Leading physician and healthcare executives from across the U.S. are inaugural members of the Distinguished Haslam PEMBA Fellows and Distinguished Haslam Healthcare Leadership Fellows programs at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Haslam College of Business. These celebrated alumni of Haslam Graduate and Executive Education’s Physician Executive MBA (PEMBA) and Executive MBA – Healthcare Leadership (EMBA-HL) programs will serve two-year terms as Distinguished Fellows.
Kate Atchley, distinguished lecturer and director of the PEMBA and EMBA-HL programs, calls the cohort members thought leaders in the healthcare business.
“We are proud to name them as our inaugural Distinguished Fellows in the PEMBA and EMBA-HL programs,” Atchley says. “As alumni, these leaders can serve as ambassadors for the programs, speaking to how the program develops students’ skills, knowledge and leadership abilities, as well as the bonds formed with fellow students and faculty, which endure long after their time here.”
The 2024 PEMBA Distinguished Fellows cohort includes:
- Jody Crane (PEMBA, ’04), chief medical officer with Team Health
- Rachel George (PEMBA, ’04), chief medical officer with Emerus Holdings, Inc.
- Herman Gray (PEMBA, ’03), Department of Pediatrics chair at Wayne State University
- Chris Kodama (PEMBA, ’11), founder and principal of EverSparq, LLC
- Bruce Meyer (PEMBA, ’99), EVP, market president with Western Pennsylvania at Highmark Health
- Karen Murrell (PEMBA, ’09), director of Care Without Delay at Kaiser Permanente Sunnyside Medical Center
- Ram Raju (PEMBA, ’00), senior vice president (retired) of Northwell Health
- Eneida Roldan (PEMBA, ’03), CEO of FIU Health Care Network
- Rick Watson (PEMBA, ’07), market medical executive with Cigna Healthcare
The 2024 EMBA-HL Distinguished Fellows cohort members are:
- Tim Attebery (EMBA-HL, ’15), CEO of Cardiovascular Associates of America
- Stacey Berner (EMBA-HL, ’16), president (retired) of SurgCenter Development
- Kelley Simpson (EMBA-HL, ’16), president at Cancer Concierge, LLC
- Mike Wiechart (EMBA-HL, ’15), president and COO of Team Health
- Clarence Williams (EMBA-HL, ’19), director at Memorial Hermann Health System
Healthcare Leader Perspectives
Tim Attebery and Bruce Meyer explain that the program significantly impacted their careers and express their excitement about their Distinguished Fellows appointments to give back and continue to improve American healthcare.
“Earning an MBA through the EMBA-HL program was a true game-changer for my healthcare leadership career,” says Attebery. “I thought I was a good leader when I entered the program. I exited a stronger, more well-rounded, more thoughtful and substantially more effective leader. I am honored to participate in the Fellows program and look forward to collaborating with other graduates and the faculty to explore ways to strengthen the program and maintain its relevance in the ever-changing ecosystem of U.S. healthcare.”
Meyer adds, “Twenty-five years after graduation, PEMBA remains one of the most meaningful educational experiences of my life. There is no question that the skills and tools that I learned in the program have played an enormous role in the opportunities in my career that I have been fortunate to receive. That is why it so meaningful for me to participate in the Fellows program — so that I can pay the program back and contribute to training the next generation of physician leaders.”
Enhancing Program Excellence, Student Engagement
The PEMBA and EMBA-HL Distinguished Fellows bring a reservoir of expertise and experience to the programs that will supplement faculty instruction. In their roles, they will share with current students insights into healthcare leadership, connecting with them during residency periods and through personal outreach. They also will appear on the PEMBA on Demand podcast, participate in panel discussions, serve as Organizational Action Project advisors and subject matter expert to current students, offer curriculum and program insights and advise on graduation speaker selections.
According to Amy Cathey, distinguished lecturer and Haslam’s associate dean for Graduate and Executive Education, the Distinguished Fellows programs will offer multiple opportunities for mutually beneficial outcomes to their members, Haslam students and Haslam faculty, as well as to the PEMBA and EMBA-HL programs themselves.
“We believe that the input of these Distinguished Fellows will be a force multiplier to the programs’ academic content and raise the programs’ profiles nationally,” she says. “We are grateful to them for serving with us in this capacity, and we are pleased to welcome them as the founding cohorts of Haslam’s PEMBA and EMBA-HL Distinguished Fellows programs.”
CONTACT:
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Scott McNutt, business writer/publicist, rmcnutt4@utk.edu
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