Lynsey Drew, DO, FAAFP
Acting DeanA graduate of Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, CA, Dr. Drew is a native Utahn. She completed a Faculty Development Fellowship and has served as residency program faculty since 2013 for the Family Practice residency at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo. Dr. Drew has developed curriculum and assessment for medical students and residents for both the outpatient clinical and hospital setting, including obstetrics. She has been a member of the Utah Osteopathic Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing for 8 years and spent the last year acting as Chair. She currently serves as Treasurer for the Utah Academy of Family Physicians Board of Trustees.
Kristen Anderson, MSW
Assistant Dean of Student AffairsKristen received a bachelor’s degree in behavioral science, with an emphasis in psychology from Utah Valley State College (now Utah Valley University), and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Utah. After working as a therapist for a few years, she decided she needed a change of pace. With a lifelong love for learning and education, she sought a career in higher education. There, she found her passion… Working with pre-medical and now medical students! Prior to joining Noorda-COM, Kristen was a pre-medical advisor at Utah Valley University.
With over 12 years of experience working with pre-medical and medical students, Kristen has helped thousands of students successfully navigate the medical school application process. She empowers students to own their individual journeys and loves watching students as they learn and grow and witnessing as they ultimately realize their dreams of becoming physicians.
Kyle Bills, DC, PhD
Associate Dean of ResearchDr. Bills is a researcher, clinician, inventor, and published author. He holds a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Brigham Young University in Provo and a D.C. from Parker University in Dallas. He completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Brigham Young University, funded by the NCCIH division of the National Instituted of Health and an internship at the Dallas VA Medical Center. His clinical and research work focus on chronic migraine, traumatic brain injury, opioid-use disorder, and artificial intelligence. Dr. Bills is certified in manipulation under anesthesia, is an Industrial Disability Evaluator, a Qualified Medical Evaluator, and has served as a subject matter expert for both the State of California and Utah in Physical Medicine and Chiropractic. Dr. Bills works regularly as an expert witness in legal cases involving neurotrauma. Dr. Bills holds affiliate and adjunct faculty appointments in the Department of Psychology at BYU, Clinical Neuroscience at Parker University, Neuroscience in the College of Medicine at Roseman University, and Research at Rocky Mountain University. He has taught and developed courses in physiology, neuroanatomy, neurobiology, neurology, sensorimotor integration, and manual medicine.
Janee Namealoha Hekekia, MD
Interim Assistant Dean of Clinical Education and Faculty of Clinical SciencesDr. Namealoha Hekekia was born and raised in Cedar City, Utah. After high school she went back to her roots and attended Brigham Young University-Hawaii where she double majored in Exercise and Sports Science and Hawaiian Studies. She attended the University of Utah School of Medicine and pursued family medicine and trained at the Utah Valley Family Medicine Residency Program. After residency, she returned to Hawaii and practiced at several rural community health centers and clinics and enjoyed serving the underrepresented and underserved. Since moving back to Utah, Dr. Hekekia has continued to work with underserved and underrepresented populations and enjoys teaching and inspiring future physicians.
Casey Himmelsbach, MBA, MSML
Associate Dean of Student AffairsDean Himmelsbach grew up in a small, rural town in Southwest Missouri and has over 15 years of experience in supporting student success. Her previous experience working with students interested in healthcare careers from a wide variety of backgrounds and her passion for helping every student achieve their own personal goals are what led her to Noorda-COM’s unique environment to provide the best platform for supporting medical students through every step of their medical education journey. She enjoys bringing creative solutions to Student Affairs in a rapidly changing undergraduate medical education environment.
Sondra Jepson, DHSc, MSW
Assistant Dean of Continuing Medical Education and Graduate Medical EducationDr. Jepson possesses 15 years of higher education experience, specifically in colleges of osteopathic medicine and graduate health studies. Prior to joining Noorda-COM as the Assistant Dean for Graduate Medical Education and Continuing Medical Education, she was the Executive Director for A.T. Still University’s National Center for Osteopathic Principles and Practice Education and the Still OPTI consortium, comprising teaching hospitals, colleges, and universities, to deliver osteopathic graduate medical education, resources, and accreditation services. Before transitioning to higher education, Dr. Jepson was a clinical social worker at a community psychiatric rehabilitation center. She is the Designated Institutional Official for Noorda-COM’s ACGME-accredited sponsoring institution, is an associate professor, and is passionate about developing and supporting medical residency programs and continuing education activities. She holds a Doctor of Health Sciences with a concentration in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from A.T. Still University in Kirksville, Missouri. She completed a Master Degree in Social Work in Policy, Planning, and Administration from the University of Missouri-Columbia, and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management from William Woods University in Fulton, Missouri.
Alexa Levine, PsyD, MA
Assistant Dean of Institutional EffectivenessDr. Levine grew up in San Diego, California and is approaching ten years of experience in higher education. She completed an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies with a minor in Solar and Renewable Energy from the University of Nevada Las Vegas. Dr. Levine holds a Master’s in Industrial and Organizational Psychology and Doctor of Psychology in Human and Organizational Psychology. She is currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration in Accounting and Health Administration Management. She is the Assistant Dean for Institutional Effectiveness and served as the Executive Director at Noorda-COM. Immediately before coming to Provo, she served as the Executive Assistant to the Dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Touro University in Henderson, Nevada.
