Staff

The Center for Nutrition and Metabolism Staff

	Sachiko T. St. Jeor, Ph.D., R.D. Professor and Chief - Division of Medical Nutrition, Director of CNM Dr. St. Jeor is a Professor of Clinical Medicine and a Registered Dietitian. She is a nationally known researcher in weight management and has served on numerous committees, including the National Academy of Sciences "Weighing the Options," and the Food and Nutrition Board's Dietary Guidelines Committee. She is a Fellow in the Society for Behavioral Medicine and has been trained as a behavioral scientist at the Pennsylvania State University Department of Behavioral Science at the Hershey Medical School. She has been in practice for over 30 years and is recognized nationally and internationally for her work in nutrition assessment, weight management, and nutrition in medical education.
	Raymond Plodkowski, M.D. Assistant Professor and Chief, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Medical Director of CNM Dr. Raymond Plodkowski is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and is also subspecialty Board Certified in Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism. His interests include weight management, dysmetabolic syndrome, and diabetes treatment. Dr. Plodkowski's responsibilities include evaluating and monitoring the Center for Nutrition and Metabolism's clients and directing care for patients treated with weight loss medications. He is actively involved in both patient care and clinical research trials. He is also Chief of Endocrinology and Metabolism at the Reno Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
	Jessica Krenkel, Ph.D., R.D., C.N.S.D., Associate Professor - Division of Medical Nutrition, Director of CNM Dr. Krenkel is an Associate Professor at the University of Nevada School of Medicine and is Board Certified as a Nutrition Support Dietitian. She has been an interdisciplinary team member managing patients with complex clinical problems for the past five years. MS. Krenkel has a certificate of Specialized Training in Adult Weight Management from the American Dietetic Association and she has counseled patients for weight loss and chronic disease individually and in groups. Geriatric nutrition, parenternal and enteral nutrition are included in her areas of expertise.
	Barbara Scott, MPH, R.D., Clinical Dietitian, Associate Professor, Clinical Dietitian
	Jolyn Wirshing, MPH, R.D., Senior Clinical Research Coordinator, HMR® Health Educator Ms. Wirshing is a faculty member in the University of Nevada School of Medicine. She received a BS in nutrition from the University of Nevada, Reno and her Registered Dietitian training from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Ms. Wirshing has practiced as a clinical dietitian and nutrition counselor. She has a certificate of Specialized Training in Adult Weight Management from the American Dietetic Association.
	Maureen Molini, RD, Group Program Coordinator, Clinical Dietitian, HMR® Health Educator Ms. Molini is a faculty member in the University of Nevada School of Medicine. She trained at the University of Nevada, Reno in both biology and nutrition. She has a Certificate of Specialized Training in Adult Weight Management from the American Dietetic Association. Ms. Molini is currently a nutrition counselor, HMR® Health Educator and HMR® Program Coordinator at CNM.
	Stacey Frattinger, RD, Clinical Dietitian, Special Programs Coordinator Ms. Frattinger is a faculty member in the University of Nevada School of Medicine. She trained at University of Nevada, Reno, in both psychology and nutrition. She has a certificate of Specialized Training in Adult Weight Management from the American Dietetic Association. She has practiced as a clinical dietitian and nutrition counselor, with an emphasis on weight loss, diabetes management, and chronic disease. She conducts client assessments and visits.
	Karmella Thomas, RD, Clinical Dietitian, HMR Health Educator Ms. Thomas received her B.S. nutrition with a minor in biology, and her Registered Dietitian training from the University of Nevada, Reno. She has practiced as a clinical dietitian and nutrition counselor.
	Suzanne Diectrich , RD, Clinical Dietitian, HMR Health Educator
	Mary Sanders, PhD, Exercise Specialist Dr. Sanders is an Associate Professor at the University of Nevada School of Medicine and Adjunct Professor at the School of Public Health. Mary is certified as a Health & Fitness Instructor by the American Council on Exercise (ACE) and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), a continuing education provider for a number of certification organizations, and a fellow for ACSM. Ms. Sanders has been active for over 20 years conducting research and developing curriculums in exercise sciences & leadership while training instructors and publishing internationally. She currently conducts individualized activity assessments for patients in CNM weight loss programs.
	Barbara Kohlenberg, PhD, Clinical Psychologist Dr. Kohlenberg is a clinical psychologist and associate professor at the University of Nevada School of Medicine. Her interests include behavioral and acceptance based psychotherapies; specifically, the role of shame and stigma in the treatment of addictive disorders and weight loss. She has been Principal Investigator or an investigator on several National Institute of Health funded grants, working on developing acceptance based psychotherapies focused on addictive disorders. She is currently involved with a State of Nevada funded research project on suicide
	Larry Pruit, M.A., Behavior Specialist Mr. Pruitt received his Bachelors degree from the University of Washington in Seattle, and completed his Masters degree from the University of Nevada-Reno. He is currently a graduate student of the Clinical Psychology Program in the Department of Psychology at the University of Nevada-Reno. He is working at the CNM as a behavioral health specialist and clinical psychology extern while he finishes the requirements for his doctoral degree.
	Lindsay Fletcher, M.A., Behavior Specialist Ms. Fletcher received her Bachelors degree from the University of Pennsylvania. She completed her Masters’ degree from the University of Nevada-Reno (UNR). She is interested in the application of acceptance and mindfulness-based approaches to increasing healthy behaviors. She is particularly passionate about the health benefits of exercise and will be focusing her dissertation on this topic. She is working at the CNM as a behavioral health specialist and clinical psychology extern while she finishes the requirements for her doctoral degree at UNR.
	Connie Fiore, AAS, DT, HMR® Health Educator Ms. Fiore received her training as a Dietetic Technician and currently teaches HMR® group classes at CNM.
	Candice deGuzman, M.D., Clinical Research Co-Investigator and Study Coordinator Dr. deGuzman is a graduate from the University of Nevada School of Medicine. She received a B.S. in Biology with a minor in Chemistry from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas before attending medical school. She is currently assisting with clinical trials at CNM and applying for residency programs.
	Lenore Myers, Clinical Research Assistant Ms. Myers has rejoined the work force after being a stay at home mom for the past seventeen years. Previously, she worked in psychopharmacological research for a company in San Diego. She is currently assisting with clinical research trials at CNM.
	Linda Nance, AAS, Front Office Manager, HMR at Home® Liaison Ms. Nance is the Clinic Administrator and Office Manager at CNM. She oversees insurance billing, contracts, medical records and databases. Ms. Nance also holds an Associate Degree in Business, in addition to her widely diverse work experience.
	Michelle Bonnano, Administrative Assistant Ms. Bonnano is currently working as the front office receptionist for CNM.
	Jenny Johnson Ms. Johnson has worked on the UNR campus since 1994 and currently, her duties include managing and monitoring the departmental accounts and budgets for the CNM. She also oversees the front desk operations.
	Jacquie Cheun, Student Employee
	Aimee Brock , Student Employee
	Diane, Student Employee