ACHE of East Texas's Annual Chapter & Membership Event

You're not going to want to miss this year's annual ACHE of East Texas Chapter & Membership Event. Not only will this provide tremendous networking opportunities, but this year, we're going to have a great panel of speakers focusing on the subject of, Partnerships for Success: Public Health and Health System Collaboration. As an added bonus, the educational portion of the event has been preapproved for 1.50 ACHE In-Person Education credits.

Dinner & Cocktails included.

Partnerships for Success: Public Health and Health System Collaboration

The top three functions of public health are to assess and monitor populations, form public policies to address problems and priorities, and finally to make sure access to services is provided. Public health challenges that were once found only in certain countries are no longer limited to within those borders. Globalization has increased these challenges. Through globalization, the public health arena has a significant impact on health administration challenges in the US and on the path that healthcare will take in the foreseeable future.

Moderator: George T. Roberts, Jr., FACHE

Chief Executive Officer

Northeast Texas Public Health District(NET Health)

Panelists:

Donald Baker

Regional President

Ardent Health’s – Texas Region (Lone Star)

Dr. John English, MD

Chief Executive Officer

Bethesda Health Clinic

Chris Glenney, FACHE

Senior Vice President, Group Operations

Northeast Texas / Northern Louisiana

CHRISTUS Health

Julie V. Philley, MD

President

The University of Texas at Tyler

Speakers' Bios:

Donald Baker serves as Regional President for Ardent Health’s Texas Region, known as the Lone Star Region. In this role, he oversees strategy development and operations for hospitals and health services in comprehensive delivery networks across Amarillo, Harker Heights, and East Texas, driving strategic growth, clinical excellence, and community-focused care.

Previously, Mr. Baker served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for UT Health East Texas, where he led a comprehensive network that included nine hospitals, an academic medical center, regional rehabilitation facilities, freestanding emergency centers, more than 90 physician clinics, and a full continuum of outpatient and in-home healthcare services. Under his leadership, the system operated the region’s only Level 1 trauma center and maintained a robust emergency transport network with over 65 ambulances and four helicopters, serving a 40-county region with nearly 8,000 employees.

Before joining UT Health East Texas in 2020, Mr. Baker spent more than two decades with Hillcrest HealthCare System in Oklahoma, including 10 years as Market CFO. There, he supported seven hospitals, over 95 clinic locations, and 7,000 employees. His expertise spans managed care contracting, FP&A, financial operations, and executive leadership at large academic medical centers.

Mr. Baker currently serves on the Texas Hospital Association Board of Directors, the HOSPAC Board, and the Tyler Economic Development Council Board of Directors. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Langston University and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

Dr. John English, M.D., is a respected primary care physician, CEO, philanthropist, and dedicated family man who has been serving the Tyler, Texas community for over 20 years. As the current CEO of Bethesda Health Clinic, a nonprofit organization, Dr. English leads efforts to provide vital medical, dental, and mental healthcare services to underserved families in East Texas.

A native East Texan, Dr. English grew up in Longview and earned a B.S. in Biology from Stephen F. Austin State University before graduating from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. He completed his internship and residency in family medicine at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth.

Dr. English has been committed to community service and mission-driven healthcare since his medical school days. In 2004, he became the CEO of Bethesda Health Clinic, where he played a pivotal role in establishing and expanding the clinic as a community-supported healthcare resource for those in need in Tyler.

With a longstanding history of volunteerism, Dr. English currently serves on the Board of Directors for the East Area Council Boy Scout Foundation. He is also a deacon and Sunday School teacher at Green Acres Baptist Church.

Dr. English has been recognized with numerous awards for his service to the community, including the Leadership Tyler Distinguished Alumni Award, the Texas College Legacy Award, the Boy Scouts District Award of Merit, and the Junior League of Tyler Outstanding Volunteer Award. In 2013, he was honored as a Doctor Luke honoree by Bethesda Health Clinic.