Leslie Manley, PhD
Assistant Dean of AssessmentDr. Leslie Manley joined Noorda-COM as Director of Assessment and Professor of Neurosciences. Dr. Manley received her BS in Biochemistry and Cell Biology from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and her PhD in Biomedical Sciences from UCSD School of Medicine. She has also received a Senior Leadership Development Program certificate from Columbia Business School. She developed her passion for teaching undergraduate medical students and neuroscience graduate students while at UCSD. Prior to joining Noorda-COM, Dr. Manley was the Executive Director of Assessments at Kaplan Medical where she led teams of dozens of physicians and PhDs to create world-class licensure exam practice items and review materials. She was an author of the first ever online Qbank and a variety of published medical boards preparation books. She has extensive knowledge of assessment and medical content development and is excited to take this experience to a new medical school.
Nathan Nakken, DO
Chair of Osteopathic Principles & PracticesDr. Nathan Nakken is a native of Utah and has held adjunct faculty teaching positions at Utah Valley University teaching physiology and Salt Lake Community College teaching biology. Dr. Nakken also taught physiology during his master’s degree at Brigham Young University where he received a Master of Science in Physiology and Developmental Biology, and a bachelor’s degree in Chinese. He earned his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine from Rocky Vista University in Parker, CO, and was chosen for the prestigious Harold Ives Magoun Jr. DO, FAAO, FCA Memorial Undergraduate Osteopathic Principles & Practices (OPP) Teaching Fellowship where he taught lectures and OPP labs at Rocky Vista University as a student. Following medical school, he completed residency training in Family Medicine at Blessing Hospital and Southern Illinois University Center for Family Medicine in Quincy, IL. He completed a second residency in Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine at Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine where he joined the OPP faculty, and helped teach and design curriculum in both OPP and clinical medicine. Dr. Nakken has a passion for teaching, creating new ways for students to learn, and loves the “ah hah” moment when new understanding clicks for a student.
Steve Prinster, PhD
Associate Dean of Academic AffairsSteven Prinster, Ph.D., earned a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from Brigham Young University in 1997 and a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Emory University and in 2006 joined the faculty at the Nesbitt School of Pharmacy in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. In 2009 he began teaching pharmacology to students in the Medical and Physician Assistant Studies Programs at Touro University, Nevada. In 2014, his passion for student education and success led to his appointment as the Program Director for the Medical Health Sciences Program, managing the admission and progression of the students in the program.
Michael Rhodes, MD
Associate Dean of Clinical AffairsDr. Michael Rhodes brings over 25 years of medical education experience to his role as Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs. He received his B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Georgia, his MD from the Medical College of Georgia, and completed his residency in Family Medicine in Rome GA. Dr. Rhodes practiced Family Medicine with Intermountain Healthcare in Layton UT before moving to Provo in 1998. He served as faculty and then the Residency Program Director at Utah Valley Hospital for 17 years. He subsequently served as the Associate Medical Director for Utah Valley, Orem Community and American Fork Hospitals. He has completed the National Institute for Program Director Development course and Leadership Development courses for Health Care Executives from both the University of Utah, David Eccles School of Business and the Center for Domestic Preparedness, FEMA, U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In 2009 Dr. Rhodes was inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society, and in 2016 was recognized as the Doctor of the Year for the State of Utah.
Kevin Steed, PhD
Chair of Biomedical Sciences and Faculty in AnatomyDr. Kevin Steed grew up in the small town of Placerville, California in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Upon graduating with a bachelor’s degree in molecular biology from Brigham Young University, he found his passion for teaching by developing a service-learning program called Anatomy Academy, which is still run through BYU Y-Serve. This led to completion of a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Brigham Young University while also teaching as an adjunct professor of anatomy and physiology at Provo College, and Utah Valley University, respectively. His dissertation topic connected Alzheimer’s disease with dietary and metabolic contributions, namely, those surrounding diabetes and iron regulation. Dr. Steed entered the osteopathic world as a Founding Faculty at California Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine, where he taught anatomy and neuroscience. It was here that he developed novel applications of holographic technology in anatomy education and applied active learning techniques like the flipped-classroom, and team-based Learning. He moved back to Utah to join the Noorda-COM team as an Assistant professor of Anatomy and Neuroscience and has recently become the Chair of the Biomedical Sciences Department. His approach to medical education is enhanced by his enthusiasm for the material, ability to intermingle humor into the learning, and desire to help students discover their own passions in medicine.
Andrew Yorgason, DO, MPH, MHPE
Assistant Dean of Clinical ScienceDr. Andy Yorgason is a physician and an educator who has dedicated his career to medical education and public health and safety with a focus in occupational and environmental medicine. Teaching is a passion—he was awarded a Master’s of Health Professions Education degree alongside his medical studies. He has enjoyed teaching medical students and other health professions students and residents at Midwestern University’s Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine in Glendale, Arizona, Otago University in New Zealand and West Virginia University. In addition to student teaching, he now uses his experience to train clinical faculty members in his current position. He finds particular joy in helping others discover the ability to decipher truth from data and tell a story that will change someone else’s health for the better. He is the founding medical consultant at Milchad Occupational Medicine Consulting, LLC. He was residency-trained in occupational medicine at West Virginia University. He has been a guest researcher at NIOSH, a medical expert for workers’ compensation insurers, a clinical chair overseeing dozens of other occupational health providers, and maintains his boots-on-the-ground approach by consulting and, when he gets the chance, working on-site for employers in the nuclear power, biotech, manufacturing, and distribution industries.
He loves Noorda—the students, the faculty, the curricular model, and the commitment to leading the way forward in medical education for our future physicians.
