Campus Leadership at our Nursing College in Sarasota

Denise Rolle, Ed.D.

Dean of General Education

Ed.D. in Higher Education Administration, Northeastern University

M.Ed. in Teaching, Learning, and Assessments, National Louis University

B.S. in Biomedical Sciences, University of South Florida

B.S. in Microbiology, University of South Florida

Dr. Denise Rolle (she/her/hers) came to Arizona College of Nursing – Sarasota in 2023. Denise has over 14 years of experience in the postsecondary education field. In the past, Denise has served in instructional and leadership positions at Ultimate Medical Academy, Southeastern College, Concorde Career Institute, and Keiser University. Denise is looking forward to forging a rewarding relationship with her Arizona College of Nursing staff, faculty, and students.

James Jones

Senior Campus President

Bachelor of Arts in Religion from The University of Mobile

Master of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary 

James Jones began working in post-secondary education as an instructor in 2006. Since then, he has been a program director, director of education and a campus executive director. He has over 14 years of experience working in higher education in Arizona and Florida. He has been with Arizona College since March of 2019 and is currently the Senior Campus President at their Sarasota campus. His favorite thing about working in colleges is having the opportunity to help people be positively impacted by improving their lives through education. 

Clare Owen, Ph.D., RN, CNE

Dean of Nursing

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Nursing – Barry University

Masters of Science in Nursing (Ed) – Barry University

Bachelors of Science – University of Phoenix

Clare Owen, Ph.D., RN, CNE was appointed Dean of Nursing at Arizona College, Sarasota, in January 2024. A native of Wales in the United Kingdom, Dr. Owen came to the U.S.A in 1992 as a Travel Nurse. After working in critical care units all over the country, Dr. Owen settled in Miami, eventually attending Barry University and completing a Master’s degree and Ph.D. She began her academic career as a professor in the UG nursing program at Barry University in 2009, moving up to Assistant Program Director in 2014. Dr. Owen was the recipient of the Melba Cather award for Excellence in Education from the Lambda Chi chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International. Prior to joining the Arizona College family, Dr. Owen served as the Associate Dean of the College of Nursing at St. Petersburg College, Florida, for five years.

Dr. Owen has presented at both state and national conferences on a number of topics including strategies for increasing the diversity of the nursing profession, designing and implementing a holistic admissions process, the experience of older nurses returning to formal education to complete a bachelor’s degree, and recruiting the next generation of nurses.

Tara Augustine

Senior Executive Director of Enrollment Services

MBA, Strayer University
BBA in Management, Strayer University

Tara Augustine, MBA came to Arizona College of Nursing in 2019 to help open the Tampa Campus. With nearly 15 years in higher education management, she has led multi-department and multi-site operations for both domestic and international universities. As Senior Executive Director of Enrollment Services, Augustine manages the daily administrative operations of the Tampa Campus which includes the Admissions and Financial Aid Departments.