Family and Community Medicine Strategic Leadership Council

Justin Atkisson, MHA joined MU Family and Community Medicine to serve as Sr. Director, Department and Clinic Operations in spring 2024. In this role, he works with the FCM Chair and administrators and the SOM Dean’s office to develop and direct a long-range strategic business plan. His responsibilities include oversight of the department’s financial, human resources, research and clinical operations.

Justin grew up in mid-Missouri and attended MU, where he earned his Master of Health Administration degree in 2023 and Bachelor of Health Science degree in 2012. He is a certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt from University of Missouri.

Before joining our department, Justin served two years as director of graduate medical education at Lee Health, Fort Myers, FL. Prior to that, he served from 2020-22 as a business administrator for Mercy of Northwest Arkansas; in that role, he managed the day-to-day operations of ambulatory clinics at Internal Medicine, Rheumatology and the Infusion Center.

Justin’s personal motto: “Be the person who helps relieve the burdens of others, and always strive to do right by those you serve.”

Jack Colwill, MD, who began his career in internal medicine, came to MU in 1964 to serve as an assistant dean of the School of Medicine. In 1976, he was named the first permanent chair of MU Family and Community Medicine.

In 1979, Dr. Colwill led efforts to bring the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Academic Family Medicine Fellowship Program to MU. In its early years, the fellowship helped address the shortage of faculty members across the country. It also helped build the research side of our department.

A nationally recognized expert in physician workforce issues, Jack has addressed the need to expand primary care services, especially for underserved and rural populations, throughout his career. From 1990-1996, he served on the Council on Graduate Medical Education, a committee that advises Congress and the president on physician workforce issues. And from 1992-2000, he directed the RWJF Generalist Physician Initiative, a project designed to help medical schools recruit and educate generalist physicians.

In 1989, Dr. Colwill was elected to the Institute of Medicine (now National Academy of Medicine). He earned Society of Teachers of Family Medicine’s Marian Bishop Award in 2002, and in 2004, he was named a National Associate of The National Academies.

Since retiring in 1997, Dr. Colwill has more time for family. He spends his summers in Utah with Win, his wife of nearly 55 years, and he travels across the country to visit his three children and four grandchildren.

Margaret Day, MD, MSPH, joined our faculty in 2011 after completing a bachelor’s degree, medical school, and residency here at the University of Missouri. She earned her MSPH in 2014 as an early career faculty member.

Dr Day sees patients and teaches medical students at our Keene Street location where she served as medical director from 2013 – 2023. She also supervises residents in Fayette, the site of her residency continuity ambulatory family medicine experience. She served as medical director of ambulatory services from 2020 – 2024 and became vice chair of clinical affairs in 2024.

She has been an active member of Society of Teachers of Family Medicine since 2011. She completed STFM’s Emerging Leaders Fellowship in 2016-2017 and serves on the STFM Conference on Practice and Quality Improvement Steering Committee, chairing the committee from 2023-2024. She was inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society, nominated by the School of Medicine Class of 2022. And, she was honored in 2023 as a Missouri Vaccine Champion with Dr Laura Morris as Co-Chairs of MU Health Care Vaccination Committee by the Missouri Immunization Coalition for efforts to communicate important vaccine information to patients and the community.

Clinical interests include the broad scope of outpatient family medicine, quality improvement, health information technology, and education. She enjoys spending time with her husband, three children, and a large extended family in the Mid-Missouri area. Hobbies include traveling, working in the yard, enjoying Columbia’s trail system, exploring area restaurants.

Richelle Koopman, MD, MS, joined our faculty in 2007 after completing an academic fellowship, Master’s degree in clinical research and her early faculty research work at Medical University of South Carolina. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the St. Margaret – UPMC Family Medicine Residency in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

Dr. Koopman has served as research director for the department since 2017. Her federal funding as a principal investigator has totaled over $3 million, with over $20 million as a co-investigator. She has served on the board of directors for the North American Primary Care Research Group, family medicine’s premier international research association, and on the board of directors for Annals of Family Medicine, Inc., the managing board for the top-rated primary care research journal according to impact factor. She has contributed to the national research landscape on numerous federal grant review panels including the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s Health Information Technology Research study section and the Veteran’s Administration’s Health Services Research and Development Mentored Research study section.

