Elizabeth Menden, MS

Elizabeth completed her Master’s degree in December 2023. She is currently working as a Health Coach and Educator at Froedtert Health, where she executes client health appraisals with individuals, obtains biometrics, and discusses health and wellness goals during on-site health education coaching sessions.

Kaitlyn Hickey, MS, NASM CPT

Kaitlyn completed her Master’s degree in May 2022. She is currently working as a Sport Performance Specialist, and she is a Head Strength Coach for Homestead High School. She has a pivotal role in shaping the fitness and performance levels of youth athletes. Kaitlyn is committed to fostering a culture of excellence, resilience, and teamwork, instilling valuable life skills in her athletes that extend far beyond the realm of sports. She is also actively involved in the broader health and fitness community. Through individualized and group training she works with clients to adopt a healthier lifestyle through techniques in strength training, injury prevention, and nutrition, ensuring every client receives the highest standard of care.

Ian Karpinski, MS

Ian completed his Master’s degree in May 2022.

Jordan Kaluzny, MS, NREMT-B

Jordan completed her Master’s degree in May 2021. She is currently working with the Army as a Master Resilience Trainer – Performance Expert at Fort Moore (Benning), GA. In this role, she has the privilege of teaching mental skills, resilience, and performance-enhancement techniques to soldiers, family members, and DA civilians. She is also working towards obtaining a Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) certification.

Shelby Rozeboom, MS

Shelby completed her Master’s degree in May 2021. In the Spring of 2022, she accepted a position as a coach for the Schroeder YMCA Swim Team in Brown Deer, WI. During her time there, she coached many swimmers, helping them to improve their physical and mental performance. Shelby currently resides in Fargo, ND, where she is working as the Assistant Swim Coach for Minnesota State University-Moorhead.

Rebecca Beauchemin, MS

Becca completed her Master’s degree in May 2020. During her time at UWM, Becca received the Chancellor’s Graduate Student Award twice. She is currently working as an Exercise Physiologist at Patterson Physical Therapy in Severna Park, Maryland where she specializes in post-rehab fitness, injury prevention, movement re-education, and fall prevention. She is passionate about helping people achieve their full potential and believes that performance lies on a spectrum, whether it’s pushing a grocery cart or scoring the winning touchdown. Additionally, Becca is working as an Adjunct Professor at Howard Community College, where she has found her calling in educating students about sport and exercise psychology. Outside of work, she is an active rock climber and triathlete. Most importantly, Becca cherishes spending time with her husband and two dogs.

Joana C. Bromley, MS, CMPC

Joana completed her Master’s degree in May 2018. After her graduation, she started her own business called JCB Mental Performance Consulting. Joana continued to work with other professionals in the field and earned her certification as a Certified Mental Performance Consultant® through the Association of Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) in 2021. Currently, Joana works as a Certified Mental Performance Consultant and Performance and Development Coach at Inspired Training Institute, Inc. As a Performance and Development Coach, she specializes in cultivating professional growth and driving positive change for organizations. Joana’s responsibilities include designing and delivering personalized coaching solutions, customized workshops, and curriculum development initiatives. She collaborates with clients to identify learning needs and develop impactful programs aligned with organizational strategies. In her role as Owner and CMPC®, Joana has expertise in helping clients optimize performance and develop essential life skills. She has assisted businesses and clubs in enhancing team effectiveness, strengthening organizational culture, and fostering leadership development. Her experience spans various domains, including sports, business, and military environments. Joana is also a Certified Practitioner of the MBTI ® Step I and Step II Instruments.

Megan Jones, MS

Megan completed her Master’s degree in May 2018. After graduation, she worked as an Assistant Coach for Women’s Basketball at Luther College in Iowa for three seasons while also serving as the Assistant Coordinator for Athletics social media, graphics, and video. Megan was the Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Monmouth College for the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. Later, in 2023, she became the Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Carthage College in Kenosha, WI, where she also serves as the Athletics Title IX Designee and an advisor for the Student Athlete Advisory Committee.

