Faculty
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Why PLA?
I have an interest in leadership development, which I hope to assist with my certified coaching training; I participated in the development of the PLA, therefore naturally I would like to help it succeed.
Background
Dr. Bell by training is a gynecologic oncologist. Locations of professional training include Ohio State University, Bethesda Naval Hospital, and the University of Miami, Fla. He was in private practice from 1984 to 2005, after which he became Medical Director of Cancer Services at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus Ohio. For 16 years during private practice, Dr. Bell had the privilege of serving as program director for the ob-gyn residency at the same hospital; that experience taught him much about relationships, leadership, counseling, mentorship, and coaching. While continuing clinical activity by teaching and mentoring the residents, he has expanded his leadership experience through his medical director position. Other leadership roles include past president of the Columbus Obstetrics and Gynecology Society, past president of the Columbus Medical Association, and co-chair of the Quality of Life Committee in the Gynecologic Oncology Group.
Dr. Bell's current avocation is leadership and life coaching. He completed coaching certification at the Hudson Institute of Coaching and has enjoyed his transition to coaching as a part-time career.
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Why PLA?
It is very meaningful to me to have the opportunity to share with colleagues in the PLA my journey of finding purpose and meaning in my life (as a health care provider and as a human being, all together.
I am a practicing pulmonologist and behavioral researcher, director of the Mindful Breathing Lab at Mayo Clinic. My research interests are in Rehabilitation, Mindfulness, and Behavioral Interventions to improve patients’ quality of life and clinically significant outcomes in chronic disease. My current funding is focused on Chronic Disease Care, Behavioral Interventions, and Outcomes Research (SBIR and R01s). I am particularly interested in behavioral interventions particularly health coaching, pulmonary rehabilitation, and mindfulness that could promote meaning in life and the wellbeing of all people with a special interest in my patients, colleague professionals, and athletes.
On a personal note, I love yoga, meditation, and sports.
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Why PLA?
I serve as a faculty member because I feel it's important for leaders to be fluent in complexity theory and how it plays out in day-to-day leadership work. Also, I am a close colleague and friend of Phil’s and feel honored and excited to support his vision in the world.
About Chris
Chris Corrigan is a facilitator, teacher, and strategy consultant. For 25 years he has been working with indigenous communities, non-profits, social service organizations, and health systems to helps groups and teams address complexity.
He lives with his family on Bowen Island, British Columbia, Canada.
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Dr. Kevin Dixon retired as vice president of community and cultural engagement at the Alcohol, Drug, and Mental Health Board of Franklin County (ADAMH) after 34 years. He was responsible for developing community-based initiatives that address a wide-range of behavioral health issues that include launching school-based services, cultural training, faith-based, immigrant/refugee services, prevention programs, City of Columbus programs, legal aid services, elected official outreach, and other key partnerships and collaborations. In the early 90s Dixon directed the ADAMH Board’s innovative Afrocentric Training Project, culminating in a successful series of national conferences. Numerous national scholars and leaders participated, including Poet Maya Angelou, TransAfrica’s Randall Robinson, Kwanzaa Founder Maulana Karenga, Harvard Drs. Alvin Poussaint and Deborah Prothro Stith, activist Dick Gregory, actors Blair Underwood and Kim Fields, and many others. He also served as interim CEO at ADAMH prior to new leadership.
Dixon is originally from Philadelphia, where he was assistant director for Temple University’s Pan African Studies Community Education Program. While in Philadelphia, he co-hosted and produced weekend talk shows on WDAS radio for eight years to address social, cultural, political, educational, and key issues impacting the tri-state area. His many interviews include filmmaker Gordon Parks, playwright Charles Fuller, musicians Grover Washington Jr., Gil Scott-Heron and James Brown, and religious leader Mother Divine. In 1986 Dixon was named team historian and reporter for paralyzed skydiver Jim McGowan's historic English Channel swim in Dover, England. This event was covered by news agencies worldwide, including China and Russian TASS News Agency; a Philadelphia parade was held in honor of McGowan’s Project Aquarius team.
