Leann Nitschke

Leann Nitschke
  • BS Biological Sciences 1984

Dr. Leann Nitschke M.D. graduated from Michigan Tech in 1984 with a B.S. in Biological Sciences. She and fellow alum, Matthew Nitschke (‘84) married 3 weeks after graduation. They were married for nearly 31 years before Matthew’s passing in 2015. She joined the Army National Guard in 1987, serving as a company commander and assistant state surgeon/acting deputy commander of the state health directorate (IL). 

Nitschke continued her education earning her M.D. from the Medical College of Wisconsin in 1988 and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Massachusetts – Amherst in 2004. After completing her general surgery residency in 1994, Leann became board-certified in general surgery, a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a certified physician executive and a fellow in the American College of Physician Executives. 

Upon completing her surgical education, Nitschke entered private practice in Effingham, Illinois where she served as chief of surgery and chief of staff. She was on active duty from 2003 – 2008, serving at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC, and Fort Drum, NY. 

She retired as a soldier in 2008 with the rank of colonel and entered civil service as a Department of the Army civilian employee. Her civil service career started at Fort Drum, NY as medical director of the Warrior Transition Unit and Medical Evaluation Board service. Next, she served at Fort Carson, CO as Director of the Integrated Disability Evaluation Service, and then at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Tacoma, WA as a physician adjudicator for the Physical Evaluation Board. During her tenure at Fort Carson, she served as a member of Rapid Process Improvement / Lean Six Sigma project combining assets from the Veterans Benefit Administration (VBA), Veterans Healthcare Administration (VHA), and Department of Defense (DoD) to develop, test and fully implement the new integrated disability evaluation process which became the standard across the Army and Veteran Affairs. 

Nitschke retired from civil service in 2020 and enjoys traveling, volunteering at church, hiking, playing pickleball and taking Zumba classes. 

From the Academy of Sciences and Arts Induction Ceremony

Updated September 2024