John A. Calderone, Ph.D. had been the Chief Executive Officer of Olympia Medical Center from 2006 until his retirement in 2016.

Dr. Calderone has over 40 years’ experience in the healthcare industry. Before assuming his last position, he was the Chief Executive Officer of Corona Regional Medical Center in Corona, California for ten years. He also served as Chief Executive Officer for several hospitals in Orange County.  Previously, Dr. Calderone held positions at a corporate level for over ten years with three different healthcare systems, where he directed the marketing, planning and business development functions.

Prior to entering the healthcare field, Dr. Calderone was employed at the General Electric Company for over four years in the Transportation Systems Business Operations Division as manager of employee programs.  He also was the Chief Executive Officer of Serenity Hall Incorporated a not-for-profit chemical dependency psychiatric network of inpatient and outpatient facilities in Pennsylvania.  Throughout his career, he has been an adjunct professor teaching at several different universities. He served on the Board of Directors of multiple community organizations.

Dr. Calderone was named the 2013 recipient of the 4^th Annual Healthcare Administrator Award, presented by the national Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).  He served on the Board of Directors for the Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC) for over fifteen years, its Executive Committee for seven years.  He was the 2014 Chairman of the Hospital Association of Southern California.  Additionally, he served on the Board of Trustees and its Executive Committee for the California Hospital Association (CHA).  He also was appointed and served on the Board of Directors for the California Hospital Quality Institute.  Dr. Calderone holds a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh, and a post-doctoral degree in Psychology from Edinboro University.

Currently, he is serving on the Board of Directors of the National Health Foundation, Los Angeles, the Convalescent Aid Society, Pasadena, Communities Lifting Communities, LLC, Los Angeles, Gateways Hospital and Mental Health Centers, Los Angeles and the Board of Visitors, University of Pittsburgh.

George W. Greene joined the Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC) as President/CEO in 2017. Since then, the association has added community outreach initiatives and led critical health care coordination across the region. In addition to leading local advocacy efforts for over 180 Southern California hospitals, Greene has guided new HASC initiatives including Communities Lifting Communities (CLC), a nonprofit charitable affiliate focused on advancing significant systems change through a collective impact model involving hospitals, health systems and local health care stakeholders. CLC’s Cherished Futures for Black Moms and Babies carries CLC’s work into underserved Los Angeles County communities with a focus on birthing health. Under Greene’s leadership, existing HASC affiliates and initiatives like the association’s ReddiNet® emergency communications system, National Health Foundation and Endorsed Business Partner program have expanded and prospered.

Since the outset of the pandemic, Greene has mobilized HASC to lead a coordinated response for the region as multiple hospitals and organizations continue to act together in response to COVID-19.

Prior to taking HASC’s reins, Greene led the Healthcare Association of Hawaii – a role he held since 2009. He previously worked for the American Hospital Association as Regional Executive for California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Alaska and Hawaii. Before this assignment, he worked with Sharp HealthCare of San Diego as Director of Advocacy, Community and Multicultural Affairs.

Greene launched his professional career in Washington, D.C., where he was Counsel to South Carolina Rep. Bob Inglis his hometown‘s congressional representative. He subsequently worked for the National Association of Homebuilders and San Diego Mayor Susan Golden.

Greene earned a JD degree from the University of Tennessee and a BA from Clemson University in South Carolina. He resides in South Pasadena with wife Stacie and children Gabriella, Kili, Pono – and the newest addition – Greyson Myles

Jerry is the Chairman of Gerald J. Sullivan Co. Reinsurance. With over 60 years of in-depth and extensive experience in numerous aspects of the insurance business (regulatory, investment, company, claims, program manager, reinsurance and wholesale intermediary), Jerry brings unique skills, ability and contacts as leader of this outstanding organization.

