Skip Navigation
Skip Main Content
Share this page:

APRN Primary Care Fellowship (Family Nurse Practitioner)

Launch your career in primary care with structured, real-world experience.

Gain hands-on training across the full scope of family medicine while caring for diverse and underserved communities.

Youtube video thumbnail

Why Choose Peak Vista for Your FNP Fellowship

Comprehensive Primary Care Training

Care for patients across the lifespan, including pediatrics, women's health, and chronic disease management.

Integrated, Collaborative Care Experience

Work alongside behavioral health, dental, and specialty providers in a team-based care setting.

Supportive Transition to Practice

Build confidence through mentorship, structured learning, and guided clinical experience.

Learn More About the FNP Fellowship Below

Fellowship Program Overview

Peak Vista’s Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Fellowship is a 12-month, full-time postgraduate training program designed to support the transition into independent primary care practice. Fellows train within a safety-net health system serving diverse and underserved communities in Colorado Springs.

The program is based at the Health Center at Printers Parkway(opens in a new tab) in Colorado Springs and accepts five Fellows annually beginning each September.

Peak Vista’s APRN Primary Care Fellowship programs are accredited by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Advanced[KN6.1] Practice Provider Fellowship Accreditation™ (APPFA) program, demonstrating national standards of excellence in postgraduate nurse practitioner education.

This accreditation reflects rigorous standards for curriculum design, clinical supervision, competency development, and professional transition to independent practice.

Peak Vista’s Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Fellowship combines structured mentorship, immersive clinical training, and competency-based progression within a federally qualified health center. Fellows provide direct patient care as licensed APRNs while strengthening clinical reasoning, prescriptive confidence, and independent primary care decision-making.

The FNP Fellowship experience includes:
  • A dedicated integrated Fellowship clinic at Health Center at Printers Parkway (340)(opens in a new tab) serving diverse and underserved patient populations.
  • Structured mentorship with dedicated preceptors and progressive clinical autonomy.
  • Supervised primary care immersion focused on lifespan family medicine.
  • Exposure to medically and socially complex patients facing access barriers.
  • Interdisciplinary collaboration across primary care, behavioral health, and specialty services.
  • Specialty rotations and procedural experiences unique to community-based practice.
  • A required population-focused Quality Improvement (QI) project.
  • Continuing Medical Education (CME) participation and structured didactic reinforcement.
This model ensures Fellows graduate prepared for confident, independent practice in safety-net primary care settings.

The FNP Fellowship program is a full-time, 12-month salaried position with a competitive benefits package(opens in a new tab).

What to Expect From the Fellowship

The FNP Fellowship is a full-time, salaried 12-month program designed to accelerate clinical competency through supervised immersion. Fellows gradually increase patient panel responsibility under dedicated preceptor guidance.

Clinical immersion includes:
  • Five Fellows with three dedicated preceptors.
  • Gradual patient load progression.
  • Comprehensive lifespan primary care.
  • Exposure to medically and socially complex patients.
Our Fellows are licensed Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) authorized to practice at an advanced level under Colorado regulations while participating in structured postgraduate training.

The curriculum integrates experiential learning with structured didactic education to reinforce safe, effective primary care practice. Educational components align with national standards for advanced practice transition programs.

Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Fellowship includes:
  • Benner’s Novice to Expert Model.
  • ACGME Family Medicine Milestones.
  • Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN).
  • National Academy of Medicine recommendations.
  • AANP Standards of Practice.

Fellows gain exposure to specialty clinics and procedural training that expand scope and confidence in community-based primary care.

Specialty experiences include:These experiences strengthen readiness for independent primary care practice.

Didactic learning is embedded throughout the Fellowship year to reinforce clinical immersion and evidence-based practice. Education is delivered through case discussions, mentorship, and structured learning modules.

Components include:
  • Problem-based learning.
  • Journal club and case studies.
  • Online and in-person CME.
  • Prescriptive practice mentorship.

