Advancing Practice

Nurse Practitioner and Midwife Fellowship

APRN Photos for Web (1)

About Advancing Practice

AdvancingPractice is a one-year paid fellowship that builds on nurse practitioner (NP) and nurse midwife (CNM) academic programs to prepare recently-graduated NPs and CNMs to become expert clinicians as well as nursing leaders.

Erie Family Health Centers (Erie), a federally qualified health center in Chicago with over 87,000 patients, and the University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing (UIC Nursing) have partnered to create this program with the goal of expanding access to affordable, quality healthcare in under-resourced communities.

Our Mission

We develop and mentor the next generation of advanced practice registered nurses to ensure a workforce of primary care providers who deliver high-quality, holistic healthcare to underserved communities. Through nursing leadership and promoting diversity, we are committed to eliminating structural barriers and other systems of oppression to positively impact the workforce and the health of communities.

Our Vision

Advanced practice registered nurses transforming healthcare to achieve health equity and justice.

Learn More About Advancing Practice

How To Apply

The application period for the 2024-2025 Cohort is now closed. 

The next application period will open up in Fall of 2024.

In order to apply, you must be a Family Nurse Practitioner, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, Adult Gerontology Nurse Practitioner or a Certified Nurse Midwife who is a:

  • A recent graduate (between March 2024 and June 2025) from an accredited NP or CNM program with a minimum GPA of 3.0
  • Planning a career in community health working with diverse and under-resourced populations
  • Licensed and certified or certification/license pending upon admission to fellowship
  • Highly motivated to learn and speak Spanish through group provided training and independent study
  • Able to complete board exams no later than June 30, 2025
  • Able to start the program on September 8, 2025.
  • Able to travel to all Erie Family Health Center sites including all Chicago locations, Evanston and Waukegan
  • Interested in behavioral healthcare 

Sign up below to join our email list.

Attend an Open House

There are no more scheduled open houses for the 2024-2025 cohort. The next scheduled open house will be summer 2024.

What is Advancing Practice?

AdvancingPractice is a year-long Fellowship program for recently graduated nurse practitioners and midwifes who seek support and mentorship in their first year of practice. This Fellowship is for those who are passionate about community health and serving diverse, under resourced populations.

Being a fellow, you will be an employee of Erie Family Health Center with full-time salary and benefits, but will always be supported by an experienced preceptor to guide in the transition to independent practice. Key aspects of the program are as follows:

  • Continuity Clinics
    (2 days/week) Build your own patient panel and provide continuity of care to patients with the support and guidance of a preceptor.
  • Specialty Clinic:
    (1 day/week for 1 month) Rotate through sub-specialty clinics within primary care to better understand holistic care, such as Adolescent Health, HIV Care, Women’s Health, Pediatrics, Chronic Diseases, and others.
  • Mentored Clinics:
    (1 day/week) Work alongside an experienced PCP on episodic or acute care and mastery of procedures.
  • Educational Sessions:
    (1 day/week) Participate in evidence-based, didactic learning sessions on both clinical and leadership topics.
  • Quality Improvement Training:
    Design and implement your own quality improvement project during the Fellowship year.
  • Intrapatrum/On Call – CNM Fellows Only (One 24-Hour Call per Week) Provide intrapartum and postpartum care at Northwestern Memorial Hospital with support of midwifery mentors.
Why Advancing Practice?
  • Learn from the best! Erie is a national leader in quality of care and top Chicago workplace. It employs over 50 APRNs within a truly collaborative practice model.
  • UIC Nursing—known for having one of the nation’s top 10 APRN degree programs—has developed a robust curriculum for the AdvancingPractice program that supports newly graduated APRNs in community health practice.
  • The fellowship model was selected and funded by the US Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) from a competitive pool of applicants.
  • Serve patients across Erie’s 13 locations, including primary care, school-based and teen-only settings.
  • Participate in paid medical Spanish training to better serve our patient population.
  • Live and work in one of the nation’s largest and most vibrant cities.
  • Access UIC career services and the largest health sciences library in the Midwest.
  • Receive fellowship salary, benefits, continuing medical education allowance and paid time-off.
Program Accreditation

AdvancingPractice is an accredited postgraduate Nurse Practitioner training program by the Consortium for Advanced Practice Providers.

The Consortium for Advanced Practice Providers has set forth eight accreditation standards, which AdvancingPractice has met in full. These eight standards provide approaches to validate the quality of the postgraduate training program. For more information about the accreditation standards and/or the Consortium for Advanced Practice Providers, please visit https://www.apppostgradtraining.com/.

Fellows as well as any visitors to this site can provide a public comment about our program at https://www.apppostgradtraining.com/accreditation/accreditation-status-and-public-commentary/

Contact us

If you have additional questions, feel free to contact us
312-432-2056
advancingpractice@eriefamilyhealth.org

And stay in touch on
Instagram: /advancingpractice
Facebook: /erieadprac
Linkedin: /company/advancing-practice

Sign up for our email list below to stay informed throughout the application period.

Donate to Advancing Practice

Help support our mission in improving access to high quality care and join us in improving health equity. Donate today!

Our Faculty

Kiersten Solis

Kiersten Solis
MSN, APRN, FNP-BC

APRN Fellowship Director

EB

Emily Bettencourt
APRN Fellowship
Administrative Manager

ESault

Esther Sault, MSN
FNP-BC 

Clinical Liason Lead

Jacqueline Mah

Jacqueline Ma
DNP, CNM
Clinical and Reproductive Health
Liaison Lead

Natalie Raghu

Natalie Raghu
MSN, FNP-C, APRN
Medical Director of
Advanced Practice Providers

UIC Partners

Sarah Fitz

Sarah Fitz
DNP, APRN, ACNP-BC

Fellowship Academic Coordinator

Kathy R

Kathy Rugen
PhD, FNP-BC, FAAN, FAANP

Curriculum Consultant

Stefani Alexander DNP

 Stefani Alexander
DNP, APRN, WHNP-BC

Curriculum Specialist

2023-2024 Fellows

Brooke Dayries 1

Brooke Dayries
MSN, FNP-C

Olivia Dumont 1

Olivia Dumont
MSN, CNM, WHNP

Anna Hankins 1

Anna Hankins
MSN, CNM

Samantha Jerusal 1

Samantha Jerusal
MSN, CPNP-PC

Devin Murray 1

Devin Murray
MSN, FNP-BC

Johnny Perez 1

Johnny Perez
DNP, FNP-BC

Juliel Ravago 1

Juliel Ravago
DNP, FNP-BC

Jean Wu

Jean Wu
MSN, FNP-BC

AdvancingPractice Accredidation

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