Hernani Ledesma Jr., DNP, EdD, RN, CNE, NE-BC

Dean of Nursing, Director of RN to BSN

Dr. Ledesma comes to Casa Loma College with previous training as a Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA) and Nursing Home Administrator (NHA).  As a Registered Nurse (RN), he has experience in clinical practice in Emergency Medicine and Neonatal Intensive Care, in administration as a hospital educator, clinical risk manager, and nurse clinical systems project manager, and in education as a lecturer, professor, and associate dean.  Dr. Ledesma’s research interests are andragogy and pedagogy in nursing education, emotional intelligence, knowledge management, student success, and men in nursing.

In his spare time, Dr. Ledesma volunteers as a Camp Nurse serving children and adults with disabilities at Rising Above Disabilities (RAD) Camp in Orange County, as a kitchen worker at Orange County Rescue Mission, as a construction worker helping to build a grade school in Juarez, Mexico, and as a faculty contributor to Nurses International developing nursing curriculum for nursing programs around the world.

Dr. Ledesma’s education is a B.S. Economics, California State Polytechnic University at Pomona; M.H.A. Healthcare Administration, National University; A.A. Nursing, Mount St. Mary’s College; M.S. Nursing, Mount St. Mary’s College; EdD Organizational Leadership, Pepperdine University; and DNP Health Systems Leadership, Western University of Health Sciences. Dr. Ledesma is Board Certified as a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) from the National League for Nursing and as a Nurse Executive (NE-BC) from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

“I am excited to join the Leadership Team at Casa Loma College and serving both the students and faculty of the RN to BSN program” – Dr. Ledesma