Faculty & Staff

Elochukwu Jude Ezekakpu MBBS, MSC is an internist and associate professor of Medical Simulation and Clinical Skills in the Integrated Medical Education department, Thomas Frist College of Medicine at Belmont University. In this role, Dr. Ezekakpu will enhance the knowledge, practice, aptitude, and application of medicine through medical simulation and clinical skills. Dr. Ezekakpu created the OSCE Tonic Model, a pedagogical method to improve exam performance through clinical skills. The OSCE Tonic Model (serial number 88206078) is a patent, trademark, and copyright. Dr. Ezekakpu is currently writing a manuscript on physical diagnosis and clinical skills.  Dr. Ezekakpu is a certified reviewer for the United States Medical Licensing Exam for Steps 1 and 2.  Dr. Ezekakpu is passionate about educating, mentoring, and advising students. His former students loved him for his teaching style and methodology.  Dr. Ezekakpu is a Christian of the Roman Catholic faith. He is a third-degree member of the Knight of St. Columbus. Dr. Ezekakpu is married to Ijeoma and was blessed with four children – Onyi, KC, Kamsi, and Chichi.  He loves to watch soccer, football, and attend church functions in his spare time.

Dr. Amy Henneman has been on faculty with Belmont University since 2020, initially serving as an Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice within the College of Pharmacy. She completed a B.S. in biology at Emmanuel College in Franklin Springs, GA followed by a Pharm.D. degree from Palm Beach Atlantic University (PBAU) in West Palm Beach, FL. Following graduation, she completed an ASHP-accredited PGY1 Pharmacy Residency at the West Palm Beach Veterans Affairs Medical Center. After completing residency, Dr. Henneman returned to PBAU as an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice where she served for 10 years teaching in various pharmacy courses and maintaining a practice in primary care with an emphasis on the care of underserved patient populations. During her time on faculty at PBAU, Dr. Henneman obtained more than $130,000 in grant funding to increase medication access to underserved populations in Palm Beach County, FL. Additionally, she served as the PGY1 pharmacy residency program director from 2014 – 2020 and founding director of the PGY2 pharmacy ambulatory care residency from 2018 – 2020 at PBAU. In addition to teaching and training pharmacy students and residents she coordinated the resident teaching and learning curriculum within the School of Pharmacy. Her current practice is at Neighborhood Health where she provides medication management via telehealth to patients with complex chronic disease states. She has published several papers regarding expansion of pharmacy services as well as the teaching and training of pharmacy students and residents. Dr. Henneman is passionate about teaching and mentoring. She enjoys spending time with her husband and 2 sons, running, and a good project.

Dr. Judy King will join the Thomas F. Frist, Jr. College of Medicine faculty as a clinician educator in Pathology. Dr. King earned her Ph.D. in Anatomy from East Tennessee State University, Quillen-Dishner College of Medicine, and her M.D. from the Medical University of South Carolina. She completed an internship in Internal Medicine at MUSC and a residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at the University of South Alabama.  She has been actively involved with medical education at West Virginia State University, and Ochsner LSU Health Shreveport, as well as clinical service, research, and administration. Judy and her husband, Jim, have lived throughout the Southeast, but still call East Tennessee “home.”  They are the proud parents of three daughters: Jada, Jaime, and Jenna.

Dr. McClure earned her medical degree and completed an internal medicine residency at Quillen College of Medicine of East Tennessee State University (ETSU) and served on the faculty with an active clinical practice.  She is board certified in internal medicine and geriatrics.  In addition, she served as the Associate Dean for Student Affairs. Following her tenure at ETSU, Dr. McClure joined Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) School of Medicine at Amarillo, where she was the Founding Associate Regional Dean for Faculty Development and was co-Principal Investigator of a National Science Foundation grant for the recruitment, retention, and promotion of women.  Later, appointed the Myrick-Myers Endowed Chair in Geriatric Medicine and division chief, she grew the division from one faculty member to an interdisciplinary team of 10, consisting of geriatricians, geriatrics advanced nurse practice, geriatrics-specialty pharmacists, and physical therapy.  In addition, she was also the director of the Center of Excellence; principal investigator of the federally-designated TTUSHC Geriatric Education Center (GEC); co-investigator on a Donald Reynolds Foundation grant (Cohort 3); and director of the  TTUHSC Alzheimer’s Academy, which was one of its kind in the nation partnered with an Area Agency on Aging and Alzheimer’s Association enabling a geriatrics interdisciplinary team to provide free consultation and outreach to the family caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s. Prior to joining the faculty at Frist College of Medicine at Belmont University as the Founding Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs, she served at Meharry Medical College as the Executive Vice Dean for Student and Academic Affairs, where she continued to have an active geriatrics clinical practice and was a Clinical Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine as faculty for the Geriatric Medicine Fellowship Program.

