MCNP Leadership and Staff

Chris Reeves has been a nurse since 2014, and an AGACNP-BC since 2016. Chris is a graduate of the MGH IHP and completed a NP residency in Trauma Surgery and Critical Care at George Washington University Hospital.

Chris joined the MCNP Board of Directors in 2023 as Region II Director and became President-Elect in January 2025.  During his time on the board has been a driving force behind efforts to advance the MCNP legislative agenda, enhance programs to engage more members, and support new NPs as they transition into the NP role. He is excited to continue this work as he assumes the role of MCNP President.

Chris currently works as a Nursing Professional Development Specialist at Boston Children’s Hospital in Boston, MA and maintains a clinical practice in the adult Neuro ICU at Mass General Hospital. He is actively engaged in health policy work with the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners as well as the Massachusetts Chapter of the American Nurses Association.

Chris is actively enrolled in a PhD program at UMass Boston where his research interests focus on generating nursing science around novice NP transition to practice, professional identity, and considering how effective transition (yet to be defined) may influence outcomes measured at the level of the practitioner, the patient, and larger health care systems.

Laura Black has been a long-term active member of the MCNP, previously serving as President-Elect, Co-Chair of the MCNP Legislative Committee and member of the Legislative Steering Committee, having helped advance FPA legislative efforts.

With 30 years of health care experience, Laura is an expert in the design, implementation, and leadership of care management and direct clinical care systems for Medicare-Medicaid and Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans having served as Senior Vice President and Care Management Solutions for Commonwealth Care Alliance and more recently as Vice President Population Health Management at Point32Health.

As MCNP President, Laura has provided visionary leadership as MCNP continues to grow and evolve following the passage of Full Practice Authority.

Dorothy has been a registered nurse for more than 40 years, having worked as an inpatient acute care nurse and clinical educator in the management of complex critically ill cardiovascular patients. She transitioned into the NP role in 2020 and is now working as Nurse Practitioner in Transplant Heart Infectious Disease at Tufts Medical Center in Boston.

Throughout her nursing career Dorothy has been engaged in professional service, having been an active member of the Greater Boston Chapter of AACN where served on the Board of Directors and in multiple officer positions. She has been the co- chair of many hospital-based committees and more recently on the Tufts Medical Center APRN Council.

Dorothy is excited to bring her professional experience to the MCNP Board of Directors where as a newer NP, she is eager to champion efforts to support novice practitioners. 

Tracy Markwell is a long-term MCNP member who is currently practicing as a nurse practitioner on the Complex Care Medicine Service at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Tracy is a clinical nurse practitioner instructor and term lecturer at MGH Institute of Health Professions and regularly precepts NP students, instilling in them the importance of professional involvement.

Tracy brings her experience from the acute care setting and as an educator to the MCNP leadership team and is eager to support organizational efforts to advance and support the role of the Nurse Practitioner in Massachusetts.

Allison is a Family Nurse Practitioner at Harvard University Health Services and has a DNP in Executive Leadership and MPH from Johns Hopkins University.

With a policy-focused doctoral project aimed at improving access to treatment for opioid use disorder, she brings a unique blend of clinical experience and policy insight to her role as State Legislative Policy Director.

Throughout her career, Allison has demonstrated leadership through education, collaboration, and advocacy. She has served as a teaching assistant for graduate-level health policy courses, frequently precepts NP students in primary care, has served on multiple committees where she has effectively collaborated with other NPs and disciplines to advance care. 

As a member of the MCNP Board of Directors, Allison is committed to engaging members through active listening and open communication, advancing patient-centered policies, and promoting the role of Nurse Practitioners through education, advocacy, and inclusive leadership.

Mariyan Montaque is a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner and accomplished clinical leader with extensive experience in nursing and advanced practice. She has practiced as a registered nurse since 2011 and as a Family Nurse Practitioner since 2015. In 2016, she earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) from MGH Institute of Health Professions. Her doctoral research focused on diabetes management in the school setting and culminated in the development of a guidebook for school nurses.

