Meet the Fellows
The current cohort of Leonard A. Lauder Community Care Nurse Practitioner Fellows come from a variety of backgrounds and share a commitment to using this unique opportunity to further their education and clinical experience to help solve the challenges they see in their chosen field.
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Joudelyne Altidor, CCRN
Hometown: West Palm Beach, FL
Program of study: Family Nurse Practitioner“When I found out I’d been named a Leonard A. Lauder Community Care Nurse Practitioner Fellow, I immediately called my mom, and we cried. Then, we talked about gratitude, the past, this incredible blessing, and what it means for my future, and the future of the hundreds of patients and students who will benefit from this amazing gift.”
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Amber Mia Bang, RN
Hometown: Berkeley, CA
Program of study: Psychiatric-Mental Health NP“Burnout is the biggest challenge both in my field, practice, and life. I’ve learned how important it is to take care of oneself and not fall prey to the self-sacrifice narrative that’s often present in healing fields. I want to be able to sustainably continue to provide care for others long-term.”
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Isabel Buckingham, RN
Hometown: Longview, WA
Program of study: Psychiatric-Mental Health NP“After graduating in 2025, I aim to partner with underserved children, youth, and families in a community or school-based integrated care program as a PMHNP. Through this work, I will focus on partnering with neighboring stakeholders, enhancing accessible resources, and empowering communities through preventive community mental health care. As my career advances, I also hope to integrate interests in nursing education, climate resilience, and quality improvement.”
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Silvano DiMonte, RN
Hometown: Scotch Plains, NJ
Program of study: Psychiatric-Mental Health NP“Prior to becoming a registered nurse, I worked for several years as a health educator at a social services nonprofit that offered mental health counseling and primary care to young people from some of the most underserved urban areas in New York City. I entered nursing for the explicit reason of becoming a healthcare advocate for this very population, learning firsthand how powerful and healing a supportive ally and a safe space could be.”
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Emma Gilliam, RN
Hometown: Plainfield, NH
Program of study: Women’s Health/Gender-Related NP“My goal is to grow into a provider who is capable and willing to provide empathetic and personalized care to her patients. Our health care system has become a massive machine that makes empathetic care difficult to provide. I want to work to understand the barriers to this care provision and begin to break them down in my personal practice.”
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Alaina Hall, CCRN
Hometown: Plymouth, MN
Program of study: Family Nurse Practitioner“The best nursing advice I have received is that there is no one career path. Nursing is an incredibly important profession in so many different ways. Every nurse has their own path, and that may be in the hospital or outside of the hospital. It is important for each nurse to find their own passion and route within the profession.”
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Moona Hamad, RN
Hometown: Irvington, NY
Program of study: Pediatric Primary Care NP“My father is a huge role model to me simply due to his positive nature. He has taught me to always be grateful and to always look for the good in any situation. Whenever a difficulty comes my way, I remember what he used to say to me as a kid: “tough times never last, but tough people do.” This has encouraged me to work through life challenges and come out stronger and more resilient than I was before.”
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Lisa He-Wu, RN-BC
Hometown: Caguas, Puerto Rico
Program of study: Adult Gerontology Primary Care NP“The experience that motivates me to work in underserved communities stems from my own struggle as a first-generation, low-income, Puerto Rican-Chinese-American navigating the U.S. healthcare system. My family and I faced significant challenges, such as language, cultural, and financial barriers, which made it difficult for us to access the care we needed. I am part of the underserved community, and these experiences have fueled my passion to address health disparities and provide care to marginalized groups.”
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Angie Mercedes Hernandez, RN
Hometown: Charlotte/Gastonia, NC
Program of study: Family Nurse Practitioner“Growing up in an underserved Hispanic community, I witnessed time and time again the effects that social determinants of health had on the people within my community. Years later, this is still very much the reality. I feel a connection and responsibility to families and individuals who may lack access to resources, such as health care. My desire is to serve as a voice, an advocate, and a mentor.”
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Daniel Huynh, RN
Hometown: Portland, OR
Program of study: Psychiatric-Mental Health NP“My mom and dad are my biggest role models. They grew up in Vietnam during the war and fled to the US as boat people. They spent a few years in refugee camps in Thailand and the Philippines before coming to the US where they worked blue-collar jobs to build up their lives. I have always been inspired by their resiliency and the sacrifices they have made to give me the life I have today. Despite their hardships, my mom is always finding ways to give back to those around her and my dad is one of the most humble individuals despite all of his successes.”
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Rabina Joshi, RN
Hometown: Kathmandu, Nepal
Program of study: Psychiatric-Mental Health NP“I am passionate about serving the most disadvantaged populations both in rural and urban communities—and I want to address health care challenges faced by underserved communities in my professional work. I’ve witnessed first-hand the challenges people face in getting medical care and maintaining their health and well-being in an underdeveloped country, and then again as an immigrant, adjusting to life in a different society. There is a significant disparity in treatment accessibility, availability, and awareness.”
