TONDA HUGHES, PhD ’89, RN, FAAN, is the Henrik H. Bendixen Professor of International Nursing and associate dean for Global Health in the School of Nursing at Columbia University.

Dr. Hughes has an interdisciplinary appointment as professor in the Department of Psychiatry in the Columbia University College of Medicine. She holds/has held honorary or visiting professorships in England (Oxford Brookes University), Australia (University of Melbourne, Deakin University, University of Technology-Sydney) and the U.S. (University of Pennsylvania and Vanderbilt University).

Hughes has a distinguished research career focusing on sexual minority women’s mental health and substance use. Her pioneering studies on alcohol use among sexual minority women have received nearly continuous funding since 1999 from the National Institutes of Health (total funding exceeds $25M).

Hughes has served as co-investigator on numerous other funded studies with multidisciplinary researchers from major U.S. and Australian institutions, including the University of Melbourne and Deakin University.

She has more than 250 peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters and other scholarly papers to her credit, as well as scores of scientific paper presentations, workshops and invited addresses at national and international research conferences and other venues.

Hughes serves or has served as consultant to many U.S. Federal agencies and institutes such as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institute on Mental Health, and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and to researchers in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Chile, India, Malawi, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Africa, South Korea, and Thailand.

She is also the founding director of the new Center of Excellence on Sexual and Gender Minority Health Research at Columbia University School of Nursing.

DALE E. BEATTY, DNP ’17, RN, NEA-BC, is the chief nurse executive and vice president for patient care services at Stanford Health Care which is a premier academic health system and is the flagship hospital for Stanford University.

Beatty has 21 years of chief nursing officer experience in high performing organizations and has served on multiple boards. He has extensive experience with ANCC Magnet and the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Beatty has a BSN from Ohio Wesleyan University, a Master of Science with Distinction from DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois, and a Doctor of Nursing Practice from the University of Illinois Chicago.

He is also board certified as a nurse executive advanced by the ANCC and is certified as a Dr. Jean Watson Caring Science, Caritas Coach. He is a board member for the Association of California Nurse Leaders (ACNL).

Beatty is the recipient of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing & the University of Illinois – Chicago College of Nursing – Alpha Lambda; Nursing Leadership Recognition Award for 2015. He was also recognized by US News and World Report’s Top 15 Hospital Chief Nursing Officers in 2021.

TIMOTHY CARRIGAN, PhD ’11, is CNO and vice president of patient care services at Loyola University Medical Center and assistant professor of nursing at Loyola University’s Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.

Prior to serving at Loyola, Dr. Carrigan was the chief administrative officer for the Rush University System for Health’s Heart & Vascular Institutes. As the CAO, Carrigan was accountable and responsible for the system level executive leadership of heart and vascular strategy, program development, finances and daily operations. Carrigan also served as the associate vice president of nursing at Rush University Medical Center.

Earlier in his career, Carrigan held leadership roles at both Advocate Aurora Health and the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System. He has presented and published on a variety of topics, including leadership talent management and development, as well as the connection between quality, safety and the patient experience.

Carrigan is the president-elect for the Illinois Organization of Nurse Leaders and will serve as president in 2022. He is on the board of directors for Heartland Alliance Health and also an active member of the American Organization of Nurse Leaders and the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Carrigan holds national certification as a nurse executive and is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. He received the Chicago Health Executive Forum (ACHE Chapter) Early Career Healthcare Executive award, the Illinois Nurses Foundation Top 40 Under 40 nurse leader award, and is a Chicago Crain’s Notable LGBTQ Executive.

Carrigan received a PhD in nursing sciences from the University of Illinois Chicago and a BSN in nursing from Millikin University.

SANDRA MARTELL, DNP ’10, RN, MS ’93, is the public health administrator for the Winnebago County Health Department, which serves a unique urban, suburban and rural population of over 280,000 in Winnebago County, Illinois.

As the chief health strategist for the county, she is responsible for leading the community through the COVID-19 pandemic by providing education on public health guidance, making public health policy decisions, and informing the community on the status of the virus locally through new conferences and media interviews.

In addition to the COVID-19 response, she has facilitated cross agency collaboration on other issues of public health concern, including the opioid epidemic and the movement toward becoming a trauma informed community.

Prior to joining WCHD, Martell worked as the interim chief operating officer for the Cook County Department of Public Health. Martell has over 30 years of experience working in public health.

Martell has a BSN from Loyola University of Chicago and her Master of Science and Doctor of Nursing Practice from the UIC College of Nursing with a concentrated focus on public health.