Clinically, Mariyan’s expertise spans Family Medicine and Cardiology, where she has advanced patient outcomes through technology-driven care, complex heart failure management, and comprehensive chronic disease coordination. She has a strong commitment to caring for vulnerable populations, including providing medication-assisted treatment for individuals struggling with substance use disorders. In 2020, UMass recognized her team of Nurse Practitioners with the Advanced Practice Group Award for Outstanding Quality Improvement in acknowledgment of their measurable improvements in patient outcomes.

Mariyan is a seasoned healthcare leader. She has served as Chair of the Advanced Practice Provider (APP) Advisory Committee, acting as a liaison between frontline clinicians and senior leadership. Her administrative experience also includes roles as Clinical Coordinator and Administrative Nurse Supervisor, where she led complex clinical operations and optimized workflows to enhance care delivery.

As an educator, Mariyan has held faculty appointments as a Term Lecturer at MGH Institute of Health Professions, Assistant Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at UMass Chan Medical School, and Visiting Associate Professor at Fitchburg State University. She has taught graduate-level courses in Primary Care and Healthcare Management and has served as a Course Chair and faculty member for continuing medical education programs, developing on-demand curricula and podcasts to support the professional development of primary care providers.

Beyond her clinical and academic roles, Mariyan is deeply committed to health equity and maternal health. She serves on the Community Advisory Board for the EMPOWER study (Engaging Mothers for Positive Outcomes with Early Referrals), a nurse-led initiative supporting pregnant women. She actively supports initiatives aimed at reducing racial disparities in healthcare through anti-racism task forces and innovative programs such as BESIDE, which integrates doula expertise to advance birth equity.

Her dedication to service extends globally. Mariyan holds a Certificate in Global Health and has participated in international medical missions providing care to underserved communities. She is passionate about education, mentorship, and advocacy, and believes that through collective voices and leadership, meaningful systemic change can be achieved to create a more equitable healthcare future.

Colleen has been a Nurse Practitioner since 2019 and an active member of the MCNP since 2020, having served on the Legislative, Membership, Political Action Committee, and Research Committees.

Colleen is currently in practice at Massachusetts General Hospital where she works as a Family Nurse Practitioner in the Orthopedic Surgery Department where she focuses on pre and post operative care of pediatric and adult patients.  

In her role as Region I Director, and as a newer nurse practitioner, Colleen aspires to be a voice and advocate for other nurse practitioners particularly as they navigate the transition to full practice authority.

Shannon Kriehn is a family nurse practitioner with 18 years of experience as a RN and 9 years of experience as a FNP, having completed her ADN in 2006, BSN 2009, MSN 2012, FNP 2015.

She has worked in a variety of healthcare settings including 17 years in an emergency department, 5 years working in the prison healthcare system, 7 years in urgent care and for the past 9 years in primary care.

Shannon is the owner of Better Way Primary Care in Wareham, MA where she offers comprehensive and holistic healthcare for her patients and is committed to transforming their primary care experience.

Shannon hopes to bring the knowledge she has attained in starting her own practice to her service on the Board so that MCNP can better support NP practice owners and remove barriers to NP practice that make it harder for them to succeed and care for patients.

She is also eager to increase engagement with NPs in the Metro South, S/E MA and Cape & Island Regions.

Dr. Elena L. Freydin, DNP, MBA, ANP-BC, is the Chief Compliance Officer at Lynn Community Health Center, a large Federally Qualified Health Center serving a diverse population in Lynn, Massachusetts.

Since 2004, she has held a range of clinical, administrative, and executive leadership roles, integrating her expertise in compliance, risk management, regulatory strategy, and quality improvement with a strong commitment to advancing high-quality, patient-centered care in community-based settings.

A board-certified Adult Nurse Practitioner, Dr. Freydin earned her BA from Brandeis University and both her Master of Science in Nursing and Doctor of Nursing Practice from the MGH Institute of Health Professions. She recently completed her MBA at the University of Massachusetts Amherst Isenberg School of Management, further strengthening her focus on strategic leadership, healthcare operations, and system transformation.