Fellows complete a population-focused Quality Improvement (QI) project using a Plan-Do-Study-Act framework. This project supports systems-based thinking and measurable practice enhancement.

The Fellowship also fulfills Colorado DORA requirements, including:
  • 750 hours of precepted prescriptive practice.
  • RX Mentorship Agreement.
  • Structured milestone evaluation.

Program Leadership & Accreditation

The Fellowship leadership team brings extensive experience in safety-net medicine, interdisciplinary training, and postgraduate clinician development.

Kelli Greenleaf

Kelli Greenleaf, FNP-BC

APRN Primary Care Fellowship Director

Kelli Greenleaf is a Colorado Springs native. She completed her undergraduate and master’s degrees at the University of Colorado – Colorado Springs. She's been part of the APRN Fellowship program since 2016 and Program Director since 2021. Her approach to treating patients comes from the core values of caring and compassion. She strives to provide quality and compassionate care to all patients in this community that she loves.

Kelli believes in Peak Vista’s mission and supports the mission through the Primary Care Fellowship by contributing to training new APRNs to provide exceptional health care to community members facing access barriers through clinical education and mentorship.

Anna Mack

Anna Mack, DNP

FNP-APRN Primary Care Fellowship Faculty

Anna Mack, NP, completed her undergraduate and master’s degree at the University of Colorado Boulder. Anna believes in patient-centered care: “Those small wins are what really inspire me and enable me to continue in my career. The times when a patient comes back and is feeling better or decides that they are ready to better their health is awesome to me.”

She loves to hike, bake, run, and spend time with her friends and family.

Sally Abell

Sally Abell, DNP, APRN, FNP-C

FNP-APRN Primary Care Fellowship Faculty

Sally Abell is a Nurse Practitioner at Peak Vista's Health Center at Printers Parkway (340)(opens in a new tab) and describes her core values as hospitality and clinical excellence. She strives for all her patients to feel welcomed and heard, all while offering the best possible care.

"My goal is to ensure that everyone in our community, especially those with the greatest need, have access to the best care my team can offer. There is so much to learn and know about medicine, and Peak Vista's commitment to caring for the most vulnerable in our community, while also training future leaders in health care, is an incredibly valuable way to invest in patients and providers at the same time."

Linda Estrada

Linda Estrada

Fellowship Program Coordinator

As a Colorado native, Linda always felt a strong calling to serve the underserved members of her community. She began her journey at Peak Vista in 2023 as a receptionist, where she experienced firsthand the realities of patient care and built meaningful relationships with those who rely on them most. That role deepened her compassion and strengthened her commitment to health care access for all.

“Today, as a Fellowship Coordinator, I’m honored to support our fellows as they learn and grow. I’m passionate about helping them see the impact they can make and guiding them to approach their work with empathy, purpose, and a heart for service.”

Peak Vista’s FNP Fellowship is accredited through the ANCC Advanced Practice Provider Fellowship Accreditation™ (APPFA). This credential recognizes excellence in transition-to-practice programs for advanced practice providers.

APPFA accreditation affirms that the FNP Fellowship meets nationally recognized standards for:
  • Curriculum design and competency development.
  • Structured clinical supervision.
  • Evaluation and milestone-based progression.
  • Quality improvement integration.
  • Professional development and leadership training.
APPFA accreditation affirms national standards for curriculum structure, mentorship, evaluation, and competency-based progression.

Peak Vista Community Health Centers operates within a nationally recognized framework of quality, safety, and regulatory oversight. Fellows train inside an organization that prioritizes clinical excellence, ethical governance, accountability, and continuous improvement at every level of care delivery.

