2022 Scholarship Fund Recipients

Xiao (Lilac) Li, MHA/MBA, MS, 2022 Leaders (1^st place) scholarship recipient

Xiao (Lilac) Li, MHA/MBA, MS, is a PhD candidate at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health. She received her Master's in Healthcare Administration and Business Administration from the University of Houston - Clear Lake.  Her research interest is healthcare disparities, healthcare economics, and healthcare finance. Her passion and dedication are vividly demonstrated by her 39 publications, including 7 healthcare-related publications.  Xiao is also one of the winners of the “2022 MGMA Research Topic Contest” with her research essay, “Telehealth in the Pursuit of Value-Based Care” that was published in MGMA Connection magazine in April 2022. She is also a co-author of a 3-part leadership book series, “Leadership 123” that was published in 2021.  Moreover, Xiao is serving as a graduate researcher in the CDC project, Opioid Data to Action Project, for developing and implementing an evaluation plan to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of public health strategies that were developed in the project in collaboration with multiple public and academic organizations.

Jacob Shields, 2022 Leaders (2^nd place) scholarship recipient
To listen to Jacob Shields' interview on the Insights podcast, click here.

Jacob is a second year Master's in Business Administration and Master's in Health Administration candidate at Cornell in the 2023 class. He also holds a Master's in Bioethics and a Bachelor's in Political Science from Case Western Reserve University. He has previous experience as an application manager and lead of procedural cardiology expert group. He has conducted research on the ethics of US health policy as well as economic policy. Jacob is grateful for the support from MGMA and a future career driving positive change in healthcare.



Anna Dunbar, 2022 Andrea M. Rossiter, FACMPE scholarship recipient
To listen to Anna Dunbar's interview on the MGMA Insights podcast, click here.

Anna is currently in her second year of pursuing a Master's in Health Administration degree at the University of South Carolina. She is originally from Irmo, South Carolina and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Public Health from the University of South Carolina in May of 2021. Anna's passions within healthcare are centered around improving the patient's experience through quality and process improvement efforts. She is excited to embark on a career where she is able to improve the transparency, accessibility, and most importantly the value of care that patients in her community receive. Anna is extremely grateful to MGMA for supporting her as she finishes her graduate studies and is honored to be part of MGMA's inspiring group of healthcare leaders. 

                                   
Brenna Hill, 2022 MGMA Western Section scholarship recipient

Brenna Hill is an Administrative Resident at Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego and a Master's in Health Administration student at the University of Southern California. She graduated from Trinity University with majors in Urban Studies and Sociology and minors in Spanish and Political Science.

After graduating, Brenna worked as a Wish Coordinator with Make-A-Wish, a non-profit that grants wishes for children with critical illnesses. Brenna has experience in philanthropy and fundraising at Make-A-Wish and Scripps Health.
In her current role at Rady Children’s Hospital as an Administrative Resident with the Transforming Mental Health department, Brenna supports an innovative program to integrate behavioral health into primary care and create a comprehensive continuum of care for children. She is very grateful for the support of MGMA as she continues her career and works to make healthcare more equitable and accessible for children and families.
 

Claire Dundon, 2022 Richard L. Davis, FACMPE/Barbara B. Watson, FACMPE scholarship recipient

Claire Dundon is a second-year graduate student pursuing a Master's in Health Administration (MHA) from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Biology, Magna Cum Laude, with a double minor in Chemistry and Psychology from Radford University in 2019. She currently works at Oak Street Health, a Chicago value-based care organization, as a Population Health Manager. At the height of COVID, Claire recognized the growing need for healthcare leadership and decided to return to school. Claire is pursuing her MHA to further her knowledge and experiences in the healthcare world with aspirations of becoming a strong leader, improving healthcare accessibility and equity, and implementing positive change and quality improvement. After her MHA she plans to pursue a career in strategy to build upon her knack for creativity and innovation. In her free time she enjoys running, traveling, and trying new restaurants. Claire is extremely grateful for this honor and recognition and the various opportunities it provides to continue her education and development. She thanks her mother, mentors, friends, and family for their consistent love and support of her pursuits. 

