Dr. David P. Lawton directs the Master of Public Health program at Concordia, and he is also an Assistant Professor in Residence for the RN to BSN program. For the past two years, Dr. Lawton worked for the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) to help implement electronic health records (EHR) in the United States. Prior to that, he was the Public Health Informatics Manager for the State of Nebraska. Dr. Lawton was appointed by the Nebraska governor to serve on the eHealth Council of Nebraska and has worked closely with CDC on a variety of public health initiatives. He was instrumental in establishing the Health Network Alerting system (NEHAN) and the Telehealth Video Conferencing network in Nebraska.

Dr. Jen Janousek is a full-time professor in the Health and Human Performance department. Janousek earned her doctorate in public health, specializing in community health education. She is a member of the Public Health Association of Nebraska (PHAN), the American Public Health Association (APHA), and the Nebraska Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (NAHPERD). She is passionate about global health and has led students on health mission trips to Guatemala.

Dr. Vicki Boye is a full-time professor in Concordia’s Health and Human Performance department. Boye teaches courses in the MPH core curriculum and in the Community Health Education specialization. She is involved and worked with Four Corners Health Department, covering multiple eastern-Nebraska counties, on several collaborative projects and programs. She earned her bachelor’s degree in education from Concordia, her master’s degree in education from the University of Houston, and her doctorate in health education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Dr. Kristy Plander is a full-time professor in business administration and MBA associate program director. Plander earned her MBA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and her doctoral degree in business administration with health care administration specialization from Northcentral University. Prior to coming to Concordia, Plander was the office manager for a dermatology practice and a family practice. She also served as director of marketing and communication at Concordia.

Rev. Dr. Kevin Kohnke is Concordia’s director of the Master of Science in Family Life program. Kohnke holds a Master of Divinity, a Doctorate of Ministry degree in marriage and family counseling and doctorate of philosophy in human sciences with a specialization in gerontology. He served as a parish pastor and in deaf ministry prior to joining the Concordia faculty full-time. In addition to teaching and program development, Kohnke is completing his licensing in counseling with a specialization in geriatric care.

Dr. Renea Gernant is a full-time professor of communication and aging studies at Concordia. She chairs the School of Health and Human Science and is the program director of gerontology and human services. Gernant holds a master’s degree in communication studies and a doctorate of philosophy in communication and aging studies from University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and a specialist certificate in gerontology from University of Nebraska at Omaha. Gernant regularly researches and presents on older adult language comprehension and communication, spiritual care at the end-of-life, crisis mental health and animal-assisted therapy in crisis and aging services. Gernant serves the State of Nebraska as a member of the Board of Nursing Home Administration. In addition to her work, Gernant provides emotional and spiritual care through hospice and disaster services.

Learn more about the Master of Public Health faculty at Concordia. Request more information or call us at 877-497-5848.