Before I became a portrait photographer, I was a pharmacist in Vietnam. I’ve always believed in the power of healthcare to change lives, and that belief is what made Dr. Renee Coffman’s story especially inspiring to me.

Dr. Coffman is the President and Co-Founder of Roseman University of Health Sciences in Southern Nevada. She’s also a board member of the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance. Her path started in a small farming town in Ohio, where a local pharmacist with a soda fountain shop sparked her interest in healthcare. She went on to earn her pharmacy degree at Ohio Northern University and her Ph.D. at Purdue.

After working in both retail and hospital pharmacy, Dr. Coffman felt drawn to teaching—a passion that led her to co-found Roseman University with her husband, Dr. Harry Rosenberg. They moved to Las Vegas, invested $15,000 of their own money, and started what was then a small college of pharmacy. Today, Roseman is a nationally respected university offering degrees in pharmacy, nursing, dental medicine, and soon, veterinary medicine and allopathic medicine (M.D.).

What sets Roseman apart is its Six-Point Mastery Learning Model, which requires students to score 90% or higher in every subject before they advance. Classes are taught one subject at a time, six hours a day, five days a week. It’s a rigorous system that helps students truly master the material and prepares them to be confident healthcare professionals.

Dr. Coffman is also focused on workforce development. Programs like ESPIRE introduce junior high students, especially from underserved communities, to careers in healthcare, while others help adults and veterans re-enter the field. She believes in responsible risk-taking and encourages students to do their best, stay open to opportunities, and not be afraid to take a leap if it feels right.

During her recent interview on Jaime’s Workforce Connections podcast, where I had the privilege of listening in and photographing her afterward, she shared that she was preparing for her very first trip to Iceland. It’s one of the ways she recharges between her work leading one of Nevada’s most innovative health institutions.

As someone who once studied pharmacology and now uses photography to document the faces of leadership, I’m proud to feature Dr. Coffman in my Champion Series. Her story is a reminder that meaningful change often starts with bold ideas, strong values, and the courage to take that first step.