Dr. Koopman was the founder and past chair of the School of Medicine’s Women in Medicine and Medical Sciences group. She is a member of the national steering committee for the Association of American Medical College’s Group on Women in Medicine and Science and the University of Missouri Chancellor’s Status of Women Committee. She completed the Association of Departments of Family Medicine’s Chair Development Fellowship in 2017. She is a 2018 graduate of the prestigious Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine Fellowship.

Dr. Koopman’s ultimate goal is to be excited to come to work every day. She believes that we are at our best when we are finding joy and connecting to meaning in our work. We can be most innovative when collaborating in an inclusive environment that allows diverse voices to be heard, and to productively disagree to co-create the best solutions. She deeply appreciates a longstanding professional and personal partnership with her husband of very many years, as well as the joys of two children and a variety of pets. She is a fan of historical fiction and non-fiction, as well as the True/False Film Festival.

Dr. Richelle Koopman was named Chair of the Department of Family and Community Medicine and assumed this leadership role in January 2024.

Michael LeFevre, MD, MSPH, joined our faculty in 1984 after completing medical school, residency and fellowship training here at the University of Missouri. He teaches residents and medical students in inpatient and outpatient settings and maintains an active practice across the full breadth of family medicine, including inpatient work and — through 2012 — obstetrics.

Dr. LeFevre served as Chief Medical Information Officer for MU Health Care and directed the implementation of the electronic medical record across the system from 2002 through 2012. Much of his academic effort has been in the area of evidence-based medicine and clinical policies, and he completed more than a decade of work on the United States Preventive Services Task Force in April of 2016, including three years as co-vice chair and a year as chair. Dr. LeFevre was elected to the Institute of Medicine (now National Academy of Medicine) in 2011.

In his free time, Dr. LeFevre enjoys fishing and photography. He and his wife Judith met in Marching Mizzou in college and share a love of family and the arts.

Natalie Long, MD, earned her medical degree from the University of Missouri completing her residency in Family Medicine and ultimately joining the faculty in 2015. In addition to seeing patients at the Keene Street Family Medicine clinic, she serves as an attending physician for residents in obstetrics and outpatient services.

Dr. Long also seeks patients at Compass Health, a federally qualified health center with a diverse patient population.

Dr. Long serves as a faculty advisor for the MU School of Medicine’s student-run clinic MedZou, which provides free health care to uninsured patients in mid-Missouri. In addition, she also supports clinical operations tasks, mentors students in both quality improvement and research projects, and continues to provide care to patients at the clinic.

Medical education has been a priority for Dr. Long since joining the faculty. In the pre-clerkship curriculum, she has directed or co-directed Introduction to Patient Care 3 since 2016 when she joined the faculty, but she will be giving up her leadership of IPC-3 as she transitions to her role as clerkship director. Dr. Long also coordinates the service learning course, an experience that pairs medical students with a community organization to perform service, reflect and complete a quality improvement project.

Dr. Long is devoted to her four children and their many family pets. In nice weather you can find her on the trails or cheering for the kids at their various sporting events. In cold weather, she loves a good book, puzzle and cup of tea.

Jane McElroy, PhD, is the Opal Lewis Distinguished Faculty Scholar and Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Missouri School of Medicine. She serves as Co-Director of the Rural Health Research Center and Assistant Director of the Center for Influenza and Emerging Infectious Diseases, where she leads and collaborates on studies addressing critical public health challenges affecting rural and underserved populations.

Dr. McElroy's research focuses on understanding patient experiences, improving population health, and advancing prevention strategies through community-engaged and practice-based research. Her work frequently incorporates primary data collection, including surveys, interviews, and biospecimen collection, to examine health outcomes and healthcare delivery in real-world settings.

Her current research portfolio spans cancer survivorship, infectious diseases, chronic disease prevention, and patient-centered care. Ongoing projects include studies of patient perspectives on breast cancer survivorship care, efforts to improve influenza vaccines, investigations of influenza and COVID-19 transmission, and biospecimen collection among individuals with alpha-gal syndrome. She also leads and collaborates on initiatives to improve colorectal cancer screening in Missouri through pharmacy-based interventions, explore patient experiences with GLP-1 medications for weight management, and determine optimal treatment approaches for asthma.

Throughout her career, Dr. McElroy has developed a strong record of interdisciplinary collaboration, partnering with clinicians, researchers, health systems, and community organizations to address pressing health concerns. Her research has contributed to a better understanding of cancer care, infectious disease epidemiology, healthcare access, and patient decision-making. Findings from her work have been published in leading peer-reviewed journals and have informed efforts to improve healthcare delivery, prevention practices, and health outcomes across Missouri and beyond.

