Ginnie Uhley, PhD, RDN
MMNEC Chair- Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Virginia Uhley M.S., Ph.D. RDN is an Associate Professor at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine (OUWB). As a faculty member at OUWB she is appointed to the department of Foundational Medical Studies and Family Medicine and Community Health. She serves as the course director for the Endocrinology and the Medical Humanities and Clinical Bioethics Integrative Medicine Seminar in the pre-clerkship courses. Dr. Uhley is responsible for the development, integration, and assessment of the longitudinal nutrition curriculum (M1-M4). Dr. Uhley earned her graduate degrees from Wayne State University in Nutrition and Food Science with a minor in Physiology.
Dr. Uhley has published expertise on body weight regulation, cancer prevention, metabolic regulation of phytochemicals, diabetes prevention, and the impact of dietary fat intake on health risks, and medical education. Dr. Uhley is also actively involved in national, state, and community committees that review and establish guidelines for medical education, nutrition, wellness, and health risk assessments.
Abigail Solitro, PhD
MMNEC Secretary- Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine
Abbey Solitro received her undergraduate degrees at Ferris State University and completed her PhD in Cell and Molecular Genetics at the Van Andel Institute Graduate School. At WMed, Abbey serves as the course director for the Fundamentals of Biomedical Sciences 1 course, as well as the discipline director for both biochemistry and nutrition. Abbey enjoys conducting student-led medical education research focusing on well-being and lifestyle habits and is the faculty mentor for the WMed chapter of Christian Medical and Dental Associates.
Although Abbey thoroughly enjoys her roles at WMed, her favorite roles are wife and mom! Abbey and her husband, Sean, love to try new restaurants in West Michigan, and enjoy taking walks and watching Christmas movies. Their two sons, Henry and Harlan, enjoy playing outside, wrestling, and playing LEGOs. As a family, they like spending time with their church, trying their hand at gardening, having heroic NERF wars, playing epic games of hide and seek, and finding the best ice cream joints in town.
Laryssa Kaufman, MD
MSMS Liaison- Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Laryssa Kaufman, M.D. is an Associate Professor at Michigan State University. As a faculty member in the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, she has maintained a clinical practice in Endocrinology and Metabolism and served as the course director for both Endocrine System and Genitourinary System pre-clerkship courses. Dr. Kaufman has been awarded recognition by her peers for curriculum development and by students for her teaching skills.
Dr. Kaufman received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin and her medical degree from Thomas Jefferson University, where she also served as an Internal Medicine resident. She completed fellowships in Endocrinology and Metabolism and in Clinical Nutrition at the University of Wisconsin, followed by a research fellowship at Harvard University. Her research has examined nutritional influences on the neuroendocrine system.
Jesse Bakke, PhD
Central Michigan University College of Medicine
Jesse Bakke, PhD is an Associate Professor at Central Michigan University College of Medicine. He primarily teaches biochemistry and nutrition within the pre-clinical curriculum. He has or does serve as the foundations and the hematology oncology course director.
He obtained his bachelor's degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition from the University of Hawaii Manoa and his PhD in Nutritional Biology from the University of California Davis. He did a postdoctoral fellowship at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. His research has spanned obesity/diabetes to oncology, primarily around cellular signaling events.
Jana Simmons, PhD
Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
Jana Simmons, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Michigan State University (MSU) College of Human Medicine. Dr. Simmons teaches in multiple small and large group modalities and has been involved in curriculum development for biochemistry, nutrition, and parasitology content.
Dr. Simmons received her bachelor's degree from Alma College and her PhD from MSU. She also earned a Certificate in College Teaching from the College of Natural Science at MSU.
Melissa Olken, MD, PhD
University of Michigan Medical School
Melissa Olken, MD, PhD, is an assistant professor at the University of Michigan. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and her MD-PhD from the University of Illinois. Her doctoral degree was in Nutritional Sciences. She did her internal medicine residency at the University of Michigan. She has been actively involved in medical student and resident education since residency. At WMed she was the founding medicine core clerkship director, the clinical course director for Molecular Foundations in Health and Disease, and the co-director of the nutrition discipline. Her academic interests focused on medical education, curricular development, and the nutrition thread. While at WMed, she created, integrated, and delivered the clinical nutrition curriculum for M1-M4.
In 2024, she semi-retired to Ann Arbor where she works part time in primary care at the Ann Arbor Veterans Administration Health System. She enjoys spending time with her adult daughter, gardening, swimming, and playing with her dogs Daisy & Tilly. She is passionate about the role of nutrition in disease prevention and chronic disease management.
Jill Cherry-Bukowiec, MD
University of Michigan Medical School
Dr. Jill R. Cherry-Bukowiec is a general surgeon based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, affiliated with University of Michigan Health-Ann Arbor. She earned her medical degree from the Medical College of Ohio and has over 20 years of clinical experience. Her professional interests include medical education and clinical nutrition, with a particular emphasis on integrating nutrition into the broader medical curriculum.
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