Executive Committee

President

Amy Jameson has worked in Emergency Medicine for 10 years. She oversees a Department that has almost doubled in size since 2008. She is responsible for the business activities and administration of an academic Department that includes two adult and one pediatric Emergency Departments. She has initiated processes that are key to supporting over 90 faculty and all missions within the Department. She has fostered a culture of teamwork and accountability among the staff. Measurements of her success include balanced budgets, increasing revenues and low staff turnover. She views her role as a partner to the Chair and, as such, investigates and develops creative solutions for the Department to be a leader in a complex organization.

David Christiansen, MBA

President-Elect

David Christiansen is the Director of Healthcare Administration for the Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville. He has been a member of AAAEM since its inception in 2010. He serves as a member of the Benchmark Survey Committee and is also the past Chair of the Communications Committee.

David Christiansen’s healthcare career spans over 25 years and has included responsibilities as Administrator in Psychiatry, Anesthesiology, Radiology, Urgent Care, hospitalist and primary care programs. For the past 19 years, he has focused on academic Emergency Medicine, first in Arizona and continuing now in Florida. David’s combination of experience both within and outside of Emergency Medicine makes him appreciate our specialty and its specific needs.

Becky McGowan, MBA

Treasurer

Becky received her bachelor degree in biology and her MBA from the University of Colorado, Denver. She has served as the Vice Chair of Finance and Administration for the Department of Emergency Medicine for the past 8 years.

Jennifer Patton Muir, EdD, MBA

Secretary

East Carolina University

Jennifer Muir is the administrator for the department of emergency medicine at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University. She holds a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management, Master of Business Administration, and a Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration.

Dr. Muir has worked in higher education for more than 14 years in various administrative roles, including director of employment in human resources and executive director of business and administrative affairs in the College of Nursing. She has been in her current position in the department of emergency medicine for the past four years. In her administrative roles she has been heavily involved in strategic planning, program development, financial management, human resources management, and policy development.

Jennifer is the co-president of the North Carolina Chapter of the College and University Professional Association of Human Resources where she has served on the board for the past 10 years and is the vice chair of the Higher Education Recruitment Consortium (HERC) of the Carolinas Regional Advisory Board where she has served for the past year. In addition, she previously served as an at-large-member on the executive committee and has been serving for the past two years on the Benchmarking and Strategic Planning Committees within AAAEM.

Being involved and present in professional organizations which have a significant impact on the field that serve is extremely important. It keeps you engaged, informed, and inspired to contribute and to learn from others in your field. For the past two years, being involved in committees has allowed Dr. Muir to stay engaged and participate in moving the organization forward. Serving as the secretary on the AAAEM Executive Committee will allow her to make a broader impact by contributing to executive committee initiatives and continuing to participate in leadership and strategic initiatives within the academy.

Kain Robbins

Immediate Past President

Kain C. Robbins is the Operations Director for the Department of Emergency Medicine at Milton S. Hershey Medical Center (MSHMC) of Penn State Health. Kain received his bachelor’s degree in 1994 in Accounting for Penn State University. He has been in the healthcare industry for 19 years starting out as the Accounting Manager for a Health Management Associates hospital in Lancaster, PA. For the 14 years he has been working at the MSHMC with the first 6 years in the role of a Financial Liaison which support the Children’s Hospital and the Departments of Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Neurosurgery, Neurology & PM&R and now the last 8 years with the Department of Emergency Medicine. In his role as Operations Director he not only manages the operations of Emergency Medicine but also directs the organization’s pre-hospital services, Life Lion, which operate air medical, ground critical care and EMS programs. Kain resides in Lancaster, PA and has been married to his wife, Kimberly, for 23 years. They are in the process of raising the next round of Nittany Lions with his daughter, Katelyn, currently a sophomore at University Park. His Son, Kyle, attends State College. In his free time, Kain is a passionate Dallas Cowboys fan. He also enjoys camping, traveling, and is always up for a good meal.

Travis Schmitz, PhD, MBA

Member-at-Large

Travis Schmitz is the administrator at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, IL. He has a PhD from the University of Mississippi Medical Center and an MBA from Millsaps College. Travis has been on the executive committee as an at-large member for the past three years and previously served as chair of the education committee. he currently serves as co-director of the Certificate in Academic Emergency Medicine Administration (CAEMA) program, alongside Ashlee Melendez. Travis is running for another term as an at-large member to continue the exceptional work our executive committees have done over the past decade. Specifically, he has always had a concern for new member engagement and ensuring that we are doing everything we can to bring people into the fold. He has gained so much incredible insight from AAAEM and wants everyone else to have that same experience.

Steve Maxwell, MSM

Member-at-Large

University of Michigan

It is with great enthusiasm that I express my strong interest for the AAAEM Executive Committee role. My emergency medicine experience includes the last seven years as chief department administrator at the University of Michigan. Prior to joining emergency medicine, I held roles as the administrator for general surgery and the director of finance for the Frankel Cardiovascular Center, both at the University of Michigan. Other health care experiences prior to joining the University of Michigan include the director of finance at an integrated system in southeast Michigan, and other finance roles at hospitals in San Antonio, Texas and Panama City, Florida. I began my career in banking in the early 90s while living in Washington, DC.

My bachelor's degree is from Michigan State University and I have a master's degree in finance from Troy University. My volunteer experience with AAAEM includes the last six years participating on the benchmark committee. I have utilized this opportunity to focus on the research side of the survey and have been fortunate to be able to present some of the research finding on behalf of the committee to the AAAEM conference as well as at the SAEM Annual Meeting.

For the last three years I have also participated on the strategic planning committee and helped in developing the survey that was distributed earlier this year.

I have gained much from my participation with AAAEM and have found great value in using the data from our survey to influence decisions at my home institution. I believe that joining the board would provide an additional avenue for engagement and an opportunity to engage in some areas of the specialty that I find interesting.

I am excited to submit this letter and to be considered for this board. I have gained greatly from the society and appreciate the opportunity to continue contributing to an organization that has provided so much value to me. I look forward to a continued partnership with the other members and sharing how my passions, skills, and experiences can contribute to the AAAEM leadership team. I appreciate the opportunity to be considered for this important role.