Institutional standards include:
  • AAAHC Accreditation through the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, reflecting compliance with national standards for patient safety, clinical quality, governance, and performance improvement across ambulatory care settings.
  • Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) designation, requiring federal quality reporting, board governance standards, and adherence to Health Center Program regulations to ensure accessible, equitable care delivery.
  • Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) eligibility, providing medical malpractice liability protection under federal guidelines and demonstrating compliance with federal risk management standards.
  • A Formal Corporate Compliance Plan and Standards of Conduct, ensuring adherence to federal and state regulations, ethical practice, transparency in decision-making, and responsible stewardship of public resources.
Fellows train in a system aligned with the Institute of Medicine’s definition of high-quality health care — care that is safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable.

Application & Timeline

Peak Vista’s Family Nurse Practitioner Fellowship is designed to strengthen clinical competence, prescriptive confidence, and readiness for independent practice in underserved primary care settings. The annual recruitment cycle reflects the program’s commitment to selecting Fellows who demonstrate alignment with safety-net values, clinical growth mindset, and long-term community impact.

Typical recruitment timeline:
  • November: Applications open.
  • Mid-March: Application deadline.
  • March - April: Interviews conducted.
  • Spring: Admission decisions released.
  • September: Fellowship begins.
Each cohort includes five Fellows, allowing for focused mentorship and structured competency development.

The FNP Fellowship seeks motivated clinicians who are committed to service, professional development, and safety-net primary care. Applicants should demonstrate readiness for structured postgraduate training and alignment with the program’s mission of expanding access to high-quality care.

Applicants must:
  • Graduate from an accredited Family Nurse Practitioner program prior to orientation.
  • Be eligible for active and unrestricted Colorado RN and NP licensure.
  • Demonstrate RN clinical experience that supports transition into advanced practice.
  • Commit to a 12-month, full-time postgraduate training experience.
Full application requirements, documentation details, and submission instructions are available on the Apply page.

Peak Vista hosts live FNP Q&A and Information Sessions during each recruitment cycle to support prospective applicants and academic partners. These sessions provide direct access to Fellowship leadership and offer an opportunity to ask detailed questions about curriculum structure, clinical expectations, and the application process.

The FNP informational Q&A is typically held in mid-to-late February from 9:00 am to 11:00 am Mountain Time (MT). Registration details are shared during the fall recruitment cycle.

During the session, participants can:
  • Engage directly with the FNP Fellowship Director and primary care faculty.
  • Explore how the Fellowship builds confidence in managing acute, chronic, and preventive care across the lifespan.
  • Learn about procedural training, specialty rotations, and panel progression.
  • Ask specific questions about patient volume expectations and clinical autonomy.
  • Clarify application components, eligibility criteria, and interview preparation.
  • Understand how the program supports safe, effective prescriptive practice in community-based primary care.
Participation is optional but strongly encouraged for applicants seeking a clearer understanding of the PMHNP Fellowship’s structure, expectations, and alignment with their professional goals.

Questions that Fellowship Applicants Ask Most

Program Structure & Experience

The FNP Fellowship is structured around supervised competency development with dedicated mentorship and milestone tracking. FNP Fellows build clinical autonomy progressively rather than functioning as fully independent providers from day one.

Five Fellows are selected annually for the FNP program. Small cohort size allows for dedicated preceptor attention and individualized development.

Application & Selection

Each year’s applicant pool varies, but only five positions are available. Applicants are encouraged to submit complete materials early in the cycle.

Interview invitations are typically extended after the March application deadline. Final decisions are communicated in the spring.

Clinical Practice & Scope

Yes, Fellows gradually build a patient panel under preceptor supervision. Responsibility increases as competency milestones are achieved.

Yes. The FNP Fellowship includes a dedicated procedure clinic and specialty collaboration to expand procedural competency.

Compensation & Benefits

Yes, the Fellowship is a full-time salaried position with a competitive benefits package(opens in a new tab).

As part of an FQHC, Peak Vista maintains FTCA malpractice eligibility in accordance with federal guidelines.

Licensing & Eligibility

Applicants must be eligible for licensure, and active licensure must be finalized before program start.

While designed for recent graduates, transitioning NPs may be considered if aligned with program goals.