 
Eddie Little, 2022 Richard L. Davis, FACMPE scholarship recipient

Eddie Little served 22 years in the United States Army as a medic and has held various leadership roles managing small outpatient clinics as well as multiple departments within a medical center. He was assigned to numerous stateside duty stations as well as other countries and completed two tours to Iraq. Eddie is a Master's in Healthcare Administration candidate at Winston-Salem State University, North Carolina. He is pursuing this degree to advance his knowledge of the business aspects of healthcare and further develop as a leader in the healthcare system. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Management from Franklin University in 2011. He currently works at WakeMed Heart & Vascular, Raleigh, NC as the practice manager for specialty services. In the near future, he looks forward to obtaining his ACMPE Certification to enhance his skillset within his organization. Eddie is thankful for this scholarship and the opportunities that it provides.

 
Kiley Riggs, 2022 Richard L. Davis, FACMPE - Appalachian scholarship recipient

Kiley is a senior at Appalachian State University in the Health Care Management Program. She chose to do this program because she always knew she wanted to work in healthcare and help others. Kiley had the opportunity to intern at Kernodle Clinic this past summer, where she fell in love working in Clinical Operations. Kernodle Clinic is part of the Private Diagnostic Clinic, PLLC, the physician practice of Duke Health. Upon graduation she plans to return home and work while obtaining her master’s degree in either Healthcare Administration or Business Administration. In her free time, Kiley is actively involved in the Zeta Mu Chapter of Alpha Delta Pi, as well as Future Healthcare Executives. She would like to thank MGMA for supporting her as she strives to reach all her aspirations in the healthcare industry.

 
Lucas Halvorson, 2022 MGMA Midwest Section scholarship recipient
To listen to Lucas Halvorson's interview on the MGMA Insights podcast, click here.

Lucas is a second-year Master's of Healthcare Administration candidate at the University of Minnesota. He earned his BBA in Economics from the University of Iowa and is a graduate of the Vaughan Institute of Risk Management and Insurance. After graduating from the University of Iowa, Lucas was a Project Manager at Epic Systems leading medical groups and other healthcare organizations through EHR implementations and enterprise-level optimization projects. Following the first-year of his MHA program, Lucas was a Graduate Administrative Resident this summer at the Cleveland Clinic supporting the enterprise’s regional health system. Currently, Lucas is a Strategy Analyst for UnitedHealthcare’s Accelerator program and will be graduating in May of 2023. He is thankful for this scholarship and is excited about continuing his involvement and support of the MGMA throughout his career.
   

Sarah Ahmad, 2022 Richard L. Davis, FACMPE-UNC scholarship recipient

Sarah is a MHA student at UNC Chapel Hill. She is passionate about healthcare and making a difference, so healthcare administration seemed like her calling. Sarah majored in psychology at NC State and worked in various clinics during her time there as a shadower for dentists and internal medicine physicians. She then worked as an administrative assistant/opthalmic technician for an opthalmologist before starting her career at UNC Chapel Hill. She is excited to venture into the field and see what she can do to make helathcare better for all! She is currently working with City of Hope as a corporate philanthropy intern and loving it! 


 
Stanley Zheng, 2022 Harry J. Harwick scholarship recipient

Stanley Zheng is a second-year Master of Health Administration (MHA) student at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He is completing his administrative residency for his MHA program at the University of Maryland Capital Region Health. Stanley was inspired to enter the field of health administration to have and sustain positive, large-scale impacts on the health and well-being of patients, healthcare workers, and communities simultaneously. He is extremely humbled, honored, and grateful for being awarded the 2022 Harry J. Harwick Scholarship. 
 


Stephanie Dodgen, 2022 MGMA Southern Section scholarship recipient
To listen to Stephanie Dodgen's interivew on the MGMA Insights podcast, click here.

Stephanie is a second-year student pursuing her Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Healthcare Administration from Baylor University. She graduated summa cum laude from Southern Methodist University with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Art in Music. Currently, Stephanie is completing her residency work in Healthcare Administration at Delray Medical Center in Delray Beach, Florida. This past year, Stephanie led a team of students who competed in the Business School Alliance for Health Management Case Competition. She and her team were awarded first place for their rural hospital of the future business plan. Stephanie is passionate about healthcare and strives to continue developing her leadership abilities and creative business solutions to better serve her healthcare community. After graduating with her MBA, she plans to become an administrator in the hospital to positively impact the lives of patients and to continue the work she started as a Girl Scout Gold Award recipient helping young children with their healthcare needs.