Alumni Association
The Alumni Association of Columbia University School of Nursing and Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing
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| Current and former Alumni Association board members at the May 2011 meeting. |
2011-2012 Board of Officers & Directors
Don Boyd ’06, President, (2011-2014)
Don graduated with a BSN from the University of Pittsburgh and from Columbia with a master’s degree from the Nurse Anesthesia Program. He is a staff anesthetist at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Columbia campus, and at the Allen Pavilion. Don is very involved in the New York State Association of Nurse Anesthetists, where he currently serves as president. He believes that networking with other alumni as well as students and student candidates is a wonderful opportunity that enriches the academic experience of everyone involved. Don believes that nurses working together can bring about positive change within our CUSON nursing community and beyond.
Beth Zedeck ’04,’06, Vice President, Annual Fund (2011-2014)
Beth is originally from Long Island and received a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in Social Work, with a specialization in alcohol and substance abuse, from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. As a licensed certified social worker, Beth spent 15 years in San Francisco and New York City working with children and their families in both psychiatric and substance abuse treatment settings. As her practice grew, Beth decided to change focus and become a nurse practitioner. She graduated from the Combined BS/MS program in 2006 and is now a certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. Beth is a member of several professional organizations and has recently published a book, “Forensic Pharmacology: Drugs of Abuse.” She works as CPNP at Promesa/Basics in the Bronx.
Sarah C. James '97, Nominating Chair, (2010-2013)
Sarah James graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science from SUNY-Health Science Center and received her Master’s degree from the Adult Nurse Practitioner Program at Columbia University School of Nursing in 1997. Sarah worked in an acute care setting for 19 years as a staff nurse, manager and nurse practitioner. She recently left the in-patient setting at Beth Israel Medical Center and now works in the out-patient cardiology department. Sarah also served as a mentor for newly graduated nurses. “Providing care and compassion was a major focus along with knowledge and skill. It was an extremely rewarding experience. I believe sharing knowledge, clinical or legislative, contributes to the cohesiveness of the profession of nursing,” she says of her time as a nurse mentor to both new and seasoned nurses. Sarah looks forward to supporting the mission of the School as it continues to provide the highest quality education and services to its students.
Maria Magliacano ’06, Secretary, (2011-2014)
Maria, originally from Chicago, Illinois, received her BSN from the University of Pennsylvania. She specialized in pediatrics and worked as a registered nurse in a variety of settings, from infectious disease and liver transplant at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, to intensive care (with a focus on liver and bowel transplantation) at Mt. Sinai in New York. She received school nurse certification from Caldwell College and worked as an elementary school nurse in Union, New Jersey. Maria then attended Columbia, where she received a Master’s degree. The mother of two young daughters, Maria’s most recent worked as a certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner at Odyssey House in Harlem, a residential substance abuse facility for families.
Directors
Laura Pearson Armstrong '85 (2011-2014)
Laura received a Bachelor's of Science degree from Columbia University School of Nursing and a Master's of Science in Nursing, specializing in primary ambulatory care, at UCLA in 1990. She is a certified adult nurse practitioner with a sub-specialty in occupational health. Laura served as the director of the Occupational Health Facility at UCLA Medical Center in the 1990's and most recently worked at the WorkMed Clinic at Riverview Hospital in Noblesville, IN where she provided primary care as well as treatment for work-related injuries. Married for 25 years, Laura and her husband, Rob, have six children whose ages range from 9-20 years old. Their oldest will graduate from college this spring. The family will relocate to Boston this summer. Laura has been involved in fundraising efforts of the School of Nursing for the last six years, serving as Annual Fund Chair for the past three. Her other activities include travel, cooking, reading, aviation, and skiing.
Sharron Close ’01, ’03 (2011-2014)
Sharron graduated from the Combined BS/MS Program, the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program and is currently completing her PhD at the School. She is a board member of the Alpha Zeta chapter of Sigma Theta Tau. Ms. Close has been a teaching assistant for the past several years at the School of Nursing. Prior to pursuing her doctoral degree, she practiced in the NYU Department of Pediatrics School-Based Health program where she mentored PNP students from both Columbia and New York University Schools of Nursing. Her philosophy of the alumni legacy is built upon the appreciation of nurses who have taught, maintained and supported students for decades.
