Emily Jones M.D, Director of Health Services
Emily Jones graduated from Princeton University and the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She completed her residency in Family Practice and her Fellowship in Sports Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University-Fairfax. Prior to becoming the medical director at the Keefe Health Center at Amherst College in August of 2016 – she spent 6 years as a primary care sports medicine physician at Dartmouth Hitchcock in Concord, New Hampshire.
When not at work – Emily enjoys spending time with her husband and 3 children. As a former athlete - she loves all forms of exercise and sports. When not running around – she enjoys reading historical biographies and working on the house and yard.
Alyssa Pawlowski, Nurse Practitioner, Assistant Director of Health Services
Alyssa graduated from Regis College as a Family Nurse Practitioner in 2010. She worked in primary care/internal medicine for 5 years before joining the Amherst College Health Center in November of 2015. She grew up in Western Massachusetts and slowly migrated to Eastern Mass for school before returning home after she graduated.
Alyssa and her husband have three children. She enjoys spending time outdoors, especially in the sunshine, and gardening, playing with her kids, relaxing (rare) and drinking coffee (frequent).
Mark Foelster, Physician Assistant
Prior to PA school Mark worked as a physical therapist doing inpatient rehab after receiving his DPT from Boston University. He graduated from Northeastern University’s Physician Assistant program in 2015. He has prior experience in the emergency department and most recently urgent care before coming to the Keefe Health Center in 2022.
Mark lives with his wife and two children. Outside of work he enjoys running, gardening and cooking. He’s a diehard Philly sports fan.
Mary Paquette, Nurse Practitioner
Mary graduated the University of Massachusetts in 1997, with a M.S. degree and certificate as a Family Nurse Practitioner. She held positions in college health services at Western New England University and American International College, as well as in emergency medicine at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield and Hartford Hospital.
Mary and her husband, Mike have 2 adult daughters and three grandkids who keep them busy. They enjoy staying in shape, playing golf and spending time on the beaches of South Carolina.
Shirley Moe, Registered Nurse
Shirley graduated from Bates College with a BA in Psychology in 2002 and Simmons College with a BS in Nursing in 2009. She has 15 years of experience working in healthcare and joined the Amherst College Health Center family in June of 2015. Prior to coming to the Pioneer Valley, she lived in Boston for 10 years working as an oncology nurse at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and as a triage nurse in obstetrics and gynecology at Atrius Health.
Shirley was born and raised in Machias, Maine and loves living in Western Mass because it reminds her a little of home. During her free time, she enjoys hiking mountains, relaxing with friends, taking long walks, and singing.
Lyndsay Gauthier, Certified Medical Assistant
Lyndsay has been a Certified Medical Assistant since 2004 and has over 13 years of healthcare experience. She spent 10 years working as a certified clinical hemodialysis technician at an in-center hemodialysis facility in Chicopee, and over two years as a Medical Assisting instructor at a technical institution. She joined the Amherst College Health Center family in November of 2016.
Outside of healthcare, her interests revolve around her two children and fiancé. She enjoys spending time outside with her family, whether it is hiking through the woods armed with a camera, fun-filled days at amusement parks, or lazy afternoons on the beach.
Miriam Santiago, Certified Medical Assistant
Miriam has been a Certified Medical Assistant since 2010. She worked at Mercy Medical Center for six years, beginning in Pre-Op and then Patient Assessment and Evaluation. She joined Amherst College in October 2017.
Miriam enjoys anything creative and artsy and everyone is her friend in her head. She has been overheard saying she's "an 80's baby but the 90's raised me." If you cry around her, she will cry with you. She's a mom of two, born in Yonkers NY and is fluent in Spanglish.
Shannon Izatt, Certified Medical Assistant
Shannon is one of the Health Centers Medical Assistants, who came to us from working previously at the Red Cross. She loves history, Disney, traveling, sunshine and cooking. She enjoys spending time with her three wonderful grown kids and loving husband.
Keisa Jackson, Registered Medical Assistant
Keisa graduated from Porter and Chester Institute in 2010. She worked as a Registered Medical Assistant in a variety of specialty clinics including dermatology, orthopedics, pediatrics, nephrology, thoracic surgery, general surgery, bariatric surgery, cardiovascular, and internal medicine. Her all-time favorite was wound care, including time working in Baystate Surgical Trauma. She loves working in the medical field-- her mother battled cancer, along with many other medical illnesses for most of her life, so her decision to work in the field was easy, she just wants to help people in any way possible.
Engaged and a mother of two teenage boys, her entire household lives for sports. She loves all home teams, especially the Patriots--has been known to say she thinks rooting against the Patriots should be illegal. She has a happy moment every day, which includes eating chocolate!
Silvia Cummings, Office Coordinator
Silvia graduated from UMass, Amherst with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science in 2004. Silvia started at Amherst College in March 2012 in the Alumni and Parent Programs department and started as the Office Coordinator in Health Services in June 2015. Silvia was born and lived in Czechoslovakia (Slovak Republic), before moving to the United States where she has lived for the past thirty years.
Silvia lives with her husband and son in the mountains of Western MA. She enjoys dance, reading, spending time at the beach with her family, cooking, bike riding.