Having grown up in an insurance family, Jerry moved to Southern California in the early ‘70s where he worked with George Walker in the development and expansion of a varied book of property & casualty business including the largest medical professional liability insurance program in the U.S. During this time, Jerry also oversaw a large book of treaty reinsurance business on behalf of the family reinsurance intermediary firm, John F. Sullivan Co. In the early ‘80s he established a company that was the core of The Sullivan Group. Along with various partners, Jerry developed several new companies and insurance products such as structured settlements.

With heavy emphasis on service to both clients and markets, Jerry’s leadership grew the Sullivan Group into one of the largest privately owned brokerages in the country providing services in the wholesale, reinsurance, and retail areas of the business.

Education:

University of Washington – B.A. Business Administration, University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business – MBA, Insurance

Affiliations/Associations:

• Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB), Board Member 2009 – 2018, Current Member
• Surplus Line Association of California Board Member & Admitted Market Liaison Committee Member

2007 – Present, Executive Committee Member 2005 – Present, 1989-1996 & 1977-1981, Chairman 1979 & 1995, Chairman Legislative Committee 1992-1994, Chairman, Security Committee 1976-1983

• Society of Chartered Property & Casualty Underwriters, (CPCU), member and designee 1968-present

• California Department of Insurance: Agents & Brokers Advisory Council 1995-2010.
• California Insurance Wholesalers Association (CIWA), member 1995-Present
• The Wholesale & Specialty Insurance Association (WSIA), (formerly NAPSLO) member 2017 – Present
• City of Hope National Insurance Industry Council, President 2008, Board of Directors, 1990-Present
• National Health Foundation, Board Member, Present
• Disabled Veterans Insurance Careers, Inc. (DVIC): Board Member 2011-Present
• USC Center for Innovation on Veterans & Military Families Center (CIR) Leadership Council
  2015 – Present

Paul Young is the Senior Vice President of Reimbursement and Public Policy at the Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC), a regional trade association dedicated to effectively advancing the interests of 184 member hospitals and 40 health systems operating in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.

Paul was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, graduating from the University of Hawaii at Manoa with a Bachelor’s of Health Education and a Master’s of Business Administration.

While pursuing his MBA, Paul began his career in the healthcare industry with a data analyst position at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Hawaii.  Paul spent twelve years at BCBS, working on projects including inpatient hospital DRG relative weight setting, group underwriting and renewals, healthcare policy and government programs.

In November 2010, he accepted a position with the Healthcare Association of Hawaii (HAH) as the Director of Reimbursement Policy.  Unlike most state hospital associations, Hawaii’s includes the post-acute care continuum from skilled nursing facilities (SNF) to hospice agencies.  During his tenure there, HAH passed their version of the Hospital and SNF Quality Assurance Fees, conducted the initial statewide Community Health Needs Assessment and implemented a new statewide hospital claims repository.

Paul has been in his current position with HASC since April 2018, working collaboratively with HASC’s four regional vice presidents on their respective issues with the local Medicaid managed care plans and supporting RVP initiatives on county-related funding and healthcare policy.

Mara Bryant, Operations Executive

As Operations Executive, Mara Bryant leads key initiatives integration of the Malcolm Baldrige business framework, strategic planning, and organizational performance.  In 1999, she became Adventist Health’s first national Malcolm Baldrige examiner in the healthcare category, which has helped White Memorial better understand and implement the Malcolm Baldrige criteria.

Bryant has also set up an effective productivity standard to monitor staffing and help ensure correct nursing ratios. She also established the decision support function to provide comparative data, which is vital to strategic and operational planning.

She is actively pursuing research in racially ambiguous babies, its implications in healthcare and social determinants of health. Bryant has 2 publications on this topic and participated on an NIH conference to begin looking at alternative models.

Bryant first worked at White Memorial as a volunteer, at 14 years of age. In 1984, she was hired as a part-time secretary while completing her bachelor’s degree. In the 1990s, she held positions as Joint Commission Project Manager and Director of Quality and Resource Management.

Mara holds a Master of Business Administration degree from La Sierra University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Administration of Justice from California State University at Los Angeles.