Read Megan’s Alumni Spotlight – posted 1/19/2021

Alec Sawalski, MS, CSCS

Alec completed his Master’s degree in May 2017. After graduation, he accepted a role as a Wellness Coordinator/Exercise Physiologist at Walt Disney World, where he was part of a team spearheading multiple wellness initiatives across the property and creating and implementing different programs and events for the Cast Members. Currently, Alec works as a Senior Engagement Consultant for Cigna Healthcare in Chicago, Illinois. In his current role, he educates client groups about a variety of benefit offerings and creates strategic wellness programs for his client groups. Alec handles a book of business of about 30 clients and assists with their benefit and wellness strategies. He creates annual communication strategies to increase utilization of medical and wellness resources and communicates utilization to C-Suite teams to better understand the financial impact of their health plans and strategize on the ways to improve.

Ben J. Mendelson, MS, CSCS, RSCC

Ben completed his Master’s degree in May 2016. He is currently a doctoral student in the Health Sciences PhD program at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the Human Performance and Sport Physiology Laboratory. Ben is also a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (NSCA).

Courtney W. Hess, PhD

Courtney completed her Master’s degree in 2015. Dr. Hess has since completed a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology at the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2021. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and instructor in the department of anesthesiology, perioperative, and pain medicine at Stanford University. She is also a performance psychologist with Snow Australia, supporting the paralympic alpine and snowboard teams. In her role at Stanford, she is focused on the assessment and treatment of pediatric pain with a specific focus in pediatric pain rehabilitation. Her research focuses on the improvement of pediatric pain care through the development of integrated interventions, as well as the assessment and optimization of care team functioning and the improvement of patient-provider interactions within the clinical encounter.

Read Courtney’s Alumni Spotlight – posted 1/31/2022

Kathryn Markgraf, MS

Kate Markgraf completed her Master’s degree in May 2015, describing grit in an athlete population and comparing grit level of athletes across performance tiers (e.g., NCAA Division I & NCAA Division III). Kate completed a second Master’s degree in Educational Psychology in 2016, and is currently a Management Consultant & Youth Empowerment Advisor. Kate, a retired professional soccer player and 3x Olympian (2x Gold Medalist) was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2023. She was named the first General Manager and Head of Women’s Soccer in U.S. Women’s National Team history in 2019. In this role, she took on the responsibilities of working with the head coach in creating, executing and monitoring technical plans for the USWNT and all U.S. Youth National Teams. After four years in the position, Kate decided not to continue in 2023.

Kelsey (DeGrave) Novak, PsyD

Kelsey completed her Master’s degree in May 2014. Dr. Novak has since completed a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology (2016) and a PsyD in Clinical Psychology (2018) at Midwestern University (Glendale, Arizona). She also completed an Adult Rehabilitation and Health Psychology Postdoctoral Psychology Fellowship at Gundersen Health System in 2019. Kelsey is currently a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, specializing in health psychology, at Banner Health in Phoenix, Arizona. She works with adult patients to help to facilitate change by incorporating empathy, supportive listening, and therapeutic approaches including Motivational Interviewing, Cognitive-Behavioral/Behavioral Therapy, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.

Andrew Morgan, MS, CSCS

Andrew Morgan completed his Master’s degree in May 2013, comparing psychological skills use of professional oval and road race car drivers.

Stephanie J. Hatch, PsyD

Stephanie completed her Master’s degree in May 2012, where she studied the psychological factors affecting the performance of NCAA Division I football officials. After that, she completed a Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology in 2015 followed by a PsyD in Clinical Psychology in 2017, both from Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona. Stephanie is currently a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Partner at Flagstaff Counseling Center. She works with adolescents and adults dealing with various issues such as ADHD, mood disorders, life stress, and identity development. In addition, Stephanie has a specialized focus in working with athletes in areas related to sport performance, athletic identity, and sport-related clinical issues. Her approach is individualized and strength-based to empower her clients to discover their resilience and inner strength. Stephanie integrates techniques from Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to meet the unique needs of each client.