Dixon was former station manager and DJ for WIXQ-FM radio at Millersville University - PA where he received his undergraduate degree. Dixon serves/ed on numerous boards and advisory committees, including Columbus Commission on Black Girls, Ohio State LiFEsports Advisory Council, Foundation for Psychology Board, FESTA Board, Multiethnic Advocates Board, OSU College of Nursing Study Advisory Board, and was former board chair of PrimaryOne Health, and on the WBNS-10 TV Jefferson Awards Blue Ribbon Panel. Dixon currently teaches a graduate course at the OSU College of Social Work. He has been recognized by the Governor of Ohio, Franklin County Commissioners, Ohio House and Senate, and Columbus City Council. The ADAMH Board recognized Dixon’s esteemed service and cultural competence work by creating an annual Champion of Diversity Award in his name; and Millersville University in April named Dixon as one of its “Marvelous Marauders” inaugural group of top 40 graduates for their service to the community and/or university in honor of its 40th year transition from a college to a university.
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Why PLA?
I am honoured to serve as a faculty member for the PLA. The work physicians do, and the services they offer to society, go beyond what is reasonable. At the same time, caring for others can sometimes lead to ignoring self-care and turning away the care being offered by others.
My role in the PLA, along with Janice, is to encourage mindfulness-awareness practice as a foundation for a healthy balanced life, for leadership based on connecting and caring, and for enjoying the beauty of delightful humor.
Background
Jim has been involved in forest stewardship for over 50 years. His grandmother was his first teacher in the love of nature and care for all beings, including plants, animals, and rocks. Later he learned forestry from his father on their family homestead and then from other forest teachers, including Orrie Loucks and Merve Wilkinson. His deepest inspiration came from his relationship with meditation master Chogyam Trungpa, who taught him the profundity of earth stewardship.
As the business manager of Windhorse Farm, Jim has decades of experience integrating vision and practicality. Jim is also a skilled nature-based teacher and facilitator. His principal interests are in the enrichment of the lives of individuals and organizations, particularly through seeing nature as a mirror of the mind and ecosystems as a natural metaphor for healthy human communities.
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Laura Espy-Bell, MD, MHA, FACEP is a board certified Emergency physician and a native of Columbus, Ohio. She is committed to diversity in medicine and addressing health disparities. Her parents always instilled in her the importance of using her voice for good, standing up for what she believed in and serving her community. She is a graduate of Spelman College in Atlanta, GA where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Economics in 2003. Dr. Espy-Bell knew very early in her career, that she wanted to directly touch the lives of individual patients, however also had a strong desire to impact a greater population. As a result, she pursued a career that would afford her the opportunity to pursue both hospital administration and clinical medicine. Dr. Espy-Bell received her Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005, and then completed a graduate fellowship in healthcare administration at Emory Healthcare in Atlanta, GA in 2006. Dr. Espy-Bell graduated from The Ohio State University College of Medicine in 2011 and then completed her residency in Emergency Medicine, in 2014.
Dr. Espy-Bell has been an active member of the OhioHealth medical staff for the past 8 years as an Emergency Medicine attending physician with Mid-Ohio Emergency Services (MOES) and has provided quality health care in several OhioHealth emergency departments. In 2017, she became the Associate Medical Director of two OhioHealth free standing emergency departments on the east side of Columbus. Dr. Espy-Bell was recently named the Medical Director of Health and Equity at Grant Medical Center. She is the previous Medical Director of Community Partnerships where she collaborated with various community organizations to develop and implement strategies to better care for the population that they serve. In 2018, Dr. Espy-Bell served as the System Medical Director of the Clinical Guidance Councils in which she was the lead physician striving to align multiple specialties and service lines within OhioHealth and work toward minimizing unwarranted clinical variation leading to improved quality and cost savings throughout the system.