Born in the former Soviet Union and immigrating to the United States at age 13, Dr. Freydin brings a personal understanding of the importance of accessible, culturally responsive care. In addition to her executive leadership role, she serves as Visiting Assistant Professor at Salem State University’s Graduate School of Nursing, mentoring future nurse practitioners and healthcare leaders in clinical excellence, health policy, and systems-based practice.

Dr. Freydin is committed to supporting the advancement of nurse practitioners across Massachusetts through strong governance, regulatory advocacy, leadership development, and the promotion of safe, equitable, and innovative care delivery models.

Sherri is a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP) at Tri River Health Center in Uxbridge, MA and an assistant professor of the practice at the Connell School of Nursing at Boston College.

Sherri has been a member of the MCNP since the mid 90s when still in graduate school and has remained actively involved - as a member of the MCNP Education Committee and as long-term Regional Representative in the Greater Worcester Marlboro region.

Sherri is passionate about her work as a PNP and educator and recognizes the importance of health policy advocacy in addressing barriers to care. In her role as Region IV Director, she is excited to get more involved in MCNP advocacy efforts and initiatives to support new NP graduates as they navigate the NP role.

Kristine has dedicated over 20 years to advanced nursing practice, beginning her career as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner in primary care before joining Boston Children’s Hospital in 2015. At Boston Children’s Hospital, she serves as the APRN Director for Psychiatry, Psychiatry Medicine, and Emergency Services, and maintains a clinical practice managing the medical care of patients admitted to Inpatient Psychiatry Services.

Kristine is committed to integrated medical and psychiatric care and advancing collaborative practice models to support complex patient populations. She earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice in Executive Nursing from Simmons University, where her doctoral work focused on developing and implementing a standardized protocol to optimize the medical evaluation of patients presenting with psychosis. Kristine’s enthusiasm for health policy, equity in advanced practice roles, and nurse practitioner education fuels her leadership and advocacy efforts. She is particularly interested in expanding access to nursing education for underserved communities and building a workforce that reflects the patients it serves.

As a Director with the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, Kristine seeks to advance policy initiatives that expand access to high-quality care, strengthen professional development and mentorship, and elevate the voice of nurse practitioners across the Commonwealth.

Catherine (Cathy) has been a Nurse Practitioner since 1992 and an active member of the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners (MCNP) for more than 25 years. She was a founding member of the Metro South Region of the MCNP and played an integral role in uniting the regions of the MCNP in its early years.

Cathy has held the elected offices of Treasurer and Corresponding Secretary and as a member of the Legislative Steering Committee and Co-Chair of the MCNP Legislative Committee helped lead legislative efforts to pass legislation for full practice authority for NPs in Massachusetts. 

Cathy is a board-certified Adult Nurse Practitioner and in 2020 became the first Executive Director of the MCNP after leaving her most recent clinical position at UMass Medical Center in Worcester where she provided specialty care in an outpatient Pulmonary and Sleep Clinic.

Stacy has been a member of the MCNP team since 2018, initially as Director of Operations and more recently as Director of Finance. In both of these roles Stacy has worked tirelessly to streamline MCNP business and financial operations and put systems in place to ensure the MCNP functions as efficiently as possible. With more than 25 years’ experience, Stacy possesses an innate knowledge of the specific needs of an organization and what is required for an organization to run smoothly and successfully.

Stacy is an ardent supporter of the NP profession and has been committed to increasing the visibility of the organization.  She has been instrumental in establishing important partnering relationships with other professional organizations. Stacy holds a B.S. in Business Management-Finance from the University of Massachusetts.

Elaina has been a member of the MCNP team since 2019 and in her role as Regional Program Coordinator has worked with our regional representatives to plan pharmaceutical sponsored MCNP education and networking programs throughout the state - including countless virtual programs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Elaina has also supported MCNP programming and conference appearances and in 2023 will be leading our conference sponsorship efforts as Conference Exhibitor Manager.