James Stevermer, MD, MSPH, attended medical school at Washington University and then joined our faculty in 1998 after completing his residency and fellowship training here at the University of Missouri. He practices and is medical director at Callaway Physicians, a residency training site in Fulton, Missouri. He is the medical director of Mid-Missouri AHEC, which oversees rural training for Mizzou medical students. 

Dr. Stevermer regularly teaches in the Introduction to Patient Care portion of the first year curriculum, and he serves on the curriculum board for the School of Medicine. He chairs the Pre-professional Scholars Committee, which oversees one of six rural pre-admissions programs in the country. Dr. Stevermer is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians Commission on Health of the Public and Science, and he serves as their liaison to the Women’s Preventive Services Initiative and the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases. He is also a member of the Rabies Working Group for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. 

Dr. Stevermer’s clinical interests are chronic disease and evidence-based medicine. He has written and edited for the Family Physicians Inquiries Network since its inception. His hobbies include music, board games and reading. 

Sarah Swofford, MD, MSPH joined our faculty in 2007 after completing medical school and residency at the University of Missouri. She also participated in the academic fellowship as a new faculty member, earning her MSPH in 2009. She teaches medical students and residents in outpatient and inpatient settings, and she maintains an active practice in family medicine including the care of obstetric patients. She has served as medical director of South Providence Family Medicine Clinic: Gold Team since 2009. She has supervised the M4 electives for MU Family Medicine, and in 2016 began co-directing the clerkship with Dr. Allmon. She became the director of medical student education in 2020.

Dr. Swofford’s interests include women’s health, obstetrics, pediatric care, and undergraduate medical education. She enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, as well as traveling and baking.

Alexander Zweig, MD, MSAM, joined the faculty of the MU School of Medicine in 2018 after completing a bachelor’s degree and medical school at the University of Missouri, followed by a four-year Family Medicine Residency at Oregon Health and Science University. He earned his MSAM from MU in 2022 as an early career faculty member. In 2023, he completed MU Health Care’s Physician Leadership Development Academy.

As an associate professor and clinician, Dr. Zweig sees patients and teaches medical students at Ashland Family Medicine, a rural clinic 15 miles south of Columbia, where he has served as medical director since 2023. He served as the Department of Family and Community Medicine’s associate medical director of inpatient medical services from 2021-2023, medical director of inpatient medical services from 2024-2025, and became the department’s medical director of ambulatory services in 2025. He was also the lead faculty for FCM’s Quality Improvement Curriculum from 2020-2024. In 2020, he was honored with the department’s Residency Teacher of the Year Award. Dr. Zweig especially enjoys the dynamic learning environment of residency training and values the opportunity to grow alongside the next generation of Family Medicine physicians.

Dr. Zweig's clinical interests include quality improvement, inpatient medicine, and the broad scope of comprehensive primary care. A lifelong mid-Missourian, Dr. Zweig enjoys time with his wife and two sons and is happiest when outdoors and active with his family.

Dr. Zweig, who earned his MD from the University of Missouri, joined our faculty in 1984, after completing residency training, the RWJF Academic Family Practice Fellowship, and his MSPH degree at MU. He directed our Family Medicine Residency and later co-directed our Academic Primary Care Fellowship.

In 2019, Dr. Zweig was asked to serve as interim dean of MU School of Medicine, and a year later he was named dean. As dean, Dr. Zweig was recognized for his stellar leadership and the many ways he has promoted the research, education and clinical missions of MU’s School of Medicine. He stepped down as dean in the spring of 2022.

During his 40-year career at MU, Dr. Zweig played a key role in developing geriatrics and palliative care programs and advancing training in care for the elderly. He also worked with his colleagues across MU Health to promote diversity, inclusion and health equity.

In 2013, he received a Faculty-Alumni Award from the MU Alumni Association. In 2019 he earned the Anna B. Searcy Award from the MU Women in Medicine and Medical Sciences group for his work promoting gender equity. Dr. Zweig served as 2018 president elect and winter meeting program chair of the Association of Departments of Family Medicine (ADFM). He has been ADFM’s representative to the Council of Faculty and Academic Societies and ADFM’s Leadership Development Committee chair.

Dr. Zweig, who retired in fall of 2022, enjoys being able to spend more time with his family – his wife, Susan Even, their two sons and two grandsons, and he likes to fish and travel. In his new role as professor emeritus, he hopes to find some way to advance family medicine and to particularly support those who have made the enduring commitment as family physicians.