Dr. Espy-Bell’s passion is centered on leadership, mentorship, diversity, and health disparities. She served on the Physician Diversity Steering Committee, working to increase diversity and promote inclusion among OhioHealth residency programs and medical staff. In addition, she is the Founder of The Columbus Black Physician’s Network, established in 2016, a social/service organization created to promote networking, provide mentorship, and volunteerism among African American physicians in the central Ohio area. Since its inception, she has recruited over 200 African American physicians to participate in the network and has had a strong presence in many inner city schools to show disadvantaged youth the possibilities around a career in medicine. During he pandemic, Dr. Espy-Bell lead an advocacy campaign, entitled “Our Community vs Covid,” featuring approximately 25 African American physicians in the Columbus area, that went “viral” speaking directly to communities of color about the impact of the Covid-19 virus and encouraged them to get vaccinated.
Dr. Espy-Bell is well known as a regional public speaker and expert on healthcare topics, such as emergency care, the opioid epidemic, health disparities in the African American community, and the Covid-19 pandemic. Throughout 2020, Dr. Espy-Bell was featured in several statewide television commercials, radio interviews/ads, national and local webinars, and town halls in which she shared her expertise on emergency care and mitigation strategies to stop the spread of Covid-19 in hopes to improve vaccination rates and ultimately save lives.
Over the past six years, Dr. Espy-Bell has been a national representative for the Ohio Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physician’s (ACEP). She completed the Ohio ACEP Leadership Development Academy and OhioHealth Physician Leadership Academy in 2017, Medical Staff Leadership Development program in 2018, and Columbus Medical Association Leadership Academy in 2020, all in an effort to expand her leadership skills and become an effective leader. Dr. Espy-Bell consistently volunteers in Columbus city schools to exposure students to the medical field and has mentored countless young physicians and aspiring physicians all the while living out her mantra “to lift as I climb.” Her current work is centered on a collaborative effort with The Columbus Medical Association, in which Dr. Espy-Bell is the Founder of the “Made for Medicine” program, a pipeline initiative for African American students to pursue a career in medicine. This program was created to address the disparity of African American physicians across the country and in central Ohio, which began in October 2021. Dr. Espy-Bell is committed to authentic leadership and investing in the next generation. She truly believes in allowing God “to use you for a purpose greater than yourself” and challenges others to do the same.
Dr. Espy-Bell was selected as one of the honorees for Columbus Business First - Top 40 Under 40 in 2018, Women in Economic Leadership Development (WELD) Honoree in 2018, Columbus CEO Future 50 Honoree in 2023, and a 2022 YWCA Woman of Achievement. In addition, she was selected as the Health & Wellness honoree by the “Tribute to African American Committee” honoring various Columbus, OH leaders for being a trailblazer in their respective areas. Dr. Espy-Bell is an active member of multiple professional organizations and continually gives back to her community as a member of The Columbus Chapter of The Links, Incorporated through her work as the previous chair of the Health and Human Services Facet and Jack & Jill of America as the previous chair of the Health & Wellness committee. Dr. Espy-Bell resides in Blacklick, OH with her husband Stephen and three children, Kendall, Jackson, and Ellis Bell.
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Janice Glowski, Ph.D. is an educator, academic, and arts professional. She recently accepted a position as Otterbein University’s Museum and Galleries Director and also will teach Asian art history and museum and curatorial studies in the university’s Art Department. From 2006 – 2014, Janice taught in the Art and Religion Departments and East Asian Studies Program at Wittenberg University.
Janice’s interest in a wide range of subject matter and interdisciplinary studies began early. She received her Bachelor’s degree with a major in Chemistry and a concentration in Religion from Wittenberg University. Following graduation, she worked with the Peace Corps and later in the industry as a Chemist. She completed an interdisciplinary Master’s Degree in Religious Studies at The Ohio State University and went on to earn a Ph.D. in Asian Art History. Her major areas of study were Himalayan and South Asian Art, with additional emphasis on Buddhist art throughout Asia. She worked as a Curator and Director of Special Collections at Ohio State and was a Curatorial Consultant prior to joining the Wittenberg faculty.
Janice’s current research and publications focus on Asian art and Tibetan Buddhist art and architecture in the diaspora. She also works closely with pioneering computer artist, Charles A. Csuri. She curated an extensive retrospective exhibition of his work called Charles A. Csuri: Beyond Boundaries, 1963-present, which opened in Boston, traveled internationally and continues to be scheduled in new venues. She is intrigued by and hopes to further explore, the contemplative effects of Csuri’s more recent animations.
