Rush Nursing Faculty Practice delivers mission-driven, comprehensive, evidence-based nursing services to directly care for diverse populations across Chicagoland. Outcomes from our partnerships include improved patient health biometrics, decreased health care costs, and high partner and patient satisfaction.
Our Mission
Our mission is to be an exemplar of nursing academic practice where individuals and communities receive a high standard of care from nurse faculty clinicians, interdisciplinary team members, and students. Our clinic sites utilize an innovative care delivery model in a university setting that provides opportunities for professional growth, scholarship, research dissemination, and advocacy.
Our Vision
We share a vision to create an equitable health system for all by empowering nurses and interdisciplinary teams to provide person-centered, collaborative care in partnerships and communities, and to translate nursing innovation into policy advocacy and academic practice scholarship.
Meet the Team
Angela Moss, PhD, APRN, FAANP, FAAN
Associate Dean of Faculty Practice and Department Chairperson
As Associate Dean of Faculty Practice and Chairperson, Angela Moss, PhD, APRN, is responsible for the leadership, strategic development, and maintenance of diverse faculty practice partnerships and for fiscal accountability for the operations of all faculty practice venues. Dr. Moss’s special area of interest is creating new and innovative nurse-managed models of care delivery for historically underserved populations. She coordinates clinical outcome analysis and student activities across all faculty practice venues, and as department Chairperson, supports nurse faculty scholarly activities across the Department of Academic Practice Nursing. Dr. Moss is a board-certified, practicing adult nurse practitioner, and her practice provides primary care for justice-involved or formerly incarcerated individuals. Her research focuses on return on investment, cost analysis, and patient outcomes resulting from nurse-managed health centers. As the Bill and Marjorie Weinberg Presidential Endowed Professor, Dr. Moss’s primary teaching responsibilities reside in the College of Nursing’s doctoral programs, though she also intersects with pre-licensure students in her faculty practice role.
Annika Gorenz, MS, MS
Senior Manager
Annika Gorenz drives innovation and is responsible for overseeing the business and research workflows of Faculty Practices’ nurse-run clinics and community partnerships. Mrs. Gorenz ensures financial sustainability, business development, and day-to-day operational efficiency. She is also a data maestro by coordinating inputs from faculty clinicians, students, clinical site partners and internal Rush departments. Her work in outcome optimization showcases the real impact Faculty Practice has on the College of Nursing faculty, students, and clinical site partners. With a strong foundation in business administration and clinical healthcare research, Mrs. Gorenz brings a unique perspective to graduate nursing education and academic practice partnerships. She holds two master’s degrees from Rush University Medical Center – one in Biotechnology and another in Pharmacology.
Michelle C. Zolfo, DNP, RN, CNML
Clinical Manager RN
Michelle Zolfo is a Clinical Manager for the Rush University College of Nursing’s Department of Academic Practice Nursing (DAPN). In this role, she oversees regulatory compliance, new practice site development, and clinical operations for the department. Her work includes staff training, policy development, and optimizing clinical workflows to ensure high-quality patient care. As a doctoral-level Advanced Public Health Nurse, Dr. Zolfo has experience across multiple healthcare settings, including laboratory operations, cancer care, breast imaging, and primary care. She earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in Advanced Public Health Nursing from Rush University and holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Valparaiso University. Dr. Zolfo is also certified in nursing management and leadership, demonstrating her commitment to advancing healthcare systems and patient outcomes.
In this article in Nurse Educator, Rush's Faculty Practice team describes the operational redesign they began in 2014 to establish a pipeline for developing early-career faculty. This faculty practice model is offered as a solution for attracting and growing a contemporary nursing faculty workforce.
The Rush College of Nursing DEI Committee highlighted Faculty Practice by engaging in a panel. Faculty clinicians shared how they weave nursing practice, education, and scholarship to have an impact on student learning and community health outcomes.
U.S. News ranks the College of Nursing in the top 1% of Doctor of Nursing Practice programs and in the top 3% of Master of Science in Nursing programs.
We offer clinical experience and expertise from faculty practitioners and students from the RUSH University College of Nursing, which has four programs ranked first in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.
The College of Nursing is ranked fourth among nursing schools in the United States by Nursing School Almanac.