Faculty
Dr. Richard Oliver, Dean
Dr. Kristofer Hagglund, Professor & Associate Dean
Dr. Kevin Rudeen, Professor & Associate Dean

Staff
Wei Du, System Support Analyst
Laura Flacks-Narrol, Administrative Associate II
Meichele Foster, Continuing Education Coordinator
Beth Hays, Administrative Manager
Joyce Pfaff, Grants Administrator
Margie Ross, Administrative Assistant
Chris Schenewerk, Billing Manager

Richard E. Oliver, Ph.D., Dean

Richard E. Oliver, Ph.D., founding dean of the School of Health Professions (SHP), has spent his entire academic career at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Prior to his appointment as Dean, Dr. Oliver served as Director of the School since 1986. Certified as a Medical Technologist by the American Society of Clinical Pathologists, he was the Program Director of Clinical Laboratory Sciences from 1978 until 1986. He earned his Ph.D., M.Ed., and B.S. degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Dr. Oliver is a strong proponent of scholarship and service. He has authored and co-authored numerous scientific, peer-reviewed publications and presented over 50 scholarly workshops at national and international conferences. He is a member of many scientific and professional organizations including the Association of Allied Health Professions, the American Association for Higher Education, the National Rural Health Association, the Midwest BioEthics Center, the RidgeCrest Learning Advisory Board, and the Mid-Missouri Health Education Center. In addition, his many years of leadership have been instrumental in the creation of the School Health Professions as an autonomous unit at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Kristofer J. Hagglund, Ph.D., ABPP, Professor, Associate Dean of Health Policy and Academic Affairs, Co-Director, Center for Health Policy

Kristofer J. Hagglund, Ph.D., is the Associate Dean for Health Policy and Professor of Health Psychology. He was a 2000-2001 Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow in the Office of Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), where he worked on legislation addressing patients rights, mental health parity, rural health care, health professions workforce, community health centers, and the National Health Service Corps. Dr. Hagglund has an active research program and has published in the areas of adaptation to chronic illnesses and disabilities, health care delivery systems, and professional issues. His current projects include a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to evaluate a consumer-driven personal assistance services program being implemented by the State of Missouri. He is the principal investigator of the Missouri Model Spinal Cord Injury System, a five-year research and demonstration project funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. Dr. Hagglund is co-principal investigator of the Missouri Arthritis Rehabilitation Research and Training Center, where he is conducting a study of health care delivery systems for people with arthritis. Also, he directs a post-doctoral training program in rehabilitation research funded by the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Hagglund obtained a B.A. in psychology from Illinois State University and a Ph.D. in Clinical (Medical) Psychology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Professional Psychology and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association.

Kevin Rudeen, Ph.D., Professor, Associate Dean of Administrative Affairs and Director of Research

Dr. Kevin Rudeen received his doctorate in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. He spent five years as a faculty member at Bowman Gray Medical School in Winston-Salem, N.C. before coming to the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Medicine in 1982. As a biomedical scientist, he received numerous federal grants for his research work on the effects of alcohol on fetal brain development. Through the years, Dr. Rudeen has taught medical, allied health, graduate students and medical residents. He was one of the architects of the very successful Problem-based Learning (PBL) used in the University of Missouri School of Medicine and has extensive experience in facilitating interdisciplinary teams. He also has extensive experience in writing and editing cases used in the MU medical curriculum as well as for use in various professional health care settings. Dr. Rudeen has served as a consultant to several educational institutions in the United States, Mexico and South Africa to aid in designing and implementing PBL curricula and has presented numerous workshops. As a Professor, Dr. Rudeen moved to the School of Health Professions where he is the Associate Dean for Administrative Affairs and Director of Research. He currently teaches a neurophysiology course and an introductory pathology course for the MU School of Health Professions. He is actively involved with the Association of Schools of Allied Health Professions (ASAHP) and is a member of the Research Society on Alcoholism. He has authored and co-authored more than 130 scientific manuscripts, book chapters and research abstracts, and has been an invited speaker throughout North America, Europe, Asia and South Africa.

Wei Du joined the University of Missouri-Columbia in March 1999 as a User Support Analyst, following four years with the State of Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Wei received his M.S. in Chemistry from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Before coming to the United States in 1990, he was an Assistant Engineer in Shanghai, China. Wei is currently responsible for all technical computer issues in the School of Health Professions.

Laura Flacks-Narrol, Administrative Associate II

Laura Flacks-Narrol joined the School of Health Professions in January of 2002. Laura works with the fiscal team in budgeting and fiscal administration. During her 5 years with the University she worked for the Department of Internal Medicine as an Admnistrative Assistant, Department of Physcial Medicine and Rehabilitation as an Administrative Assistant, and most recently with Outreach and Extension as an Administrative Associate I. She is currently working on her MBA at the University of Missouri-Columbia on a part-time basis.

Meichele Foster, Continuing Education Coordinator

Meichele Foster joined the School of Health Professions in June of 1999. Prior to her appointment with the School she worked as an Administrative Assistant for 6 years at an area business. She is a licensed practical nurse. She received her B.A. in Sociology from Columbia College and is currently pursuing her master's degree in public administration through the Truman School of Public Affairs. Recently, the SHP created the Office of Continuing Education. In September 2004, Meichele accepted the position of coordinator of continuing education.

Beth Hays joined the School of Health Professions in March 1999 as an Administrative Associate II. In February 2001 she was named Manager of Business and Fiscal Operations. In September 2003 she was promoted to Administrative Manager. During her 17+ years with the University of Missouri-Columbia she has worked for the Division of Pulmonary Medicine, UMC Integrated Technology Services and University Physicians Patient Accounts and various other administrative positions across MU Health Care.

Joyce Pfaff joined the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Health Professions as its Grants Specialist in April 2001, following 10 years with the MU Office of Sponsored Program Administration. As a grants and contracts administrator in that office, she worked with faculty members seeking external funding for research, educational, and public service projects. Her duties included assisting with budget development, review of grant proposals, and contract negotiation. After earning her B.A. in English/Education, Joyce spent 8 years as a secondary school English teacher. In addition to her writing/editing skills and pre-award grant knowledge, Joyce brought approximately 15 years of government procurement and contract negotiation experience to her position with the School. She is an active member of the National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA).

Margie Ross worked in various University of Missouri-Columbia departments for 30 years prior to her retirement on April 28, 2000. She has returned to work part-time assisting the fiscal group and CIGAP (Certification in Interdisciplinary Geriatric Assessment Program) within the School of Health Professions.

Chris Schenewerk, Billing Manager

Chris Schenewerk joined the School of Health Professions in January 2002 as Manager of Patient Services. Chris started with the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1990 where she worked with University Physicians Patient Accounts for 7 years. Just prior to her appointment with the School of Health Professions, Chris was a Billing Administrator in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in the School of Medicine.