Dr. Jeff Smith was born and raised in Texas, where he earned a B.S. in Biology from Abilene Christian University, followed by his M.D. and his residency training both at Texas Tech University School of Medicine (Lubbock, TX). He is board certified by the American Board of Family Medicine. After spending time in a group clinical practice in Lubbock, TX, Dr. Smith joined Lubbock Christian University in July 2005 to establish the LCU Medical Clinic. He served as physician and director of the clinic for 17 years, providing care to both students and employees, while also serving as team physician for the LCU athletic teams (NCAA D-II) and working occasional ER shifts in the community. He also served as a clinical preceptor and adjunct medical school faculty for Texas Tech, working with 2nd through 4th year medical students.

In the summer of 2022, Dr. Smith and his wife moved to Tennessee to join the inaugural faculty of Belmont’s new Frist College of Medicine. He considers it a blessing to have an opportunity to contribute to the medical education of future physicians within a Christian atmosphere.  He and his wife have two sons back in Texas, one in medical school and one in college studying ag business and playing baseball.

Dr. Atkinson comes to us with nine years of experience in higher education. Before joining the Frist College of Medicine at Belmont University, Dr. Atkinson was the Assistant Director for Medical Student Affairs at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, overseeing student organizations and events, while implementing wellness programming. He has also served as the Assistant Dean for Student Life and Engagement at Tennessee State University and Chief Operating Officer for the Center for Non-profit Management of Nashville.

 Dr. Atkinson earned a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, a Master’s degree in Business Administration in Finance & Marketing from Tennessee State University, and a Master of Divinity degree from Vanderbilt University. He completed his Ed.D. in Higher Education Administration in Organization and Strategic Planning from Lipscomb University.

 Dr. Atkinson is passionate about working with students and student organizations related to student engagement, student development, and wellness. 

Dr. Jackson received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard Payne University,  Master of Education degree from The University of Texas at Austin, and Doctor of Education degree from the University of Mary-Hardin Baylor.  Dr. Jackson has worked for over 20 years in higher education, including 11 years at the Long School of Medicine in San Antonio, TX, where he most recently served as the Director of Curriculum Evaluation. 

Dr. Marsh has over 20 years of health professions administrative experience. Having served as a Health Professions Advisor at Baylor University, the University of Texas at Austin, Temple University, as the Director of Health Professions Advising at Southern Methodist University, and as the Admissions Director of Temple University’s CST Post Baccalaureate Pre-Health Program. He now serves as the Director of Pathway Programs and Recruitment at The Thomas F. Frist, Jr. College of Medicine at Belmont University.

In addition to his extensive professional advising experience, Dr. Marsh currently holds roles on the National Association of Advisors to the Health Professions (NAAHP) Technology Committee and serves as Co-Chair of the NAAHP Postbac Committee. He has previously held roles as the Communications Director and member of the Executive Board for the Northeast Association of Advisors to the Health Professions (NEAAHP), as the Webmaster for the Texas Association of Advisors to the Health Professions (TAAHP), and as a member of the Texas Health Education Service Advisory Council.

 Dr. Marsh holds an undergraduate and graduate degree from Baylor University and a doctoral degree from Temple University.

An alumnus of Belmont University, John earned his Bachelor of Business Administration in 2000. After 10 years working in music publishing, he transitioned to higher education and spent 12 years at Meharry Medical College working in clinical skills, simulation and curricular support as a Project Coordinator. He brings his knowledge and experience to the division of Student Affairs and Diversity at the Frist College of Medicine.

Holly earned her bachelor’s degrees in Chemistry and in Mathematics from the University of North Dakota and her M.S. in Chemistry from the University of Utah.  After completing her education, she worked in biotech companies designing laboratory automation processes, writing and modifying software for machine control, and creating novel methods for information analysis.  She has also served several years in secondary education. Holly most recently worked at Belmont as an adjunct faculty in Chemistry, in the College of Sciences and Mathematics.

Dr. Riley earned her M.Ed. in Administration and Supervision from Tennessee State University and her Doctor of Education in Leadership from Trevecca Nazarene University. Before joining Belmont in fall 2020, Riley served as the Director of Enrollment Services in the Division of Enrollment Management at Tennessee State University and formerly served as the Assistant Dean of Student Engagement at Fisk University. 