Angela Clarke Duff '70 (2009-2012)
Angela worked in nursing after graduation in medical-surgical, ICU and post-partum units in a hospital in her community. As her family grew, her responsibilities at home precluded working outside the home. However, with four children the opportunities for volunteer work were numerous. She served as president of the Parents’ Association, Den Mother, chairman of the Girls’ Club, board member of the Celebrations Association of Forest Hills (Annual Christmas and Children’s Day events). She also chaired many events and benefits in her parish and was active at the high school of her three daughters in Manhattan serving as treasurer and then president of the Parents Organization. Since 1994, she has served on the policy committee of a fundraising arm of the Civil Support Division of the Legal Aid Society. Since the fall of 2000, she has been a guide for students at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and from 2002 - 2004, she was Executive Assistant to the Chairman of the 1200 member volunteer organization at the Museum. She has also been chairman since 2004 of Friends of Station Square, a non-profit corporation which promotes and encourages community spirit and heightens community support for the preservation, improvement and beautification of Station Square and its surrounds. She looks forward to renewing her ties with Columbia Nursing on the Board of the Alumni Association.
Ellen Gottesman Garber '76, (2009-2012)
Ellen worked at the Denver Children’s Hospital immediately after graduating from Columbia and also at Labor and Delivery at Denver General Hospital. She also spent four years at the Rocky Mountain Planned Parenthood as a family nurse practitioner. Ellen later focused on raising her family in Bedford, New York, and later in Short Hills, New Jersey. After their three children left home last year, Ellen and her husband moved to New York City, where she is volunteering at DOROT and Congregation B’nai Jeshurun. Ellen is now taking art appreciation classes at the New School and studying art history at the Museum of Modern Art.
Marguerite "Peggy" Lorey Peoples '57 (2009-2012)
Peggy lives in Darien, CT, with her husband Brian. She attended Hood College for two years before transferring to the School of Nursing to earn her bachelor’s in nursing. She has worked at Babies Hospital and with the Visiting Nurse Association of New York. In addition, she has volunteered with the VNA of Staten Island, the Red Cross, and the Disaster Team; and she has served on the boards of the VNA of Darien, the Darien Red Cross, and the Garden Club of Darien. She is proud of graduating from the School of Nursing.
Katherine Perera Patterson '98 '10 (2010-2013)
Katherine graduated from CUSON’s ETP program in 1998 and spent the following ten years raising her three children on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Katie’s strong interest in women’s reproductive health moved her to return to CUSON in 2008 to begin a Master’s degree in women’s health, which she will complete in July, 2010. Her undergraduate thesis focused on maternal health care in rural Bolivia and she has worked as a counselor at Planned Parenthood and as a nurse at a freestanding birthing center. Katie is excited to begin her career in women’s health nursing. Katie is grateful for CUSON’s support and she welcomes the opportunity to work with other alumni to benefit the School and fellow students.
Rosalie Perez ’04,’07 (2011-2014)
Rosalie works as a nurse practitioner at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. After completing the bachelor’s portion of the Combined BS/MS program, Rosalie served as a full-time labor and delivery nurse at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital and completed a Master's degree with a specialty in women's health. In 2008, she became the Clinical Care Coordinator for the Center for Prenatal Pediatrics at NewYork-Presbyterian—a center that manages high risk pregnancies with fetal anomalies. This center is the only one in the city currently performing procedures such as selective fetoscopic laser photocoagulation for the treatment of Twin Transfusion Syndrome. Rosalie’s work has been acknowledged in Advance for Nurses. Rosalie was named a Distinguished Young Alumna last year.
