields of mental retardation and physical disabilities. Dr. Leonhardt’s professional philosophy is that the body, mind and spirit are intimately linked and impact individual health. He uses a family-focused holistic approach to psychiatry.
LAURA KROETSCH
Clinical Assistant Professor
Laura Kroetsch is a Clinical Assistant Professor of the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences and a Staff Psychiatrist at Southeast Human Service Center, Fargo, North Dakota. Dr. Kroetsch obtained her Bachelor of Science, summa cum laude, at Winona State University in Winona, MN in 2000. She received her medical degree from the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences in 2004. Her residency training in psychiatry was also at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences and she graduated in 2008. Dr. Kroetsch was named Chief Resident in her final year of psychiatry residency training and is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha honor Society. She joined Southeast Human Service Center in Fargo in 2008. Dr. Kroetsch is a member of the American Psychiatric Association and is Board certified in psychiatry.
ANDREW J. MCLEAN, M.D.
Clinical Professor
Andrew J. McLean is a Clinical Professor, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. A native of North Dakota, Dr. McLean obtained his medical degree from University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. He completed psychiatry residency at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where he also served as co-chief resident. He is the recipient of a number of awards, including the UND Distinguished Alumnus Award, the Dean’s Recognition Award for committed teaching of medical students, and the Health Care Professional of the Year Award given by the Metro Area Mayors’ Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities. He has been a contributing author to a boards preparation textbook, has been published in a number of journals and has given regional, national and international presentations to mental health professionals and consumers on psychiatric issues. Dr. McLean is Medical Director of the North Dakota Department of Human Services. His area of interest is working with and advocating for individuals with serious and persistent mental illness.
JAMES E. MITCHELL, M.D.
Chairman and Professor, Department of Clinical Neuroscience
James E. Mitchell is the Chairman and a Professor of the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, and the President and Scientific Director of the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, both in Fargo. A native of Chicago, Dr. Mitchell attended Indiana University and earned his M.D. degree at Northwestern University Medical School. He took his residency training at Indiana University Hospital and the University of Minnesota. Dr. Mitchell previously served as Professor of Psychiatry and Director of Adult Psychiatry at the University of Minnesota. He is a founding member of the Academy for Eating Disorders and the Eating Disorders Research Society. He is a fellow of the American Association for Social Psychiatry, American Psychiatric Association, and American Psychopathology Association. Dr. Mitchell is internationally known for his research in eating disorders, obesity and bariatric surgery.
ROBERT J. OLSON, M.D.
Clinical Professor
Robert J. Olson, M.D., is a Clinical Professor, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences and practicing psychiatrist at MeritCare Health System both in Fargo, North Dakota. A native of North Dakota, raised in Williston, graduating from Jamestown College, Dr. Olson attended University of North Dakota Medical School graduating in 1985. His psychiatric residency was earned at Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Oregon. After residency training, he joined MeritCare Clinic in Fargo to work in psychiatric private practice as well as a gradually increasing role in teaching medical students and psychiatric residents. In 1994, he became board certified in Psychiatry's added qualifications in Geriatrics and continues to practice in the areas of general and geriatric psychiatry including nursing home outreach. In the residency, Dr Olson's roles include classroom teaching, supervising the resident outpatient clinic at MeritCare as well as the ER Psych and Geriatric rotations. He is a member of the AMA, APA and American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry.
JAMES ROERIG, Pharm.D., BCPP
Associate Professor
James L. Roerig is an Associate Professor, Department of Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences and is based at the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute located in Fargo, North Dakota. Dr. Roerig is Board Certified in Psychiatric Pharmacy (BCPP) by the Board of Pharmaceutical Specialties. His area of focus is psychopharmacology, drug interactions and eating disorders. Dr. Roerig teaches the psychopharmacology course for the psychiatric residents, and participates in the neuroscience course and the evidence based learning seminar and literature review seminar in the residency program. Dr. Roerig is pursuing the development of a research program in the area of the psychopharmacology of eating disorders and psychotropic associated weight gain as well as the pharmacological treatment of obesity. Prior to this, Dr. Roerig was the Director of Psychopharmacology Research in the Department of Behavioral Health at Regions Hospital and Coordinator of the department's Clozapine Clinic. He also was the course director for Introduction to Psychopharmacology and Neuroscience for the Hennepin -Regions Psychiatry Residency Program. Dr. Roerig received his Bachelors of Science and Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Minnesota.
KRISTINE STEFFEN, PHARM.D., PH.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Kristine Steffen is a Clinical Assistant Professor of the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Fargo, North Dakota, and is a Research Scientist at the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute, where she is involved in eating disorders, obesity and bariatric surgery research. Primarily, she is interested in research involving the pharmacological modification of these conditions. Dr. Steffen received her undergraduate degree, Doctor of Pharmacy degree, and Doctor of Philosophy degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences from North Dakota State University (NDSU). Currently, Dr. Steffen is an instructor in the team-taught Intermediate Psychopharmacology course for the second-year Psychiatry Residents at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. She also lectures in the NDSU College of Pharmacy, Nursing and Allied Sciences.
ANNE H. STOE, M.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
Anne H. Stoe is a Clinical Assistant Professor of the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences and a Staff Psychiatrist at Southeast Human Service Center, Fargo, North Dakota. Dr. Stoe obtained her A.B. from Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, and her medical degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. Her residency training in family practice and psychiatry was at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Dr. Stoe researched psychotropic medications and completed an assessment of community mental health needs in several northwest Minnesota counties through a grant from the Bush Foundation. She served a number of western Minnesota and eastern North Dakota clinics and hospitals as a family physician before starting her psychiatry residency. She joined Southeast Human Service Center in Fargo in 2006. She works closely with the residents in community and outpatient psychiatry. Dr. Stoe is a member of the American Psychiatric Association and is Board certified in family practice and psychiatry.
TIMOTHY VO, M.D.
Clinical Associate Professor
Timothy Vo is a Clinical Associate Professor of the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Fargo, North Dakota. Dr. Vo received his medical degree at Saigon University, Viet Nam. He also attended Mission College, Santa Clara, and San Jose State University, both in California, before completing his psychiatry residency at University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. Dr. Vo is a staff psychiatrist at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Fargo since September 2004. Prior to that time, he was a staff psychiatrist at MeritCare Hospital in Fargo. Dr. Vo enjoys his clinical work and teaching medical students and psychiatric residents. He is a member of the Association of Convulsive Therapy, American Psychiatric Association, and the North Dakota Medical Association. He is also a member of the Ethics Committee and the Research and Development Committee at the Fargo VA Medical Center.
STEPHEN WONDERLICH, PH.D.
Professor and Associate Chairman, Department of Neuroscience
Stephen Wonderlich is a Chester Fritz Distinguished University Professor and the Associate Chairperson in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences. He graduated from Concordia College (Moorhead, MN) in 1978 and received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Missouri in 1985. He completed his Internship and Fellowship at the University of Wisconsin. He is Co-Director of the Eating Disorders Institute and Director of Clinical Research for the Neuropsychiatric Research Institute. He publishes widely in clinical and scientific journal and currently sits on the Editorial Board for several professional journals. He is also the Co-Editor of the Annual Review of Eating Disorders. He is a Past-President of the Academy for Eating Disorders and has been selected to serve on the Eating Disorder Workgroup for the DSM-V Task Force.
