August 1, 2023

First Cohort of UAMS-UAF Executive Healthcare Leadership Program Graduates

The first cohort of 20 UAMS faculty members recently graduated from the Executive Healthcare Leadership program, a special collaboration between UAMS and the Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

The one-year leadership program, created for UAMS faculty, featured monthly sessions on topics including strategic planning/thinking, delegation/empowerment, difficult conversations, organizational communication and leadership presence. The final session and graduation was held July 14 at the Walton College of Business’ location in downtown Little Rock. A 22-member cohort for 2023-2024 has been selected and will begin the program in September.

“The program encouraged thoughtful identification of personal values and purposeful and strategic execution of those values, skills that will hopefully contribute to thoughtful and transformative leadership,” said Sara Shalin, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Dermatology in the UAMS College of Medicine. “However, my biggest takeaway and unanticipated gain from participation was the tremendous network of professional support I found in the colleagues that participated in the program with me.

“I heard perspectives from and learned with leaders from different departments and colleges of UAMS, and by the end of the experience, I had gained an entirely new network of colleagues and friends.”

The 2022-2023 program graduates included:

• Antiño Allen, Ph.D., Professor/ Associate Dean in Graduate School, Division of Radiation Health, College of Pharmacy
• Ted Brown, M.D., Associate Professor, Autopsy Director, and Chief Medical Examiner, Department of Pathology, College of Medicine
• Aaron Carson, M.D., Associate Director Behavioral Health Service Line, Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine
• Lakshmi Cheerla, M.D., Family and Preventive Medicine
• Shannon Dare, M.D., Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesiology, College of Medicine
• Benjamin Davis, M.D., Associate Professor, Chief of Acute Care, Department of Surgery, College of Medicine
• Romona Davis, M.D., Associate Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, College of Medicine
• Ebonye Green, MNSc, CNRN, ACNS-AG, APN, Lead APP for Neuroscience Service Line, Department of Neurosurgery, College of Medicine
• Horacio Gomez-Acevedo, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine
• Corey Hayes, Pharm.D., Ph.D., MPH, Assistant Professor/Research Health Scientist, Department of Biomedical Informatics, College of Medicine
• Laura Hays, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, College of Nursing
• Ken Knecht, D., Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine
• Igor Koturbash, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor and Chair, Environmental Health Sciences, College of Public Health
• Paul Manbeck, M.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine
• Shengyu Mu, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Medicine
• Craig Porter, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine
• Sara Shalin, M.D., Ph.D., Professor and Chair of Dermatology, Department of Pathology and Dermatology, College of Medicine
• Layla Simmons, M.Ed., RDCS, RDMS, Assistant Professor/Program Director, Department of Imaging and Radiation, College of Health Professions
• Aravindhan Veerapandiyan, M.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine

Laura Hays, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the College of Nursing, said she was initially interested in the program to strengthen leadership skills to be more effective after she was elected chair of the Arkansas Genetics Health Committee.

“I am better equipped now to effectively lead teams and manage projects aligned with a central mission and vision,” she said. “I am a more satisfied UAMS employee to fully know that my personal mission and goals align with the university’s mission and goals, putting me in exactly the right place at the right time.”

The 2023-2024 cohort includes: Erika Santos Horta, M.D.; Gohar Azhar, M.D.; Damon Lipinski, Ph.D.; Sharmilan Thanendrarajan, M.D., Ph.D.; Sowmya Patil, M.D.; Sumant Inamdar, M.D.; Shipra Bansal, M.D.; Shelley Crary, M.D.; Xiawei Ou, Ph.D.; William Mustain, M.D.; Umesh Wankhade. Ph.D.; Yuet-Kin Leung, Ph.D.; Konstantinos Arnaoutakis, M.D.; Jerrilyn Jones, M.D.; Krishna Nalleballe, M.D.; Edward Williams, DMSc, M.Ed., PA-C; Jacob Painter, Pharm.D., MBA., Ph.D.; Lindsey Dayer, Pharm.D.; Lauren Haggard-Duff, Ph.D., RN, CNE; Doug Reeves, MBA, DNP, RN-BC; Brett Bailey, Pharm.D.; Analiz Rodriguez, M.D., Ph.D.; and En Huang, Ph.D.