Dennis J. Baumgardner, MD 
Associate Director and research administrative leadership of the Aurora UW Medical Group
Institutional Officer for Aurora Health Care’s Research Subject Protection Program
Editor of the Journal of patient-Centered Research and Reviews,  
Clinical Adjunct Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health

Dr. Baumgardner completed his medical training at the University of Illinois and the Rockford Family Practice Residency Program. He originally joined the St. Luke's Family Medicine Residency faculty in 1986 as Assistant Director, later assuming additional duties as Obstetrics Coordinator and Research Director. He later served as Residency Director for seven years. He then served as Associate Chair and Campus Director for the University of Wisconsin Department of Family Medicine, Milwaukee Clinical Campus. Dr. Baumgardner, who has received the Teacher of the Year Award from St. Luke's residents six times, focuses his instruction time on teaching research concepts and applications, staffing residents and teaching obstetrics. He received the Wisconsin Academy of Family Practice 1993 Educator of the Year Award; the Pickles Research Award from the Wisconsin Research Network in 2001; and the Faculty Excellence Award for Leadership and the William Scheckler Award for Best Faculty Research Project, both from the UW Department of Family Medicine in 2004. His research and publication focus is the fungal disease, blastomycosis, and geographic determinants of disease.

​Curriculum Vitae

Karen Blanchard
Senior Administrative Assistant for the Aurora UW Medical Group’s Research Core, Aurora Health Care, Inc.

Ms. Blanchard supports Dr. Dennis Baumgardner in his roles as Associate Director for Health Services Research for the Center for Urban Population Health and Director of Campus Research for AUWMG. She assists with the appointment, promotion and mentoring functions for the AUWMG campus faculty. Ms. Blanchard has been part of Aurora for over 15 years, 14 of which were in the Family Medicine Department as Academic Administrative Coordinator where she served as liaison to the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Department of Family Medicine.

Danielle Greer, PhD
Biostatistician/Epidemiologist, Aurora Health Care

Dr. Greer’s position is situated within Aurora Health Care and part of a joint effort by CUPH and the Aurora UW Medical Group to provide statistical support for improvement projects used to achieve Aurora (departmental and system-wide) and community-based healthcare goals.  In her position, she also provides expertise and assistance in study design and statistical analysis to investigators within Aurora and collaborating community groups.  Dr. Greer’s strong background in ecology, human and animal behavior, and statistics, as well as her more recent experiences in epidemiology, bring a unique perspective to CUPH and the Aurora UW Medical Group.

Dr. Greer received her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and Wildlife Ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Master of Science degree in Zoology from Southern Illinois University, and Doctorate in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences with emphases on statistics and estuarine ecology from Texas A&M University.  Dedicating 16 years to ecological research, Dr. Greer studied the behavioral ecology and population dynamics of dozens of wildlife species, principally birds (e.g., songbirds, woodpeckers, waterbirds), and their associated ecological systems found throughout the U.S.  During that time, nearly all of her investigative efforts were prompted by major environmental issues (e.g., overuse of water resources, habitat fragmentation, loss of biodiversity), each of which was intimately tied to human behavior and population growth patterns.

Dr. Greer later expanded her professional (and personal) endeavors to post-secondary teaching, focusing on such topics as ecology, environmental science, animal and human nutrition, population dynamics (demography), biotechnology, sustainable eating and living, and study design and statistics.  As a professor, she advised undergraduate researchers, as well as provided mentorship to and collaboration with graduate-level college students.  To this day, despite experience with more statistically advanced research, one of her favorite field research studies is one that was collaboratively-conducted by her students on the dietary preferences and sustainable eating patterns of city residents.

As Dr. Greer’s expertise in study design, data collection and management, and statistical methodology developed over the past 20 years, her professional interests also evolved.  Recognizing the effects of human health on the environment, as well as the converse effects of environmental quality on human health, she has increasingly encompassed human dimensions and socioeconomic and health-related patterns into her professional focus.  Her efforts to contribute and educate on these topics are also made through her position of Adjunct Professor of Environmental Science at Carroll University in Waukesha.

​Curriculum Vitae

Jessica J.F. Kram, MPH
Research Associate Senior, Center for Urban Population Health, Aurora UW Medical Group

Jessica J. F. Kram, MPH, received her Bachelor of Science degree in Medical Microbiology and Immunology (2012), as well as her Master of Public Health degree (2014), from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She joined Aurora in 2014 as a Senior Research Associate for the Aurora University of Wisconsin Medical Group and Center for Urban Population Health. During her time at Aurora, she has actively collaborated with medical and research professionals in the development, implementation, and dissemination of research. Additionally, she has facilitated numerous Aurora Institutional Review Board (IRB) applications and has overseen research projects to ensure compliance with IRB regulations and policies. She became a Biomedical Member of the Aurora IRB in fall 2016. In spring 2017, she was promoted to Manager of Translational Research. She was also given an Honorary Associate Appointment with the University of Wisconsin-Madison that acknowledges her collaborative work within the Aurora University of Wisconsin Medical Group, Center for Urban Population Health, and Department of Family Medicine and Community Health. Her research interests include infectious diseases, obstetrics and gynecology, population health, oncology, and quality improvement initiatives. 

Curriculum vitae. 

Marianne Klumph, M.A.
Research Associate, Center for Urban Population Health, Aurora UW Medical Group

Marianne attended California State University San Marcos where she obtained her undergraduate and graduate degrees in experimental psychology as an NIH funded scholar graduating with honors. She comes to us with a background in experimental psychology, with over 8 years of biomedical bench work research on the behavioral and neural effects of drug abuse and the molecular mechanism underlying chronic pain in sickle cell disease.  Additionally, she has worked as a research coordinator on several clinical research projects.
 
Marianne works in collaboration with Jessica Kram, MPH and Dennis Baumgardner, MD on numerous quality improvement and research projects. She plays an integral role in the design, development, Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, implementation and dissemination of investigator initiated research studies of AUWMG faculty and resident physicians. 

Curriculum Vitae

Karen Pankowski
Senior Administrative Assistant for the Aurora Center for Urban Population Health

Karen supports the Director of the Center for Urban Population Health and front line contact for the department, as well as assisting Dr. Dennis Baumgardner as part of the Editorial Staff for the Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews and supporting Dr. Michael Farrell in his role of Associate Research Director, Aurora University of Wisconsin Medical Group. 

Karen is a seasoned professional with over 20 years of experience with Aurora Health Care. most recently from Aurora Pharmacy Systems, where Karen was copy editor for the Pharmacy Capsule and Aurora Pharmacy Tablet weekly listserv publications, along with management of the Pharmacy Services website.  Karen was also worked in Aurora Graduate Medical Education as the Institutional Coordinator/Sr. Administrative Assistant overseeing Graduate Medical Education regulatory requirements and assisting the Designated Institutional Official (DIO) with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) institutional site reviews.