Meet Our Coaches
All of our health coaches complete a minimum of 45 hours of training in health coaching techniques. The UCAN health coaches are upper division undergraduate and graduate students who are pursuing careers in health fields.
Just like you, they often struggle to manage their studies, work obligations, extra curricular activities and health-supporting self-care patterns. Our health coaches don’t have perfect diets or exercise habits. They can empathize with the stressors of college life and will work with you to help you achieve your health goals.
Health coaches are experts at supporting clients through the behavior change process. Health coaches are not personal trainers and they aren’t dietitians. They provide counseling services to support you in whatever changes you’re interested in making.
Fall 2026 UCAN Health Coaches
Avely Avelar
Avely is a senior at NAU studying Nutrition and Foods with a minor in Hotel Restaurant Management. She enjoys spending time with her dogs and family, she likes baking, cooking, and walking. She is an active member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine club, serving as both treasurer and vice president. She is also a private chef focusing on cooking meals for her clients. Avely has plans to become a pediatric dietitian, she is passionate about helping younger populations with their health and well-being.
Tish Blankenship
Tish is a junior undergraduate student studying nutrition and dietetics with a minor in health and wellness coaching. She enjoys hiking, watching movies, working out, and cooking. She is from Avondale, Arizona and is very passionate about health, wellness, and helping others achieve their goals. She hopes to become a Physicians Assistant in the future. She is determined to help empower others and spread positivity to all.
Hailey Brambley
Hailey Brambley is a senior at NAU studying Nutrition. She grew up in the Bay Area of California and enjoys staying active through running, yoga, and snowboarding, as well as experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen. Hailey is deeply passionate about mental health advocacy and supporting others in achieving their personal health goals. She plans to attend graduate school in the fall to pursue a degree in public health, with the long-term goal of becoming a registered dietitian specializing in women’s health. She is passionate about helping individuals build sustainable habits that support lifelong health.
Ethan Cowgill
Ethan Cowgill is a senior in the Fitness/wellness program. He is from Cottonwood Arizona and has a passion for physical activity, baseball and playing chess. As a first time UCAN health coach he is excited to help others utilizing his experiences in being a strength coach for NAUand all the classes he’s taken in his 4 years to help others make meaningful and sustainable changes in their lives.
Victoria Jimenez
Victoria is a senior at NAU studying Nutrition and Foods with plans to become a registered dietitian. She enjoys creative hobbies, staying active, exploring new recipes and reading anddiscussing new trending nutrition topics. She is interested in understanding how food and lifestyle can influence overall quality of life. She values helping others build healthier and more sustainable habits that can also work for their specific lifestyles. Her goal is to encourage individuals to create a healthy relationship with food that promotes long-term health and wellbeing.
Ayanna Lopez
Ayanna is a senior at NAU studying Fitness Wellness. Originally from San Luis, Arizona, she enjoys learning, baking, working out, fishing, and spending time with friends and family. She is interested in physical therapy, rehabilitation, and finding meaningful ways to support and care for others. After her bachelor’s degree, she plans to continue her education and pursue a career as an athletic trainer. She is excited to support clients in finding realistic, sustainable ways
to work towards their wellness goals.
Brooklyn Medina
Brooklyn is a junior at NAU pursuing a degree in Nutrition. Originally from South Phoenix, AZ, Brooklyn enjoys scrapbooking, cooking/baking, doing crafts, and doing anything creative with loved ones. Most of her involvement on campus centers NAU’s chapter of Circle K International in which volunteering, community outreach, and peer connection takes the forefront. She plans to pursue teaching Maternal/Pediatric Nutrition Education after receiving her degree. As a UCAN health coach, she hopes to uplift others and promote a healthy relationship with all dimensions of wellness.
Danica Shair
Danica is a first-year MPH Nutrition student at NAU. She is from Pasadena, California and completed her undergraduate degree in psychology in San Diego. She is interested in the connection between mental health and nutrition and values intuitive eating. As a UCAN health coach, Danica hopes to empower others to build balanced, happy lives by helping them discover what works best for them as individuals. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, spending time with animals, running, biking, hiking, gardening, and being outside. She plans to pursue the Registered Dietitian credential and work in nutrition counseling.
Alexis Williams
Alexis is a first-year MPH student at NAU and earned her bachelor’s degree in Exercise Physiology from NAU, where she also ran the women’s club soccer team. She has a strong passion for women’s health and is excited to continue expanding her knowledge across all areas of public health and nutrition. Outside of academics, Alexis loves spending time outdoors and is on a mission to visit every national park. Alexis is driven by the belief that health is not one-size-fits-all and that empowering individuals with knowledge is key to building lasting, meaningful change.
UCAN Health Coach Student Managers
Peyton Topic
UCAN Health Coach Manager
Peyton is a Marketing major with a minor in Nutrition from Chandler, Arizona. She enjoys spending time with the kids she nannies, staying active through running and Pilates, trying new matcha spots, and creating social media content. As the UCAN Health Coach Manager, she is excited to combine her passion for marketing and wellness by managing social media, coordinating schedules, and promoting the UCAN Health Coach program.
Grace Moak
UCAN Promotions Manager
Grace is a Senior at NAU, studying Nutrition and Dietetics with a minor in Psychology. Outside of classes and coaching for UCAN, she stays busy working at the Wall Aquatic Center and enjoys spending time at the gym, swimming, cooking, hiking, reading, and connecting with friends. As a second semester UCAN health coach and current promotional manager, Grace is deeply passionate about nutrition and supporting other’s health and wellness journeys. Her goal is to grow UCAN’s presence on campus,to connect students to the support that health coaching will provide.
UCAN Health Coach Faculty Supervisors
Dawn Clifford, PhD, RD (she/her)
UCAN Director
Dr. Clifford is a Professor in the Health Sciences Department. She’s a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers and author of the book 5-Minute MI: Motivational Interviewing in Nutrition and Health When Time is Short and co-author of the book, Motivational Interviewing in Nutrition and Fitness. Dr. Clifford teaches courses in Nutrition Education and Counseling and Lifecycle Nutrition. She conducts research in non-diet, weight inclusive approaches to health and well-being and behavior change counseling.
Natalie Papini, PhD, MA (she/her)
UCAN Assistant Director
Natalie Papini is an Assistant Professor in the Health Sciences Department. She teaches courses for undergraduates in fitness wellness and graduate students in the interdisciplinary health PhD program. She conducts research in the areas of weight stigma, body image, and self-compassion and previously worked in the health coaching industry.
Nikole Squires (she/her)
UCAN Assistant Director
Nikole Squires is a lecturer in the department of Health Sciences and doctoral student in the Interdisciplinary Health PhD program at NAU. She conducts research in the areas of intuitive eating, body image, eating disorder recovery, and non-diet, weight-inclusive healthcare and fitness. Nikole is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES), Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor (CIEC), Licensed and Certified Athletic Trainer (LAT, ATC), and National Board-Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC). In her free time, Nikole enjoys listening to podcasts, reading, spending time with friends and family, and going for walks, runs, hikes, and bike rides.
Megan Meyer, MPH, RD (she/her)
UCAN Assistant Director
Megan Meyer is Lecturer in the Health Sciences Department. She teaches courses on lifecycle nutrition, foodservice management, and culinary courses. Megan holds a culinary degree from Johnson & Whales. Megan’s expertise includes culinary nutrition, pediatric nutrition, eating disorders, and public health and prevention. She worked for 7 years as the campus dietitian for NAU, which included work with projects that focus on addressing food insecurity, the implementation of the Healthier Campus Initiative, and the development of Live Well NAU.