Your Chapter Board

President and Membership Chair: Jodi Bloxham, DNP, ARNP, CPNP-AC, CPNP-PC

Dr. Bloxham holds the position of assistant professor (clinical) and serves as the director of the PNP-AC program at the University of Iowa, College of Nursing. Additionally, Dr. Bloxham maintains her role as a pediatric critical care nurse practitioner within the PICU at Stead Family Children’s Hospital, part of the University of Iowa Health Care.

President-elect: Samantha Lee, DNP, ARNP, CPNP-AC

Email: Samantha-b-lee@uiowa.edu

Dr. Lee is an instructional track faculty member at the University of Iowa College of Nursing. Additionally, she practices as an acute care PNP specializing in pediatric pulmonary care. With 15 years of experience, Dr. Lee has focused her practice in pediatric acute/critical care settings, bringing a wealth of expertise to both her academic and clinical roles

Immediate Past President: Mary Drury, MSN, APRN-BC, ARNP

Mary is a certified pediatric nurse practitioner and certified pediatric primary care mental health specialist. She works for Child Health Specialty Clinics (Iowa Health Care) and sees children with behavioral, developmental and mental health concerns in regional clinics based in Clinton and Dubuque, Iowa. 

Treasurer: Dr. Teresa D. Schenck, DNP, ARNP, CPNP-PC

Dr. Schenck is semi-retired and the Owner of Tots N Teens Pediatric Housecalls, a service that provides house call visits for children in Scott County, Iowa, as well as telehealth consultations to outlying areas in Iowa. Her practice and leadership reflect a commitment to accessible and personalized pediatric care.

Secretary: Katherine Scott, DNP, CPNP

Dr. Scott is a pediatric nurse practitioner who practices in the Blank Children’s STAR Center and with the pediatric hospitalist team at both Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines and Trinity Regional Medical Center in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Her professional practice experience includes child abuse and maltreatment, care of drug-exposed children, failure to thrive evaluation and management, emergency care, newborn nursery care, and inpatient pediatrics. She is also an assistant professor of nursing at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.

CE Chair: Hannah Jepson-Slaughter, BSN, MSN, ARNP, PC-PNP, 

Hannah is a pediatric medicine and rehabilitation nurse practitioner at ChildServe. She has worked at ChildServe since 2014, serving in the outpatient pediatric rehabilitation medicine clinics, with an emphasis in the developmental, home enteral nutrition (HEN), and concussion clinics. Through these clinics, she provides care to infants, children, and young adults who have concussions; are at high risk for growth, feeding, or developmental issues; have acute or chronic trauma, injuries, and functional impairments; or receive nasogastric or other enteral feeding. She provides education, interventions, and referrals to help children grow and develop to the best of their abilities. In her free time, Jepson enjoys spending time outside with her children and cooking.

Communications Chair: Chris Ries, DNP, ARNP, CPNP-PC

Dr. Ries graduated with a DNP degree from the University of Iowa and practices full-time in a local pediatric clinic, providing care for children from birth to college, with a specialty in premature infants and reproductive health. In addition to primary care, she is passionate about advocating for the nursing profession and uniting nurse practitioners. Her role within Iowa's chapter includes sending communications to all members, managing social media accounts, overseeing marketing campaigns, and designing and purchasing merchandise. Her favorite part of pediatrics is the wildly hilarious stories kids often tell.

Legislative Chair: Cheryll Jones

Student Liasion: Madi Loftsgard

Madi is a DNP-PNP student at the University of Iowa. She grew up in Waukee, Iowa, and received her BSN from the University of Iowa's Nursing Program in 2018. Madi's passion for nursing began at a young age, as her younger brother has a congenital heart defect (HLHS) and, thankfully, is now doing well. Watching him grow up with a serious childhood illness and transition to caring for himself in adulthood made her realize that there is a significant gap in care for adolescents. Working as a nurse in the emergency department has strengthened her passion for adolescents and young adults with chronic conditions, many of which are mental health-related. She realized she wanted to care for this population in a greater capacity than she felt she was doing as a nurse. She hopes to one day work in an adolescent-focused clinic to help bridge the gap in care that this population faces.