The CEO/President and all key officers, faculty and staff of the University maintain close alliances and network with distinguished colleagues in the allied health industry. The University actively participates in major industry events and activities, and in doing so has earned the trust and respect of leading practitioners in public and private allied health organizations and of members of allied health associations. This strategic network of professional kinship serves the University well in many ways, chiefly in recruiting the services of the best and the brightest in the industry.
Caroll Ryan, PhD
President/CEO
Dr. Carol Ryan is an accomplished hands-on leader with more than 24 years of experience in higher education serving in executive, administrative, academic, and instructional capacities. She has been instrumental in developing and launching new academic programs, and has successfully lead numerous accreditation efforts with regional, national, and programmatic accrediting bodies. She was appointed by the AUHS Board of Trustees in 2017 to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Ryan is active in several professional organizations. She has served on numerous accreditation teams as an educational standards evaluator and subject matter expert for DEAC and was a member of the Research and Educational Standards sub-Committee and the Appeals Panel. She chairs WASC accreditation visits. Dr. Ryan earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University at Fullerton, a Master of Arts from Azusa Pacific University, and a PhD from Northcentral University.
Marilyn Uvero, PhD (c), EdD, MSN, RN
Provost/CNA/Vice-President/Chief Operating Officer
Dr. Marilyn Uvero’s professional career as an education executive expands over 30 years and includes holding several positions as provost, Dean of student affairs, member of the academic senate, and Chair of nursing programs. Dr. Uvero has been successful in establishing strategic and operational plans, developing new programs, and strengthening competitive market positions. She has been inducted by Walden University as selected Honoree Member by Pi Alpha Alpha, National Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration based on her academic performance and professional contributions. Dr. Uvero holds a PhD in Higher Education Leadership from Nova Southeastern University and a MS in Nursing Education from California State University, Dominguez Hills. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Public Policy and Administration at Walden University in the School of Public Policy, completing her dissertation.
Sandy Sarge, MACC
Chief Financial Officer
Sandy Sarge, MACC, has over 26 years of collaborative financial, operational, and technical leadership experience. Her previous experience includes 10+ years in higher education where she owned her own consulting firm specializing in finance and financial aid compliance, accounting operations, and strategic leadership. Sandy is an accomplished public advocate, speaker, and a newly selected WASC Peer Reviewer. Most recently, she was appointed to the US Department of Education’s Gainful Employment Negotiated Rulemaking Committee as a primary negotiator. Ms. Sarge holds a Master of Accountancy from the University of South Carolina, and Bachelor of Business Administration from Texas A&M University and was an actively licensed CPAV for over 10 years (currently inactive, in good standing).
Arjun Dutta, PhD, B.Pharm
Dean, School of Pharmacy
Dr. Dutta specializes in Outcomes Research including the areas of Pharmacoeconomics, Quality of Life, and Epidemiology. He is also passionate about Pharmacy Education and assessing curriculum, student admissions, progression, and retention. Dr. Dutta has successfully started three pharmacy programs as a founding administrator in Oregon, New York, and California. His decanal appointments include serving as the Interim Dean as well as Sr. Associate/Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs at three new colleges of pharmacy. Prior to joining academia, he was an Outcomes Manager at a health economics firm specializing in Phase IV research for pharmaceutical companies. Dr. Dutta holds a BS degree in Pharmacy from Jadavpur University in India as well as a Ph.D. in Pharmacy Administration from the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University.
Mohammed A. Islam, PhD, RPh
Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
Dr. Islam currently serves as the Senior Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the American University of Health Sciences (AUHS) School of Pharmacy. Dr. Islam has more than 20 years of academic research, teaching, pharmacy practice, and administrative experiences. Prior to joining AUHS in February 2019, he served as Assistant Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Pharmacology at West Coast University School of Pharmacy.
Dr. Islam went to Toyama University in Japan where he earned MPhil and PhD degrees in Pharmaceutical Sciences. He earned his master's and bachelor's degrees in pharmacy from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Dr. Islam has extensive research experience with more than 65 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference abstracts. His current research interests include pharmacy curriculum, global pharmacy education, and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). Dr. Islam’s research has been published in leading pharmacy education journals and presented at national and international conferences.
Dr. Deborah Leveille
Dean, School of Nursing for Undergraduate and Graduate programs.
Dr. Deborah Leveille is the Dean of the School of Nursing for both Undergraduate and Graduate programs. She is a transformational leader with a long history of spearheading changes required for program success. Dr. Leveille also actively participates in community engagement to improve program image and garner quality clinical sites, and is passionate about nursing education, as her mission is to inspire faculty and students to enjoy life-long learning. Dr. Leveille continues to work at the bedside per-diem to stay current with knowledge and skills in the healthcare field.
John V. Schloss, PhD
Chair of Pharmaceutical Science/Associate Dean of Research
Dr. Schloss brings a perspective on pharmacy education to AUHS based on 10 years as a professional scientist in DuPont’s Central Research Department; 9 years as Professor at the University of Kansas, School of Pharmacy; 6 years in pharmacy-related biotech; and 10 years helping to build the basic science and research components of two domestic and one foreign pharmacy programs. He has remained active in both research and the education of graduate and undergraduate students, while securing research funding from international, federal, state, and private sources. Dr. Schloss was an NIH-postdoctoral fellow at the University of Wisconsin in Madison and holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Tennessee for work conducted at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Manuel S. Atienza, MD, MSN, FNP, APRN-CNP, RN
Chair, Master of Science in Nursing
Dr. Manuel Atienza is the Dean of the School of Nursing (SON) and Chair of the Advance Nursing Practice Programs at American University of Health Sciences (AUHS) in Signal Hill, California. Programs under his purview include the Master of Science in Nursing in the following tracks: Family Nurse Practitioner Program, Nursing Education, and Nursing Administration, Leadership, and Management.
Genevieve (Ivy) Javaluyas
Director of Student Services
Genevieve (Ivy) Javaluyas has been with the University for nearly fifteen years and serves the University and its students as the Director of Student Services. Ms. Javaluyas has actively assisted with the development of many student services policies and procedures and provided leadership related to her area of expertise in participating in institutional and programmatic regulatory approvals and accreditations. Ms. Javaluyas has more than fifteen years in administration and management experience in student services. Ms. Javaluyas holds a Baccalaureate degree in Mathematics with a concentration in actuarial science.