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Distinguished healthcare executives from across the state and nation will guide program strategy, student success, and industry alignment
Central Michigan University's Health Administration Division, housed in The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions, is proud to announce the formation of its Health Administration Advisory Board. The board brings together an extraordinary group of hospital, health system, and association leaders whose collective experience spans academic medical centers, faith-based and community health systems, rural and critical access hospitals, national radiology and behavioral health enterprises, military medicine, and the nation's leading professional society for healthcare executives.
Advisory board members will partner with faculty and academic leadership to strengthen curriculum relevance, expand internship, fellowship, and mentorship pathways for students, support accreditation and program quality efforts, and ensure CMU graduates are prepared to lead in a rapidly changing healthcare environment.
“The caliber of leaders joining this board is a powerful statement about the strength of CMU's health administration programs and our commitment to modernizing curriculum and developing the next generation of healthcare leaders,” said Dr. Bryan Schneider, Director of Graduate Health Administration programs. “Their insight will directly shape the experiences and opportunities of our students.”Meet the Advisory Board
Noel J. Cárdenas currently serves as the 2026–2027 Chair of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) — the international professional society of more than 50,000 healthcare executives and the field's preeminent leadership organization — the highest elected office in the profession. Board-certified in healthcare management as an ACHE Fellow, his distinguished ACHE service also includes terms as Governor (2022–2025), Regent for Army (2013–2015), and President of the ACHE—Southeast Texas Chapter, and he is a two-time recipient of ACHE's Senior-Level Healthcare Executive Regent Award. Cárdenas is Senior Vice President and CEO of Memorial Hermann Southeast and Pearland Hospitals in Houston. A retired U.S. Army and Texas National Guard officer, his military healthcare leadership included CEO/Hospital Commander of Reynolds Army Community Hospital, COO of Brooke Army Medical Center, and battalion command in Germany and Iraq. He earned his Master of Healthcare Administration from Baylor University and a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Texas at Austin.
Beth Charlton is President and CEO of Covenant HealthCare, one of the largest and most comprehensive healthcare providers north of metro Detroit, with 623 inpatient acute care beds, more than 20 inpatient and outpatient facilities across Saginaw, Bay City, and Frankenmuth, and a regional trauma and emergency center caring for more than 85,000 patients annually. A proud CMU alumna, Charlton earned her Master of Science in Administration in Health Services Administration from Central Michigan University. She began her career as a student nurse extern at St. Luke's Hospital in 1989 and rose through progressive clinical and executive leadership roles at Covenant — including pediatric ICU nurse, clinical manager for critical care, heart failure and the birth center, and Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nursing Officer — before being named President and CEO in July 2021. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Saginaw Valley State University and serves in leadership roles with regional health and community organizations.
Shannon Streibich is President and CEO of the Trinity Health Michigan Market, one of the state's largest healthcare organizations and a member of Trinity Health, one of the nation's largest Catholic health systems. Over more than two decades with Trinity Health, she has served as President of Trinity Health Oakland and Trinity Health Livonia hospitals and as Senior Vice President of Operations for Michigan, where she led operational performance to benchmark levels and transformed the system's service line models to improve patient access. She began her career at Detroit Medical Center as an administrative fellow, later serving as administrative director at Children's Hospital of Michigan. A statewide healthcare voice, Striebich served as 2023-2024 Board Chair of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association and is a past chair of the MHA Keystone Center Board and Legislative Policy Panel. She co-chaired Oakland County's executive COVID-19 response task force and earned her bachelor's degree from the State University of New York and her Master of Health Administration from The Ohio State University.
Brian Peters is CEO of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association (MHA), one of the nation's largest state hospital associations, representing hospitals and health systems across Michigan. His responsibilities include executive leadership of the MHA Health Foundation and the MHA Service Corporation. In nearly three decades with the MHA, Peters has served as Executive Vice President and Senior Vice President of Advocacy, leading state and federal government relations on behalf of approximately 150 Michigan community hospitals. His service to the field includes roles with the American Hospital Association's Health Forum Board and Strategic Leadership Group, the Michigan Rural Health Association, and hospital governance boards. He holds a Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Michigan State University, completed an executive fellowship with the National Center for Healthcare Leadership, and completed the Health Executive's Development Program at Cornell University.