Alison Birnie holds a DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice) degree in Executive Leadership from the University of San Diego, which they obtained between 2022 and 2024. Alison also holds an Associate of Science (AS) degree in Nursing Education from Boise State University, earned between 1983 and 1987. Additionally, Alison has a Master’s degree in Health/Health Care Administration/Management from California State University, Los Angeles, and a Bachelor’s degree in Nursing Education from the same institution. Alison also has certifications from the California Board Of Registered Nursing, but the specific details are not provided.

Since joining Torrance Memorial in 2021 as Executive Vice President, Hobbs has been an integral part of the hospital’s leadership team and operations. His most recent duties include the oversight of the Torrance Memorial Physician Network, hospital medical staff, human resources, laboratory services and in-house pharmacy. In February of this year, he was promoted to president of Torrance Memorial Medical Center and has continued to demonstrate outstanding leadership and commitment to improving patient care.  Hobbs spent more than two decades as vice president and in multiple executive roles at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

Hobbs holds a master’s degree in business administration, with an emphasis in healthcare administration and a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and a member of the Medical Group Management Association. Hobbs also serves on a number of non-profit boards. Hobbs resides in the South Bay with his wife of more than 30 years. They have three adult children and a granddaughter.

Yan Searcy comes to CSUN having served as the Associate Dean in the School of Health and Human Services at Southern Connecticut State University for four years. He also served as the Interim Associate Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Chicago State University where he was a faculty member for 20 years in the Departments of Social Work and Sociology and was president of the faculty senate for seven.

Searcy earned his B.S. degree in both Psychology and American Studies from the University of Notre Dame; his Master of Science in Social Work (MSSW) degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; and his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago’s School of Social Service Administration.  Searcy’s areas of research publication and scholarly interest include social work with adolescents, youth mentoring and student success, factors influencing exercise, race, social policy aimed at eliminating racial disparities, urban poverty, and urban economic development.

Dr. Felita Jones is President and Chief Executive officer of the National Health Foundation (NHF), a leading nonprofit in Southern California providing recuperative care to individuals experiencing homelessness. She holds a doctorate degree in education with a specialization in organizational leadership, a master’s degree in public administration, a bachelor’s degree in health care administration, and has over fifteen years of experience overseeing nonprofits and community-based programs serving marginalized and underserved communities. Her lifelong commitment has been to engage communities to be in the driver’s seat of their own health care by effectively shifting them from episodic care to preventative care.  She is an award winner for her work with the LAC+USC Medical Center Breathmobile Program and has been published in a variety of medical journals on the issues of health disparities, asthma management and community-based healthcare models for under-resourced populations. She currently resides in Southern California with her French Bulldog, Bobby Jones.

Contact Information:

mdavis@nhfca.org
(231)538-0983

Isabel Garcia, holds a master’s degree in business management, a bachelor’s degree in administration from the University of Redlands, and a Human Resources Certificate from Claremont College of Business. Her HR experience spans over 20 years in the private sector and covers several groups: retail, manufacturing, hospitality, and private consulting with groups of upwards of 7500 members. The calling to do more for our community led her to partner with NHF. Isabel calls this an opportunity, a privilege, and honor to support such a needed organization for our communities. Isabel lives in Southern California with her daughter Zoe and lovable pets Lola and Chata (a new addition to the family).

Chad Monk is the Senior Vice President of Programs and Public Policy at National Health Foundation where he works to address health disparities through community-based participatory research, community organizing, and direct services.

Prior to NHF, Chad coordinated the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles’ Diabetes Prevention Program across five YMCA branches. During his time there, he worked with LA County Department of Health Services to enroll low-income Angelenos into the CDC recognized program. Chad was also a Health Educator for Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s Healthy Habits program, where he worked with schools in the Mid-City neighborhood of Los Angeles to teach nutrition classes, provide professional development and resources for teachers and staff, and enhance school wellness policies.

Chad received a Master of Public Health with a focus in Community Health from California State University, Long Beach and has his bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Health from Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, California.