Janice has been practicing meditation in the Shambala tradition since 1991 and is currently the Director of Practice and Education for Shambala Columbus. She began formally teaching meditation to groups and supporting individual practitioners as a meditation instructor in 2004. Janice teaches meditation workshops and other contemplative programs throughout the greater Columbus area, including schools and professional organizations. Janice is especially interested in collaborative leadership and social initiatives—particularly those that involve mindfulness—and in the transformative effects of meditation on individuals’ lives, society as a whole, and in all levels of education.
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Why PLA?
I serve as a PLA faculty member to support physicians in bringing their vision and compassion into the challenge of their everyday work lives in the complexity of today's health care system.
Arawana’s pioneering work as a choreographer, performer, and educator is deeply sourced in collaborative improvisation. She currently heads the creation of Social Presencing Theater (SPT) for the Presencing Institute. Working with Otto Scharmer and colleagues at the Presencing Institute, she brings her background in the arts, meditation, and social justice to creating “social presencing” that makes visible both current reality and emerging future possibilities.
Her dance career ranges from directing an interracial street dance company formed by the Boston Mayor’s Office for Cultural Affairs in the aftermath of the 1968 murder of Dr. Martin Luther King, to being one of the foremost performers of Japanese Court Dance, bugaku, in the US. She has been Co-Director of the Dance Program at Naropa University, Boulder, CO; and founder-director of two contemporary dance companies in Cambridge. MA. Arawana is an acharya (senior teacher) in Shambhala – a global network of meditation centers dedicated to applying mindfulness to “creating enlightened society.” She teaches both meditation and art based on bringing out the basic goodness of individuals, of relationships, and of society.
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Why PLA?
I love being a part of the Physicians Leadership Academy because of the people I meet, and their drive and curiosity to learn, grow and bring forth that which is learned in service to others.
Bio
Jim supports people and organizations through transformative shifts. Throughout this process, he guides people through experiential learning that shifts perspective, deepens the understanding of one’s individual and collective humanity and our relationships; and then, from these new vantage points, fosters individual and social innovation with authentic expression. Those who experience these shifts, or journeys, often express a sense of new vitality and possibility, grounded in the realities of one’s current situation. The “data” may not have changed, but the stance from which we see and engage the world has. This shift in vantage point often fuels innovation, design breakthroughs, and personal and collective growth.
He leads projects, experiential workshops, and training focused on leadership development, customer-centered innovation, cultural and personal transformation, and the human experience of transitions. He works with high-tech corporations, education systems, health care, government agencies, start-up organizations, and multi-sector efforts. Jim is invited to speak on topics of innovation, design thinking, and transformative change and has presented at many gatherings and venues including Yale University, Michigan State University, Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.
Jim is currently an executive coach and organizational specialist largely focused on leadership within startups. Jim began his career at Hewlett-Packard and during his 20 years there, he helped HP to create customer-centered breakthroughs in innovation and led efforts supporting organizational and cultural shifts linked to business goals. Jim has been a core faculty member of the Presencing Institute and leads training and assistance in the application of Theory U, a framework for innovation. His academic credentials include an MA in Organizational Management, a BS in Mechanical Engineering, a BA in Physics, and advanced certification in business management from the London Business School. He has also completed extensive coursework and training in dialogue, design, and innovation.
Jim is also a wilderness guide and leads nature-based programs that support personal growth and bringing one’s unique gifts and voice to life. He is married, the very proud father of two daughters, and lives in Colorado.
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I have been a practitioner and steward of the Art of Hosting Conversations that Matter since my exposure and training in this process in 2005. I saw immediately how this practice could sharpen my interactions with my patients, making me more effective in the art of healing. It also increased my desire to be more effective in engaging in committee and group processes. This was something that was missing from my medical school curriculum. The opportunity to be able to expose the physicians of the PLA to this process, and to do so with two of my favorite people, Phil Cass and Tuesday Ryan-Hart, has been especially rewarding. The Fall retreat on the Art of Hosting has been, for the last five years, a labor of love.
