Morningside welcomed several new employees in fall 2020. 

Sioux City, IA – Morningside College welcomed several new employees during fall 2020. The employees are Kelli Flack, clinical-practicum coordinator for Morningside’s Nylen School of Nursing; Amanda Buse, assistant professor of graduate nursing; Anita Collier, instructor of undergraduate teacher education; John Gonsler, instructor of criminal justice; Jessica Meckes, instructor of criminal justice; Rosanne Lienhard Plante, assistant professor of accounting and business; Josh Nannestad, associate professor of music education in the School of Visual and Performing Arts; Jennifer Peterson, assistant professor of English; Jack O’Brien, head men’s lacrosse coach; Jared Amundson, esports coach; Theison Anderson, head men’s volleyball coach; Kayla Ruff, assistant men’s and women’s volleyball coach; Andrew Rode, assistant football coach; Jessica Squier, head women’s volleyball coach; Caitlyn St. Marie, head women’s lacrosse coach; Danielle Fennessy, area coordinator for student development; Wendy Balomenos, office coordinator for student financial planning; Carly Shideler, director of operations for admissions; Ben Kenobbie, admissions counselor; Anna Zetterlund, admissions counselor; Tom Chilton, admissions counselor; Samantha Hendrix, housekeeper; and Austin Hendrix, facility technician. 

Kelli FlackKelli Flack, clinical-practicum coordinator for Morningside’s Nylen School of Nursing. Flack teaches classes and works closely with the Family Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Nurse Leader, and Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) students. She is part of the first cohort of DNP students at Morningside who will earn degrees in June 2021. She received an associate’s degree in nursing from Western Iowa Tech Community College, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Briar Cliff University, and a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Phoenix. Prior to her role at Morningside, Flack worked at Western Iowa Tech Community College as the division chair of nursing and a nursing instructor developing the first nursing hybrid program in Iowa. She is part of the Iowa Health Educators Association and Iowa Nurses Association, and recently joined the Floyd Valley Healthcare Board of Trustees.

Amanda BuseAmanda Buse, assistant professor of graduate nursing. Buse teaches Advanced Pathophysiology, Complex Elderly Care, and Adult Primary Care, as well as Role Integration for DNP students, and she serves as the track coordinator for the Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner program. She earned her DNP in family practice at Creighton University and is the owner and provider at Mary’s Care Memorial Clinic.

Anita CollierAnita Collier, instructor of undergraduate teacher education. Collier teaches Survey of Exceptionalities and Practicum, Mild/Moderate Methods and Practicum, School-Parent Collaboration, Educational Assessment, and Transition in the undergraduate teacher education program. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Westmar College and master’s degree at Iowa State University. 

John GonslerJohn Gonsler, instructor of criminal justice. Gonsler comes to Morningside from Indiana University Bloomington. He received his bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University, master’s degree at Indiana State University, and he is working towards his Ph.D. at Indiana University Bloomington. 

Jessica MeckesJessica Meckes, instructor of criminal justice. She received a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Ohio University and a master’s degree from Indiana University. In addition to teaching at Morningside, Meckes is pursuing her Ph.D. at Indiana University.

Rosanne Lienhard PlanteRosanne Lienhard Plante, assistant professor of accounting and business. Plante earned a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Iowa College of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Morningside College. She has been an Iowa licensed attorney since 1996 and has held legal positions at a Fortune 500 company, Woodbury County Attorney’s office, City of Sioux City legal department, and a private practice.

Josh NannestadJosh Nannestad, associate professor of music education in the School of Visual and Performing Arts. He earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Boston University, Master of Music Education degree at Gordon College, and Bachelor of Music Education at Saint Olaf College. Prior to his role at Morningside, Nannestad held a tenured faculty position at Southeastern Oklahoma State University.

Jennifer PetersonJennifer Peterson, assistant professor of English. Peterson teaches American literature, writing, literary analysis and critical theory, grammar, and the history of the English language. She received a Ph.D. and master’s degree from the University of South Dakota and bachelor’s degree from the University of Sioux Falls.

Jack O’BrienJack O’Brien, head men’s lacrosse coach. Before coming to Morningside, O’Brien served at Piedmont College in Georgia, Boston Laxachusetts club teams, and Milton High School.

Jared AmundsonJared Amundson, esports coach. Amundson graduated from Morningside in 2019, where he earned three All-Great Plains Athletic Conference honors as a placekicker for the Mustangs football team and played on the esports club team.

Theison AndersonTheison Anderson, head men’s volleyball coach. Before coming to Morningside, Anderson began his coaching journey at the University of Nebraska at Kearney where he earned his bachelor’s degree.

Kayla RuffKayla Ruff, assistant men’s and women’s volleyball coach. Ruff previously served as the graduate assistant for the University of Mary volleyball program and played at Western Illinois University and Missouri Western State University. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Missouri Western State University and master’s degree from the University of Mary.

Andrew RodeAndrew Rode, assistant football coach. Rode previously spent five seasons at the Concordia University in Michigan and Greenville College prior to that. He graduated from Wabash College in Indiana.

Jessica SquierJessica Squier, head women’s volleyball coach. She comes to Morningside having served as the head coach for Northeastern Junior College for eight seasons. Squier graduated from Morningside in 2011 and later earned a master’s degree from Lamar University. At Morningside, Squier was a setter for the Mustang volleyball team and was named Third Team All-American and selected to the NAIA National Championship All-Tournament Team in her single season.

Caitlyn St. MarieCaitlyn St. Marie, head women’s lacrosse coach. St. Marie, who earned her bachelor’s degree from Cornell College, previously served as an assistant coach at William Penn University.

Danielle FennessyDanielle Fennessy, area coordinator for student development. Before coming to Morningside, she was a resident assistant at Benedictine College where she earned her bachelor’s degree.

Wendy BalomenosWendy Balomenos, office coordinator for student financial planning. In this role, she assists Morningside students with financial aid questions.

Carly ShidelerCarly Shideler, director of operations for admissions. Shideler helps effectively manage and administer all prospect and applicant data and mail flow. Shideler provides weekly analytics to help determine future resource allocations as well as contribute to the marketing efforts in admissions. She comes to Morningside with a degree from Buena Vista University, where she also served as the director of operations for admissions.

Ben KenobbieBen Kenobbie, admissions counselor. Kenobbie works with high school seniors in Minnesota and at the Sioux City high schools. He is originally from Laurens, Iowa, and earned his associate’s degree from Iowa Central Community College and bachelor’s degree from Northwest Missouri State University.

Anna ZetterlundAnna Zetterlund, admissions counselor. Zetterlund graduated from Morningside in 2018 and went on to earn a master’s degree at the University of Northern Iowa. She helps students from Nebraska and Kansas during their admissions experience at Morningside.

Tom ChiltonTom Chilton, admissions counselor. Chilton is a Morningside alumnus, and he works with high school seniors from Omaha, South Dakota, and North Dakota.

Learn more about employment opportunities at Morningside College here.