The ABHES Board of Commissioners consists of thirteen members, six appointed by the commissioners themselves (either ABHES members or non-ABHES members) and seven elected by the accredited members from among its accredited institutions and programs. At least two of the Commissioners represent the public, as defined by the U.S. Department of Education, and have no affiliation with an ABHES-accredited institution or program. Care is taken to include in its mix academic and administrative personnel, and educators and practitioners. Each Commissioner serves a defined term and is held responsible to a strict Code of Ethics.
Chair: Linda W. Swisher
Elected Seat 7 – Commissioner at Large: Retired, Program Director, Sarasota County Technical Institute
Executive Committee
Dr. Swisher is retired from the position of program director for Health and Fire Sciences at Sarasota County Technical Institute where she taught since 1972. In 1977, she graduated from the University of South Florida with a bachelors of arts degree in education and received her master’s degree from the University of South Florida in 1980. Her doctorate of education was conferred in 1995 by Nova Southeastern University. Prior to joining ABHES, Dr. Swisher had been a site evaluator for the Council on Occupational Education (COE) accrediting agency and had been involved in both national and regional accreditation as well as state legislative matters. Dr. Swisher currently serves as a member of ABHES’ Officer Nominating Committee.
Past Chair: Guy Euliano
Elected Seat 6 – Commissioner at Large: President, Tri-State Business Institute
Executive Committee
Mr. Euliano brings to ABHES nearly 25 years of experience in post-secondary education bringing to ABHES an extensive background in accreditation, having served as a commissioner for six years with the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), most recently as its Chair in 2002. He was also chair and evaluator for the Bureau of Academic Programs, Pennsylvania Department of Education for the approval of Associate in Specialized Business Degree. Mr. Euliano serves as the Chair of ABHES’ Financial Review Committee. He possesses a baccalaureate degree in political science from the University of Tampa.
Vice Chair: Florence Tate
Appointed Seat 4 – Commissioner at Large:
Executive Committee
Ms. Tate has worked in postsecondary education for over 30 years, most recently as President of Potomac College in Washington, DC. Previously, she served as Commissioner and Chair of the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education and Training (ACCET) and has participated in over 300 accreditation evaluation visits for three national accrediting agencies, including ABHES. Ms. Tate serves on several boards, regulatory counsels, and advisory groups, and is a frequent presenter on issues affecting higher education. Ms. Tate serves as Chair of ABHES’ Standards Review Committee.
Secretary: Michael Schafer
Elected Seat 1 – Academician in a Healthcare related area: Vice President of Academic Affairs, Health Strategic Unit, Career Education Corporation
Executive Committee
Mr. Schafer is the vice president of academic affairs for the Health Education division of Career Education Corporation. He has worked specifically in the field of allied health education for over a decade and has been with Career Education Corporation since 2003. Mr. Schafer is responsible for guiding the educational activities at numerous campuses covering distinctly different health education and nursing programs. He is continually active in organizations, regulatory bodies and state agencies throughout the country that directly impact students and our industry. Mr. Schafer serves as a member of ABHES’ Standards Review Committee and is a commissioner representative to the Programmatic Accreditation Committee for Surgical Technology.
Treasurer: Kevin L. Kirk
Elected Seat 2 – Administrator in a HealthCare related area: President, Community Care College Tulsa, Oklahoma
Executive Committee
President of Community Care College and Clary Sage College, both located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Dr. Kirk is responsible for the daily operations of both campuses. He brings more than 30 years’ experience in higher education, health care training and business. Dr. Kirk received a doctorate in educational leadership from Brigham Young University and he is a C.S. Mott Foundation Fellowship recipient and received the Mountain Plains Adult Education Association Graduate Scholarship. He has served at the director and dean levels at Utah State University, The University of Phoenix and at three community colleges in Florida and Kansas. He also served as chair of the Division of Education Services for the Mayo Clinic and was employed as a learning performance consultant with IBM. Dr. Kirk served as the president of the Adult Education Association of Utah and was on the board of directors for the Utah Community Education Association and the Mountain Plains Adult Education Association.
Jim Buffington
Elected Seat 3 – Ownership Representative: President, Career Networks Institute, Costa Mesa, CA
Mr. Buffington has operated postsecondary institutions in the Orange County, California, area since 1981. He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from California State University in Long Beach and now serves as president of a family-run postsecondary institution, Career Networks Institute (CNI) in Orange County. Since its beginning in 1994, CNI has focused on health care education. Mr. Buffington has been a long-time active member of the California Association of Private Postsecondary Schools (CAPPS) where he has served as president, committee member, and now serves on its Board of Directors.
Nancy Houston
Appointed Seat 6 - Public Member: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Dr. Houston has been employed by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) since 1994. Prior to that, she served as Chair of Computer Systems Department, Grove City College, Grove City, Pennsylvania, for nearly 20 years. She has an extensive background in accreditation, including as a site visitor for Middle States Commission on Higher Education and the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, for which she served on the Board for several years. Her experience with ABHES includes membership on its Appeals Panel.
Dr. Houston holds an Ed.D. in Computer Education from Nova University and a M.S.Ed in Business Education with a Marketing concentration from Youngstown State University.
Janet Jefford
Appointed Seat 7 - Baccalaureate Degree Representative: Director of Institutional Effectiveness, Goodwin College, East Hartford, CT
Ms. Jefford is the Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness for Goodwin College in East Hartford, Connecticut. She is responsible for the Office of Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment which develops and integrates processes that promote the continuous improvement of College programs and services and serves as a warehouse for assessment information as it relates to accreditation, funding and other college initiatives. She also oversees the Office of Curriculum Planning and Accreditation which safeguards the mission of the college by maintaining current accreditations. Ms. Jefford possesses over 35 years’ experience in higher education, accreditation, and health care. She serves as Chair of ABHES’ Officer Nominating Committee.
Randy Nikola
Elected Seat 4 – Ownership Representative: President, Healing Mountain Massage School, Salt Lake City, Utah
Mr. Nikola is the President of Healing Mountain Massage School, Salt Lake City, Utah, and instructs a number of courses, including Swedish Massage, Zen Massage, Chair Massage, Trigger Point Therapy & Medical Massage, Hydrotherapy and Spa Training, and Japanese Shiatsu. Through his travels to eastern and western Europe he studied and taught massage, shiatsu, and hydrotherapy & spa treatments. He wrote a professional hydrotherapy and spa training textbook called Creatures of Water used at massage therapy training schools throughout the United States and Canada and has authored several other books on massage. He is a Licensed Massage Therapist and is the Past President of the Utah Chapter of the American Massage Therapy Association and has worked actively with ABHES on site visits as a massage therapy specialist and team leader.
John (Jack) A. Yena
Appointed Seat 5 – Public Member: Chairman of the Board of Trustees and President Emeritus, Johnson & Wales University, Providence, Rhode Island
Jack Yena is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees and President Emeritus of Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, where he has served in several capacities since beginning his career there in 1963. His distinguished career includes serving as President and Treasurer to the Career College Association (then AICS), Commissioner and Chair of the Collegiate Council for the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS), Chair of the American Council on Education (Commission on Educational Credit and Credentials), and as a member of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality & Integrity for the U.S. Secretary of Education. He has served ABHES over the years as a member of appeals boards and currently serves on its Financial Review Committee. Mr. Yena earned both his bachelor’s degree and Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Rhode Island.
The following seats are currently vacant:
Appointed Seat 1 – Practitioner in a Specialty Area
Appointed Seat 2 -Baccalaureate Degree Representative
Appointed Seat 3 – Distance Education Specialist
Elected Seat 5 - Educator in a Specialty Area