Jennifer Mackenzie Jacobs, PhD

Jenn Jacobs completed her Master’s degree in May 2011. Dr. Jacobs has since completed a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology at Northern Illinois University (DeKalb, Illinois) in August 2016 where she is currently an Associate and Endowed Professor of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Her research interests focus on sport and exercise as a vehicle for positive youth development. In addition to her academic pursuits, Jenn is the co-founder and co-director of Project FLEX, a sport leadership program for incarcerated youth.

Read Jennifer’s Alumni Spotlight – Posted 9/16/2024

Nickolas Davis, MS

Nickolas Davis completed his Master’s degree in 2007, where he studied sibling competitors in elite sport as well as sport legacy families. Currently, he is the Head Coach of Women’s Track & Field at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. In 2023, he was selected as U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) National Indoor and Outdoor Coach of the Year as well as North Region Indoor and Outdoor Coach of the Year. Nickolas was inducted into the UW-Milwaukee Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015. He was an Associate Lecturer in the UW-Milwaukee Department of Human Movement Sciences from 2008-11. He served as the assistant men’s and women’s track & field and cross country coach at Marquette University (Wisconsin) from 2009-13. He then worked four seasons as assistant men’s and women’s track & field coach (vertical and horizontal jumps) at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he was also an instructor in the physical education department from 2013-14.

Missy Skurzewki-Servant, PhD

Missy Skurzewski-Servant completed her Master’s degree in 2006. She then completed a Ph.D. in 2013 from Marian University (Fon du Lac, Wisconsin) where she focused on leadership and mentor-mentee relationships. Dr. Skurzewski-Servant became the Dean of General Education & Business Division in 2015 at Mid-State Technical College before becoming the Dean of the School of Business & Technology at Mid-State Technical College from 2017 to 2023. Currently, she is the Director of Recruitment & Talent Management at Nelson-Jameson, Inc.

Sarah Parker, PhD

Sarah Parker completed her Master’s degree in 2006. She then completed a Ph.D. at the Medical College of Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) in 2011. During her Ph.D. studies, she studied stem cell interventions in the treatment of hypertension. After that, she went on to complete post-doctoral studies at Johns Hopkins University in 2015 and Cedars-Sinai in 2018. Currently, Dr. Parker is an Associate Professor of Cardiology and Biomedical Sciences, as well as a Research Scientist of Biomedical Sciences at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (West Hollywood, CA). Her research work focuses on understanding the molecular determinants of vascular pathology and uses that knowledge to design new diagnostics and treatments for indolent vascular diseases such as aneurysms and atherosclerosis. Her lab, the Parker lab, uses advanced mass spectrometry-based techniques to profile vascular proteomes. The lab then employs various statistical and bioinformatics tools to convert these large datasets into new knowledge, with the goal of advancing the translation of their basic discoveries into actionable new clinical tools.

Michelle Kania, MS

Michelle completed her Master’s degree in 2005, studying burnout among certified athletic trainers. Michelle is a certified athletic trainer and strength and conditioning coach of over 20 years. She has worked with amateur to professional athletes from 8 to 80 years old on improving physical fitness, injury prevention and rehabilitation, and mindset. Currently she works privately with clients through her company One Day Better Training and is looking into pursuing a PhD in sport psychology. Outside of work, she enjoys competing in powerlifting, running, hiking, and spending time with her dog Vixen.

Holly Tamm, MS, CSCS

Ms. Tamm completed her Master’s degree in 2005, and is currently the owner of two personal training studios, Fitness Together Mequon, and Fitness Together Whitefish Bay. Ms. Tamm also works as the strength and conditioning coach at DSHS, and is the creator and founder of One Up Training, a mobile, female-athlete-only strength and conditioning company.