Dr. English is married to Grace, a fellow family medicine physician. Together, they have three adult children: Sarah (27), Daniel (26), and Matthew (24). In his personal time, Dr. English enjoys traveling, camping, playing sports, and working in his yard.

With over 27 years of leadership in Texas healthcare, Chris Glenney is a visionary executive dedicated to building high-performing, mission-driven healthcare organizations. His extensive experience spans leading large, complex integrated delivery systems, community hospitals of varying sizes, and a 500+ physician multidisciplinary clinic. Under his leadership, Trinity Clinic earned the prestigious AMGA Acclaim Award in 2018. In 2024, Chris was honored as Senior Leader of the Year by ACHE of North Texas.

Since joining CHRISTUS Health in 1998, Chris has held numerous leadership roles and currently oversees operations for Trinity Mother Frances Health System (Tyler), Mother Frances Hospital Sulphur Springs, St. Michael Health System (Texarkana), Good Shepherd Health System (Longview), and CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System (Louisiana).

Chris holds a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and a master’s in healthcare administration from Trinity University. He is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE).

A passionate advocate for community service, Chris serves as an elder at Grace Community Church and has been a board member for Grace Community School in Tyler for over 14 years. He contributes to multiple boards, including the Texas A&M University School of Public Health External Advisory Board, the Texas Hospital Association’s Council on Policy Development, the CHRISTUS Fund Board, and the Northeast Texas System Board for CHRISTUS Health. His philanthropy supports organizations like the Miracle League of Tyler, Encouragement FM, East Texas Crisis Center, Pine Cove Christian Youth Camps, and Bethesda Health Clinic. As a proud Texas A&M alumnus, Chris is an active member of the Association of Former Students and supports the Texas A&M Foundation and 12th Man Foundation.

Chris has been married to his wife, Shannon, for 28 years. They have three children – Caleb, Josh, and Kate, all born in Tyler at Mother Frances Hospital – and a daughter-in-law, Lauren, married to Caleb and future daughter-in-law, Olivia, soon to be married to Josh. His passions include faith, family, friends, and Texas A&M University

Dr. Julie Philley is the sixth president of The University of Texas at Tyler. She also serves as Board Chair of UT Health East Texas.

A Professor of Medicine and board certified in internal, pulmonary and critical care medicine, Dr. Philley served as UT Tyler’s Executive Vice President for Health Affairs following the 2021 merger of UT Tyler and the UT Health Science Center at Tyler, which created a single, integrated university.

A native of East Texas, Dr. Philley was raised in Overton. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Texas Woman’s University and her MD at UT Health Houston’s McGovern Medical School, completing an internal medicine residency program at Johns Hopkins University/Sinai Hospital and a fellowship at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Dallas.

George T. Roberts, Jr., has served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Northeast Texas Public Health District (NET Health) since November 2006. Services provided by NET Health include Community Outreach, Disease Surveillance, Environmental Health, Immunization, Tuberculosis Control, Public Health Emergency Preparedness, Regional Laboratory, Vital Statistics, and WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) Program. The Health District primarily serves Tyler and Smith County but also provides some services in 21 counties in East Texas. The WIC Program serves a 20 county area and Public Health Preparedness serves a 7 county region.

Mr. Roberts has over 40 years of health care experience, the majority of which was spent in hospital administration, having previously served at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler, and Henderson Memorial Hospital in Henderson, Texas. He received his Bachelor of Business Administration from SMU in Dallas and a Master’s Degree in Health Administration from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. He is a Fellow in the American College of Health Care Executives (ACHE), and he currently serves on the Board of the East Texas ACHE Chapter. He is a member of the Board of the American Board of Preventive Medicine, the Texas Health Institute, Carter BloodCare, Mosaic Counseling, the Piney Woods Regional Advisory Council, and the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce. He is Past President of the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) and the Texas Association of City and County Health Officials (TACCHO), and the Past Chairman of the Texas Health Institute. Mr. Roberts is active in a number of church, community, and statewide efforts. Mr. Roberts has been married to his wife Leslie for 37 years, and they have 2 children – Claire (32) and Travis (27).