Chad is a proud Southern Californian with roots in the South Bay area of Los Angeles and Riverside County. He is an appointed member to Los Angeles County’s Community Prevention and Population Health Task Force and serves as the Zone 7 Representative for South Robertson Neighborhood Council.

Christian Ocampo serves as the Director of Information Technology for National Health Foundation. He provides strategic oversight of IT initiatives that align with National Health Foundation’s culture and long-term goals.

Christian works across traditional boundaries in Information Technology, drawing from his passion for listening and teaching, with a focus on helping those who use technology work more productively and efficiently. His experience spans over 15 years in all facets of Information Technology, including healthcare and commercial sectors. He is a technical manager, with hands-on expertise in infrastructure: servers, cloud vm’s, network technologies, data management, and the disciplines of creating facilities that power reliable and scalable applications.

Christian engineered several important changes to IT at National Health Foundation. Among these were substantial upgrades to the NHF’s IT infrastructure, marked improvements in the approach to cybersecurity, advances in the utilization of collaborative tools and critical innovations in the use of technology for NHF’s recuperative care program.

Marlene Smith, NHF’s Regional Vice President of Operations, West oversees operations in Ventura County as well as NHF’s upcoming site known as Arleta, a 148-bed interim recuperative care program for older unhoused adults. Marlene has over 13 years of experience working in humanitarian services. Marlene started her long career journey in New York working with Services for the Underserved (SUS) to support individuals with profound, severe, and mild Intellectual Developmental Disabilities, Autism Disorder, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Illness, and other co-occurring behaviors of concerns for 11 years. Marlene has substantial knowledge of working with vulnerable populations challenged with severe crisis psychiatric needs, where she has worked with residential Interdisciplinary teams and multi-disciplinary teams for psychiatric units providing integrated services to best support the whole person. Through her career at SUS and Young Adult Institute (YAI) as Residential Director where she oversaw 7 start-up homes to support youth in Crisis in both Southern and Northern California, Marlene has developed a deep knowledge of Behavioral Health Management. Upon her relocation to Los Angeles in January 2020, Marlene made the decision to shift her career efforts toward working with the unhoused. Her previous role at Volunteers of America as a Compliance Program Manager, provided further insight and experience in providing support to emergency shelters, domestic violence shelters, Transitional Age Youth (TAY) programs, Veterans programs, and re-entry to name a few.

Aisha has an intense passion for advocating for and supporting underserved populations, developing programs, international travel, learning about different cultures, trying new life adventures and helping others. Aisha was born and raised in South Los Angeles. Born from a mixed cultural heritage of African American, Honduran and Belizean roots, Aisha has always been intrigued with learning about different cultures, languages and how to assist those in need, especially those experiencing homelessness all over the world. Growing up in South LA during challenging socioeconomic times when drugs, gangs and poverty exceeded the rates of prior years, Aisha observed the economic, mental and emotional toll these challenges took on her community. These observations within her environment fueled Aisha’s interests and motivated her to study and earn a BA in psychology at UCLA and a MSW in social work at the University of Chicago. During undergrad at UCLA, Aisha studied abroad in Spain for a year to improve her Spanish and experience the culture first-hand.

In her professional career, Aisha has worked in support of and advocated for under-served populations for the last 25 years. She has counseled and worked collaboratively with a variety of populations within the social services field including pregnant and parenting teens, teens with severe emotional and mental health challenges, survivors of domestic violence and men and women in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons. Aisha has had the unique opportunity to travel to many countries and learn about an abundance of different cultures through her previous work as the Director of Grant Programs with an international, education and cultural exchange organization in Chicago. In 2018, Aisha joined NHF where she has enjoyed the opportunity to hone her skills in homeless services and recuperative care programs. Aisha works collaboratively with the community of Ventura County to end homelessness and provide supportive services to individuals in the community experiencing homelessness, mental and physical health challenges upon their discharge from the hospital. As the Director of Recuperative Care in Ventura County, Aisha enjoys working with the NHF team and local service providers to provide medical respite, supportive resources, advocacy and safe housing options to our guests.

