2024 VONL Fall Conference

Dave Urso was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Conflict Resolution and a Master’s of Education in Psychology from James Madison University. He holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Colorado State University. Dave’s 20 years in higher education have included multiple appointments in student affairs, service as executive director of a nonprofit foundation, dean of academic affairs, and his current role as vice president of academic affairs at Blue Ridge Community College. Dave lives with his wife (Carrie), twin sons (Chase & Luke), and daughter (Belle) in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

President of MFW Consultants & a successful nurse entrepreneur, Phyllis is a healthcare consultant and has practiced as a Legal Nurse Consultant specializing in defense since 2004. During her nursing career, Phyllis has practiced in clinical, education & administrative positions in a variety of venues including critical care/emergency trauma, professional development and Subacute Care/LTC. As a certified personal and career coach, Phyllis specializes in the unique needs of nurses & other professional and family caregivers. She is devoted to working with clients struggling with the emotional impact of caregiver fatigue, untying the knot of their COVID-19 response efforts, and the challenges of career transition. She is devoted to collaborating with executive leaders in anchoring the resilience and sense of wellbeing in their staff as well as creating and sustaining healthy workplaces. Phyllis has served as the career coach for the Association of Perioperative Nurses since 2012 and was invited to be the career coach for the American Nurses Association-New York State Chapter in 2021. She has lectured extensively across the USA & Canada on subjects including but not limited to resilience, professionalism, leadership development, and creating and sustaining healthy work environments. She is very active on social media. Phyllis has also authored two books; Rediscover the Joy of Being A Nurse: A Holistic Approach to Recovery from Compassion Fatigue and Bringing Shadow Behavior Into the Light of Day: Effectively Assessing & Managing Bullying and Incivility in Healthcare.

Samantha serves as the Chief Nursing Officer and Director of Patient Care Services at Valley Health WAR Memorial Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital located in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. She is deeply committed to rural healthcare and critical access hospitals. Samantha's prior roles include flight nursing in rural California and serving as an emergency department manager, trauma program manager, and educator at critical access hospitals in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Dr. Erica Lewis, a Stanford d. School Teaching and Learning Studio alum, has engaged students from various healthcare and other disciplines in innovation methods for nearly a decade. She uses her expertise in this area, and her longstanding work implementing quality improvement changes with doctoral students, to motivate leaders to explore uncomfortable, yet essential innovations in today's world. In 2022, Dr. Lewis received the prestigious SCHEV Outstanding Faculty Award for her work in innovation. Her numerous publications on innovation and its assessment further enrich her wisdom about innovation and its application to the wicked problems facing healthcare leaders today.