Jean’s entire professional career has been devoted to graduate health science admissions where she is passionate about encouraging and supporting learners to achieve their goals. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Buena Vista University where she majored in Corporate Communication and minored in Business. She then went on to complete her Master of Science degree in Higher Education with an Enrollment Management emphasis at Drexel University. Her introduction to higher education admissions began when she served as an Office of Admissions intern at her alma mater, Buena Vista University. A native Iowan, her first professional job after college was as an admission assistant, then admission coordinator at Des Moines University, a graduate health professions university with programs in osteopathic and podiatric medicine, physical therapy, physician assistant, public health, and health administration. Jean went on to serve as the Assistant Director for Recruitment at the Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago, Illinois. Most notably, she served as the Founding Director of Admissions at the Western Michigan University Homer Stryker, M.D. School of Medicine in Kalamazoo, Michigan. In that role, she was instrumental in implementing their holistic review admissions process (balancing academic preparation with a wide variety of experiences and attributed aligned with the institutional mission) to select the inaugural and subsequent classes, worked collaboratively with the Admissions Committee Chair to facilitate meetings, served as the admissions contact to the AMCAS and the AAMC, tracked and reported admissions data internally and externally, contributed significantly to the DCI, as well as informed the design of interview days. These are just a few of her accomplishments. In 2016, she was promoted to Assistant Dean for Admissions and Student Life where she assumed additional responsibility for overseeing student organizations, responding to student concerns, and leading teams to plan and execute major student events such as the White Coat Ceremony, Match Day, etc.

Jakima’s career in academic administration began in the dean’s office at Morehouse School of Medicine followed by 4 years of dedicated service and support at Meharry Medical College. She brings leadership and faculty support experience to the Department of Medical Education, as medical education coordinator, working alongside the department chair, faculty, and staff. 

Hope received her Bachelor's Degree in Education from Ottawa University and her Master’s Degree in Education from Northern Arizona University. She brings more than twenty years of expertise in the educational leadership field to Thomas F. Frist, Jr. College of Medicine at Belmont University. Prior to joining Belmont University, she served as the Multitiered System of Supports Coordinator for the Arizona Virtual Academy/Insight Academy of Arizona, was in the classroom as a teacher, an Educational Coordinator and Trainer for the Arizona Character Education Foundation, as well as a Program Specialist for the Arizona Department of Education. In addition to her wide variety of experience working in educational leadership roles, Hope also brings a unique perspective on mentorship and caring for individuals from her sixteen years in part-time and full-time ministry. Her strong community leadership skills and ability to organize departmental processes and procedures make her a valuable asset to our Belmont team.

Terrell received his Bachelor of Applied Science degree in Industrial Management and Graphic Design from the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith. He earned the Master of Science Degree in College Student Personnel and Counseling Services from Arkansas Tech University.  Currently, Terrell is pursuing a Doctor of Education Degree in Instructional Technology at the American College of Education in Indianapolis, Indiana.  He brings more than ten years of higher education experience, most recently working as an Assistant Dean for Special Programs at Meharry School of Medicine. He has expertise in accreditation, program review and compliance, curriculum design, faculty development, grant development and management, student success, and testing operations. 

Vincent received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology with a minor in International Studies from Austin Peay State University. He earned his Master of Science Degree in Human Development and Leadership, focusing on College Student Personnel, from Murray State University. Vincent brings more than ten years of higher education experience to the Frist College of Medicine, most recently working as an Educational Skills Specialist and Student Disability Coordinator at Meharry Medical College, serving students across the School of Medicine, School of Dentistry, School of Graduate Studies and Research, and the School of Applied Computational Sciences. He has expertise in student development and success, disability services, student programming, and learning modalities.  

Vincent will work in our Accreditation, Curriculum, and CQI Unit within the Office of Faculty and Academic Affairs to support faculty in developing and delivering the medical school curriculum. He will also have an intricate role in designing and launching FCoM’s curriculum mapping inventory processes and integrating new instructional technologies (i.e., iPad Program) into our curriculum. 

Dr. Shavonia Wynn joins the Frist College of Medicine at Belmont University as the Director of Student Success Programs with 10 years’ experience in medical education testing (MCAT, Coursework, Shelf Exams, and USMLE Step 1 & 2) and over 15 years of experience within higher education learning and academic support. Before joining Belmont, she managed the Johns Hopkins JUMP program whose mission is to promote the success of students from underrepresented populations that are interested in pursuing careers in medicine and other health professions. In addition to her extensive professional experience, Dr. Wynn is currently the Chair of the National Medical Education Learning Specialist Group (MELS).

Prior to Hopkins, Dr. Wynn worked for eight years at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix as a Learning Specialist for post-bac premed students and traditionally admitted medical students. In this role, she worked directly with medical students, coaching them from matriculation to graduation, USMLE board prep, and teaching ‘Learning in Medicine’ courses.

A native of Columbus, Ohio, Dr. Wynn earned her M.Ed. in Student Affairs – Higher Education Administration at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and her PhD in Curriculum & Instruction from Northern Arizona University. Her dissertation focused on improving MCAT multiple choice question reasoning and self-efficacy among Black pre-med students.