Jacqueline A. Hoying

Dr. Jacqueline Hoying is assistant professor of clinical nursing and director of MINDSTRONG™ at The Ohio State University College of Nursing and director of the Community Core at the Fuld Institute for EBP. A board-certified health and wellness coach and behavioral researcher, Dr. Hoying’s focus is on promoting optimal well-being, mental resilience, and reducing stress, anxiety and depression among college-age young adults, health professionals and adults. Her emphasis is on cognitive behavioral skills building techniques, which she teaches and studies.

Angela Surace, Treasurer

Angela M. Surace, DNP, APRN-CNS, APRN-SNP, RN-BC, CCPS, CNE is Assistant Professor of Clinical Practice at The Ohio State University. She is a founding member of OHLP.

OHLP Board

Dianna Baycich

Dianna has worked in the field of adult literacy for over 30 years. Currently she works part time at the Ohio Literacy Resource Center.

Teresa Rios-Bishop

Teresa serves as the Director of Membership & Development for the Ohio Association of Community Health Centers. She leads targeted efforts to enhance the capabilities of Ohio’s Community Health Centers through development and strategic growth opportunities, membership services, advocacy, and enabling services - such as health literacy.

Ruth Ludwick

Ruth Ludwick, Ph.D., RN-BC, APRN-CNS, FAAN, is a Professor Emeritus at Kent State University, Adjunct Graduate Faculty at the Northeast Ohio University of Medicine, and Adjunct Professor in the Marian K. Shaughnessy Nurse Leadership Academy at Case Western Reserve University. As a recovering academic, she continues to teach, write, research, publish, and consult. She is a founding member of OHLP.

MaryAnn Nicolay, Chair

MaryAnn Horst Nicolay, M.Ed., NDTR, has years of experience working with people who have chronic health conditions.  Using her background in health education and community outreach, adult learning and development, and health literacy, she has helped many through innovative educational programs and materials.  She is a founding member of OHLP.

Joyce Knowlton, Vice Chair

Joyce Knowlton, MSN, RN, CNS combines her experience as a former junior high teacher and bedside registered nurse in her role as the Network Manager for Patient Experience & Education for Kettering Health. She's on a mission to improve the patient experience by ensuring they are given the knowledge and tools to manage their health needs effectively.

Karen Komondor, Immediate Past Chair

Karen Komondor, RN, BSN, CCRN has conducted trainings and presented health literacy topics at numerous health care facilities and conferences. She has authored several articles and been a guest speaker for radio programs and local TV Stations as well as the Institute of Medicine’s Round Table on Health Literacy in Washington D.C. She is a regular guest faculty for health literacy at NEOMED-CSU Partnership and CWRU. She has been chair of Healthy Cleveland’s Health Literacy Committee since 2017 and is immediate past president and co-founder of OHLP. She is most recently chair of the National Council to Improve Patient Safety through Health Literacy.

Sandra (Sandy) Cornett, RN, Ph.D.
Sandy has 22 years of experience developing and managing an institution-wide patient education program at OSU Medical Center and 14 years as the Director of the Clear Health Communication Program at OSU College of Medicine before retirement in 2014. She founded the first Ohio collaborative for health literacy in 2007, which became the Ohio Health Literacy Partners, Inc. in 2013.

Don Jason

Don Jason (he/him/his) serves as the Health Informationist for the University of Cincinnati’s (UC) Health Sciences Library. As a faculty member, Don works as the liaison to the UC Medical Center. Don assists clinical care staff with grant writing, literature searching, and outcomes-based projects. He also teaches classes and serves on the library’s community outreach team. Don holds degrees in library science as well as health promotion and education. Don’s research interests include wellness and prevention science in communities of color, health literacy, and consumer health.