Martha Cohn Romney '81 (2010-2013)
Martha earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Duke University School of Nursing in 1977, a Master of Science degree from Columbia University School of Nursing (Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program) in 1981, a Juris Doctor degree from Antioch School of Law in Washington, DC in 1984, a Master of Public Health from Drexel University School of Public Health, and is currently enrolled in the Doctor of Juridical Science in Health Law at Widener University School of Law. Marty has experience as a professional staff nurse in Obstetrics and Pediatrics, as a Clinical Nurse Specialist on a Child Sexual Abuse Team at Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Washington DC, and as a medical malpractice attorney. Marty also directed several groups at GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Company. Since 2008, Marty has been working as a Research Project Director and Faculty at the Jefferson School of Population Health (Thomas Jefferson University). She is married to T. Benjamin Romney and they have two daughters
Julie Schnur '03, '05 (2010-2013)
Julie is a certified pediatric nurse practitioner at a busy family practice in Brooklyn and is a preceptor and a part-time instructor in clinical nursing for Columbia University School of Nursing. She worked as a staff nurse in a pediatric hematology clinic at Children’s Hospital of New York. Ms. Schnur created a patient handbook for her Brooklyn patients and started visiting schools to teach children about leading a healthy lifestyle. She earned her BA in child development from Tufts University and is a member of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners and Sigma Theta Tau. She is also a candidate at this Reunion to serve three-year term as a director on the CUSON Alumni Association.
Karla Silverman '98, '01 (2009-2012)
Karla is a nurse-midwife and a 1998 and 2001 graduate of the School of Nursing. She is the director of clinical services at Planned Parenthood-Hudson Peconic. She has worked as a consultant for NARAL Pro-Choice New York and the Mergerwatch Project, advising on the relationship between nursing and women’s access to reproductive healthcare services. She holds a BA in theater arts from Brown University and lives with her husband and two daughters in New York City
Catherine Tanksley ’98 (2011-2014)
Catherine began her medical career as a surgical technician at Underwood Memorial Hospital in New Jersey. She continued her education at Gloucester County College and earned an associate’s degree in nursing. While working as a nurse at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital, Catherine received a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Thomas Edison State College. She then attended Columbia University, graduating with a Master’s degree. Her professional activities include serving as a prenatal and community educator at Underwood Memorial Hospital in New Jersey, as public relations chair for the American College of Nurse Midwives, Region II (NYC chapter division), as New York City’s alternate representative for the New York State Association of Licensed Midwives (NYSALM). Catherine opened a private practice in Brooklyn, which eventually merged with Brookdale University Hospital, where she is now Director of Midwifery and OB/GYN Outreach. Catherine was one of the featured midwives in the documentary “The Business of Being Born” from executive producer and former talk-show host Ricki Lake.
William Robert Wagner '03, '05, (2009-2012)
Bill currently lives Ossning, NY with his partner and their dogs, Blanche and Hubbell. He completed his Master’s degree in 2005 and is currently an instructor of clinical nursing at CUSON. He is the founder and clinical director for the Center for Heart Failure at Maryland General Hospital. Prior to his CUSON education, Bill received a Master of Social Welfare degree at UCLA and had a private psychotherapy practice for many years. He also worked as the director of several HIV community-based organizations in Los Angeles and New York. He is currently completing a DNP at the University of Alabama.
Glenn Wurtzel ’00,’02 (2011-2014)
Glenn has been a psychotherapist for more than 25 years and psychiatric nurse practitioner since 2002. He earned a bachelor’s degree in English and psychology from Rutgers University, graduated from CUSON with bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and attended the doctoral program in clinical psychology of Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (1982–1990), including an advanced internship at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. Glenn is the former clinical director of St. Paul’s Center, an all nurse practitioner psychiatric clinic, and was the first psychiatric nurse practitioner on the staff of the Rockland County Department of Mental Health. Glenn is a 2006 recipient of the Alumni Association’s Distinguished Young Alumnus Award. He currently maintains a psychotherapy and psychopharmacology practice treating adults and children and also works part-time for Community Access, Inc., where he provides consultation to clients and staff on psychiatric and quality of living concerns.
Dean
Bobbie Berkowitz, PhD, RN, CNAA, FAAN
Senior Associate Dean
Jennifer A. Smith '05, DNP