Scott Twomey joins National Health Foundation as Interim Chief Executive Officer.

Scott, previously Chief Financial Officer of NHF and the Hospital Association of Southern California for 18 years, rejoins the team after his brief retirement. Scott is part of the NHF transition team whose focus, among many others, is to maintain the mission, vision and values that define NHF. 

Prior to assuming this role with NHF, Scott held senior management positions with companies in the high tech, transportation, and food and beverage industries. He has a master’s in Business Administration from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles. 

Ms. Pepper began her medical career as an LVN, during which time she learned that caring for others is her passion.  She has since earned her BSN, and respectively her MSN while pursuing her love of Nursing as an art and passion. She has experience working in telemetry with cardiac patients, as well as substantial experience in the field of emergency medicine as an RN.  Megan worked in the field of nursing as an RN during her Master of Nursing program, as she believes that experience in the field is just as critical as the knowledge learned from a book.  As an FNP, Megan gained experience working in the field of infectious disease.  Continuing her journey of helping to heal others, she has joined NHF to focus on caring for those who are underserved and unhoused.  Megan hopes to bring equity in healthcare to those who are experiencing homelessness and she wishes to see NHF’s recuperative care guests thrive.   She enjoys teaching others and sees every interaction as an opportunity to both learn from others and to teach.  Megan can be found in her off time reading books, playing video games, or enjoying time with family.  She loves being outdoors and finds nature, hiking, and outdoor activities to be rejuvenating and essential.

Over the past decade, Ana has been part of numerous agencies supporting unhoused families and individuals throughout Los Angeles County. Ana has worked with various agencies advocating for marginalized communities by developing programs, identifying resources, and working alongside staff to best support programs’ overall success. Ana was born in El Salvador and raised in Los Angeles, CA. She resided in South LA for several years and then moved to the San Fernando Valley, where she was part of her high school basketball team and volunteered at her local church to visit children who had been deserted by their families. Ana has a continued passion for working with individuals who are unhoused and enjoys networking with community members to support those in need of extra care. Ana enjoys traveling, exploring, hiking, learning, and spending time with family and friends on the weekends. Ana is looking into furthering her education and looks forward to the endless possibilities that may come from her life experiences and education.

Qiana grew up in South LA. Her, mother a retired special education teacher at Manual Arts High School, and her father both owned a poultry business on Western and Vernon for many years. She believed at a very young age what ” to be of service” meant to your own community. Qiana has been an LVN for 14 years and transitioned to work with the unhoused community and believes it has “blessed her life beyond measure.” It is truly her life’s passion to serve her community. Honored and grateful for the opportunity to serve, Qiana is proud of her Pico-Union team where the team’s motto is Go Team Go, they are some phenomenal human beings making a difference with a positive impact day after day.

Nicholas Correnti is the Director of Account Relationships at National Health Foundation and helps to facilitate and maintain the relationships with our health plan and hospital partners. Born in Boston and raised in Florida, he has been working in the nonprofit space since 2008.

Nicholas is passionate about making the world a better place, one small step at a time. He believes that positive and sincere relationships with our partners are the key to succeeding in improving outcomes in our under-resourced communities.

Melissa Arvizu is the Director of Nutrition and Food Security programs for National Health Foundation. She has a background in community-based programming, leadership development and public health policy.

Prior to NHF Melissa worked as a Program Manager with Providence St Jude Medical Center’s community initiative Move More, Eat Healthy to address health disparities, provide direct services, and connect communities with resources in under-served populations. Melissa also serves as Chairman for the La Habra Collaborative Board of Directors where she assisted in establishing and opening a food distribution site for residents in the city of La Habra, passing city ordinances to address health disparities and train residents to advocate for their needs. Her focus is to increase access to health resources, continue to develop community leaders and uplift voices of the under-served communities.

Melissa received her Master of Public Health with a focus in Policy Systems and Healthcare Administration and is graduating with her master’s in business administration with a focus in Health Care Administration. She grew up in Southern California and has always had a passion for helping people, advocating for others and serving the community.