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Augustine Kamara, RN
Hometown: Kalangba, Sierra Leone
Program of study: Psychiatric-Mental Health NP“As nurses, we often put aside our needs when providing care. This lack of attention to our personal needs can have a significant adverse effect on our mental health, consequently impacting the quality of care we provide to our patients. While it’s encouraging to see some workplaces introduce self-care resources […], we often don’t have the time to use them. Nevertheless, I remain hopeful that a genuine commitment to self-care will eventually become a cornerstone of nursing culture, leading to improved patient care and outcomes.”
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Haily Reicher, RN
Hometown: Warren, VT
Program of study: Nurse-Midwifery & Women’s Health/Gender-Related NP“At the birth center I volunteered at before starting nursing school, we saw our fair share of patients with trauma in their backgrounds, which is sadly a common occurrence in many poor, rural areas including those in New Hampshire and Vermont. One of the major reasons that I am pursuing a degree in midwifery is because midwives center the patient in their care through shared decision-making and an emphasis on bodily autonomy.”
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Antonio Renteria, RN, CDCES
Hometown: Laredo, TX
Program of study: Adult Gerontology Primary Care NP“My proudest nursing accomplishment is starting a non-profit called Cultivando Juntos right after college. The mission, which means “Cultivating Together,” is to make healthy living possible for Latino farmworkers both at home and in the workplace. Our nurse-led program was critical in addressing the rise of diabetes and heart disease within the Latino community. […] As community nurses, we developed a model that brought care directly to farmworkers at the workplace, an unmissable point of contact.”
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Gabby Romero, RN, C-EFM, RNC-OB
Hometown: Raleigh, NC
Program of study: Nurse-Midwifery & Women’s Health/Gender-Related NP“The periphery of healthcare is full of struggle and inequality. It is a place where wellness is a privilege rather than a right. But it is also where the resilience of the human spirit is clearest. I have witnessed people who endured unfathomable traumas welcome their tiny babies into the world with immeasurable gratitude and love. And, perhaps, that is what surprises me the most. Adversity does not harden my patients, but emboldens them as mothers. Working with underserved populations has fundamentally changed my relationship to nursing. What was once a career choice is now a deep calling.”
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Jazmin Rush, RN
Hometown: St. Marys, GA
Program of study: Women’s Health/Gender-Related NP“As a black woman, a child of a Trinidadian immigrant, and a first-generation college graduate, I have seen the inequities underserved populations face firsthand. […] My goal is to ensure these people are seen and their voices are always heard. […] The best nursing advice I’ve ever received was from my first preceptor, Charlie. He told me, “From doctor to custodian, you can learn something from anyone.”
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Alfredo Sanchez, RN
Hometown: Fresno, CA
Program of study: Family Nurse Practitioner“When I found out I was named as a Leonard A. Lauder Community Care Fellow, I was grateful, initially sharing the news with my daughters. A passage that I love came to mind, often summarized as, “to whom much is given, much is required,” and I spent time reflecting on my sense of duty toward others and what type of nurse practitioner I would become.”
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Maria Grazia Leon Sausa, RN
Hometown: Hayward, CA
Program of study: Adult Gerontology Primary Care NP“My proudest nursing accomplishment has been utilizing my education to work for Alameda County’s behavioral health department—it’s the county in which I grew up in and have spent most of my life. I’ve always aspired to contribute to my community in some way and was inspired by nurses and nurse practitioners I learned from in my previous roles at a federally qualified health center in my hometown. […] It was inspiring to see nurses in these community-centered settings that removed the educational, language, and transportation barriers many people experience when accessing medical care.”
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Clara Scott, RN
Hometown: Birmingham, AL
Program of study: Nurse-Midwifery & Women’s Health/Gender-Related NP“Midwifery care is underutilized in many areas of the United States, especially in the South. I truly believe that midwives are uniquely trained to provide trauma-informed, patient-centered, and holistic care. The biggest challenges are state legislative and health system restrictions on midwifery practice. Greater access to midwifery care across the country will provide positive outcomes for women and children, so I hope to bring this model of care back home to the South, expand access into rural areas, and improve outcomes for patients to reduce the maternal and infant mortality rates.”
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Brashay Woods, RN
Hometown: Baltimore, MD
Program of study: Family Nurse Practitioner“My proudest nursing accomplishment has been providing care to the youngest and sickest patients while assisting their families with the difficulties ahead. There are many individual moments that combine to showcase how truly grateful I am to have interacted with so many patients and their families. The best feeling I get while working on my unit is discharging a patient home after their hospital stay and thanking the parents for allowing me to care for their child.”