Shanna Johnson serves as Regional President for Henry Ford Health, providing strategic leadership and direction for six hospitals across southeastern Michigan, and as President of Henry Ford Providence Southfield and Novi Hospitals. She previously served as President of Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital and interim President of Henry Ford Macomb Hospital. A seasoned executive with two decades of experience across national integrated health systems, community hospitals and large academic organizations, Johnson previously served as Chief Operating Officer of Ascension St. John Detroit, River District Hospital and the region's ambulatory surgery centers, and at Trinity Health she launched the system's innovative Hospital at Home program in the California and Ohio markets. A Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and a Carol Emmott Foundation Fellow, she earned her bachelor's degree in psychology and her Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Michigan.
Matt Peterson is President of Rad Partners, the world's largest radiology practice — a $4 billion global enterprise serving patients through a workforce of 25,000 — where he leads strategy, operations, and enterprise-wide growth. He brings more than 30 years of executive leadership across global healthcare delivery, managed care, integrated hospital systems, and healthcare technology. He most recently served as Executive Vice President and President of the Behavioral Health Division at Universal Health Services (NYSE: UHS, Fortune 271), leading 350+ behavioral hospitals across the U.S., Puerto Rico, and the U.K. with more than 58,000 employees and an $8 billion P&L, and as a named corporate officer, directed strategy for 30+ acute hospitals, provider groups, and health plans. During his tenure, he drove $5.5 billion in revenue growth and 126% earnings-per-share growth while architecting the nation's first fully integrated, end-to-end behavioral health continuum. Earlier, he held progressively senior roles at UnitedHealth Group across Optum and UnitedHealthcare, including COO and SVP of Optum Government and CEO of UnitedHealthcare's Central Region. A retired Brigadier General in the U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard with more than three decades of military service, he served as Assistant to the Air Force Deputy Surgeon General, supporting oversight of a $6.1 billion, 76-hospital global healthcare system, and deployed six times in contingency operations. He is a Doctor of Business Administration candidate at the University of Florida, holds a Master of Healthcare Administration from the University of Minnesota, an MBA in Finance from the University of St. Thomas, and a BBA from the University of North Dakota, and is a Fellow of both the American College of Healthcare Executives and the Healthcare Financial Management Association. He serves as a board member and former Chairman of the National Association of Behavioral Health.
Mark R. Taylor earned his Doctor of Health Administration from Central Michigan University and brings a rare combination of executive leadership and academic dedication to the advisory board. Prior to completing his DHA, Dr. Taylor served as CEO of several health systems, gaining more than 35 years of experience leading Catholic and other faith-based organizations, with extensive additional expertise in human resources, finance, practice management, and managed care. His executive work focused on strategically repositioning organizations, implementing systematic performance improvement, and integrating values systems across large, complex organizations. Dr. Taylor has deep experience with the Baldrige National Quality Program: he served as both a state and national Baldrige examiner, assisted six healthcare organizations on their journeys to ultimately receive the Baldrige Award, and served as a C-suite executive at the first health system to receive the Baldrige Award in 2002. A Life Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, he also holds a Master of Health Services Administration from the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Arts in economics and business administration, magna cum laude, from Hillsdale College. Dr. Taylor has taught graduate-level health administration courses at Central Michigan University for nearly 15 years.
Robert Mach is CEO of Schoolcraft Memorial Hospital, a critical access hospital that has served Schoolcraft County and Michigan's Upper Peninsula for more than 75 years. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Mach began his healthcare career as a radiologic technologist before advancing into hospital-based radiology management and senior administration, bringing more than 25 years of leadership experience across for-profit and not-for-profit settings. His prior executive roles include Chief Operating Officer of Littleton Regional Healthcare in New Hampshire; CEO of Select Specialty Hospital in Battle Creek, Michigan; CEO of Ascension Borgess Allegan and Borgess Pipp Hospitals in Allegan County, Michigan; and CEO of Arbor Health in Morton, Washington. He holds a Master of Business Administration and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, with deep expertise in the unique challenges and opportunities of rural healthcare.
Central Michigan University's Health Administration Division, within The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions, prepares undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students for leadership careers across hospitals, health systems, payers, and healthcare organizations. Through rigorous academics, applied learning, and strong industry partnerships, CMU develops healthcare leaders who advance the health of the communities they serve.
