Meet Your AAPPN Board Members
A talented group of dedicated volunteers leading your professional association.

Danielle DeOliveira
Co-President
Since moving from North Carolina three years ago, I have worked at Peninsula Behavioral Health in Port Angeles. I enjoy community mental health and the challenges of working with a wide variety of mental health struggles.

Jean Tang
Co-President
I hope to be an effective liaison connecting practice, teaching and research science. I am inspired by the AAPPN mission and its members’ dedication to the profession. It is my honor to serve on the AAPPN leadership team.

Nikki Behner
President-Elect
I have been proud to be a member of such an active and progressive specialty organization. Now, more than ever, I believe it is important to highlight and market the skills that psychiatric ARNPs bring to our complex healthcare environment.

Kristine Highlander
Past President
I come to advanced practice psychiatric nursing through an undergraduate degree in English literature from the UW, 15 years in retail service and management mostly at Nordstrom, and a lifelong interest in psychiatry.

Danielle Waldron
Treasurer
I have been practicing for the past five years after graduating from Seattle University in 2013. I practice in community mental health and focus on addictions.

Sarah Kim
Student Board Member
My experience in community mental health has allowed me to see the importance of identifying and addressing systemic barriers to accessing mental health care and building and promoting effective systems across the continuum of care. I hope that we can use our collective experiences to advocate for our patients and support the PMHNP role.

Ginni Buccola
Member At Large
AAPPN has been a part of my professional growth and development as a PMHNP from the very beginning of my graduate work at the University of Washington.
What I have appreciated the most is the opportunity AAPPN provides for us to nurture relationships between one another as Advanced Practice Nursing professionals, connecting our different practices and geographic locations under one lovely umbrella.

Piper Buersmeyer
Member At Large
I am a board-certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner over the lifespan and co-founder of Med Rx Partners and TMS NW.
I worked for Western Psychological and Counseling for 6-1/2 years until transitioning to full-time private practice in 2014. In 2017, I was one of three PMHNPs who founded the first and only deep TMS treatment clinic, TMS NW in Vancouver, WA.

Leslie Hite
Member At Large
I have been practicing in mental health care as a RN for over 12 years. After graduating as a PMHNP, I moved to Okanogan County and currently practice in a rural primary care clinic.
I have been an AAPPN member since graduating and moving to Washington. I also serve on the AAPPN legislative committee, learning more about advocacy and connecting with other members throughout the state.

Steven Pline
Member At Large
It has been a privilege to learn from and with so many of you through the listserv, at conferences, in the CAYA specialty group, as an Education Committee volunteer, and as the Student Member of the Board.
My objectives for a board tenure extension are to (1) Contribute as a volunteer to help maintain and sustain this incredible organization; (2) Encourage student and new member engagement as our profession grows (3) Advocate for equal pay for equal work by healthcare providers.
Meet the AAPPN Advisory Board
A talented group of dedicated volunteers helping the association in the community.

Dana Dean Doering
CAYA Specialty Group Chair
Dana has chaired the Child, Adolescent, and Young Adult Specialty Group since February 2021.

Bernie Gilroy
Awards Committee Chair
Bernie has chaired the Awards Committee since January 2019.

Connie Huffine
Past AAPPN Administrator and Lois Price Spratlen Foundation Past-President
Connie is the volunteer liaison between AAPPN and the Lois Price Spratlen Foundation.

MaryAnne Murray
Rural Practice Group Co-Chair
Along with AAPPN Board Member Leslie Hite, MaryAnne has co-chaired the Rural Practice Group since March 2021.

Jane Soderberg
East King County Chapter Chair
Lani has chaired the East King County Chapter since April 2022.