MMI Leadership Team

Cailin R. Heinze, VMD, MS, Diplomate ACVIM (Nutrition)

Executive Director and Chief Academic Officer

Dr. Heinze is the Executive Director and Chief Academic Officer for MMI. She received her VMD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. After veterinary school, she worked in private small animal/exotics practice for a few years on the east coast before moving to California to pursue a residency in clinical nutrition at UC Davis.

Dr. Heinze completed her residency and then earned a Master’s degree in Nutritional Biology at UC Davis prior to joining the faculty of the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University.

Dr. Heinze is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine in the Nutrition subspecialty. Dr. Heinze taught biochemistry and clinical nutrition and ran the Clinical Nutrition Service at Tufts until June 2019. She currently holds the title of Adjunct Associate Professor at the Cummings School.

Her professional and research interests include nutritional management of renal disease, long chain fatty acids, and cancer nutrition. In her leisure time, Dr. Heinze enjoys hanging out and training with her dog, DIY projects, dressage, and gardening.

Beth A. Harrison, BBA

Manager of Administration and Finance

Ms. Harrison holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Baker University. She is responsible for the day-to-day activities and financial reporting for MMI and works with the veterinary schools that MMI services to coordinate scheduling of teaching activities as well as ensuring that all educational materials are up-to-date and arrive on schedule. She interacts with MMI faculty, the other members of the MMI Leadership Team, and the Board of Directors to coordinate meetings, handle logistics, keep program records, and many other integral functions!

Previously, Ms. Harrison has experience with a number of non-profit groups, having held various positions at organizations including Kansas Home Care Association (Business Manager/Membership), American Academy of Veterinary Dermatology (Executive Assistant, financial management, membership, coordinated annual meetings and proceedings), Association of Community Mental Health Centers of Kansas, Inc. (Administrative Director/Operations Manager) and the Comparative Gastroenterology Society (Financial Management/Membership).

In her leisure time, Ms. Harrison enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, hiking, and kayaking.

Stephani S. Cherkaoui, M.Ed.

Instructional Designer

Stephani Cherkaoui is the Instructional Designer for the Mark Morris Institute responsible for the development and evaluation of curriculum materials for clinical nutrition courses. Ms. Cherkaoui holds a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Maryland. She established her career in adult education in training after 4 years teaching public high school. Ms. Cherkaoui specializes in microlearning development and is driven by creating learner- centered experiences that align with performance goals in higher learning and organizational training.