Two-thirds of our population, in their day-to-day lives, do not have conversations around money. For physicians, not having an understanding of their relationship with money, compounds the complexity of our current healthcare system. Physicians make treatment recommendations that impact both personal finances as well as impact the economics of the larger healthcare system. I grew up the son of an economist. From early on in my life I was exposed to conversations around money. My interest in teaching the PLA module on economics and finance has been with the desire to open up the exploration of our relationship with money. Just as we physicians need to be introspective of our leadership styles and abilities, we need to understand our relationship with this instrument that is an integral part of our lives. This PLA module is a chance to do so while getting a glimpse of the economics of our current healthcare system.
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I was born in Cincinnati, but I essentially grew up in Chicago. I graduated from Iowa State University in 1980 and then attended Medical School at Rush Medical College in Chicago. I did my residency in Family Practice at Grant Hospital. Following two years of practice in German Village, and two years of practice in rural Virginia, I started my own group, Westerville Family Physicians. After 25 years of patient care and managing the practice, I retired, or as my wife states, was repurposed. I am currently the Chief, Medical Director of Primary Care for the OhioHealth Physician Group.
I thoroughly enjoy travel, especially hiking both nationally and internationally. I am also an extensive reader of history. I married my high school sweetheart and we have one son, who is finishing his residency in FP this year.
I found coaching during my transition several years ago. Coaching is all about developing and accepting change. We can all improve ourselves in so many ways. Coaching is a wonderful way to help others become self-aware and develop their true ideal potential.
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Why PLA?
The PLA AoH retreat continues to be one of my favorite events of the year. I always leave the retreat inspired and renewed after spending time with the amazing physician leaders that come to the program. I am honored and energized to support their journey of self-reflection, relationship-building, and enhanced practice.
Professional Background
Tuesday Ryan-Hart leads large-scale systems change with a deep understanding and practice of how equity, when put at the center of new movements, frees the path to better ideas that work. She helps diverse organizations and communities with shared interests reframe commonly-held assumptions and persistent issues, surfacing a new mindset for action with greater participation and shared impact.
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Mrunal Shah MD has been with OhioHealth since 1997. He is a board-certified and practicing Family Physician at Riverside Family Medicine. He is also a Faculty and Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Medicine at Riverside and The Ohio State University. He is System Vice President for Healthcare Informatics at OhioHealth and works directly for the CIO and closely with Senior Operations at OhioHealth supporting data analytics and informatics. He enjoys bringing technology and healthcare together to improve care delivery.
He is an active member of HIMSS, AAFP, OAFP, and COAFP. He is also a member of the CMA and OSMA. He also has a clinical outlet through the Physicians Care Connection which is a healthcare safety net organization for the underserved of Central Ohio. He has volunteered for 15+ years and has been vice-chair and now chair of the board of PCC. He completed medical school at NEOMED and did his residency training at Riverside Methodist. He lives in New Albany with his wife and daughters.
Coaches
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Why PLA?
I have an interest in leadership development, which I hope to assist with my certified coaching training; I participated in the development of the PLA, therefore naturally I would like to help it succeed.
Background
Dr. Bell by training is a gynecologic oncologist. Locations of professional training include Ohio State University, Bethesda Naval Hospital, and the University of Miami, Fla. He was in private practice from 1984 to 2005, after which he became Medical Director of Cancer Services at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus Ohio. For 16 years during private practice, Dr. Bell had the privilege of serving as program director for the ob-gyn residency at the same hospital; that experience taught him much about relationships, leadership, counseling, mentorship, and coaching. While continuing clinical activity by teaching and mentoring the residents, he has expanded his leadership experience through his medical director position. Other leadership roles include past president of the Columbus Obstetrics and Gynecology Society, past president of the Columbus Medical Association, and co-chair of the Quality of Life Committee in the Gynecologic Oncology Group.
Dr. Bell's current avocation is leadership and life coaching. He completed coaching certification at the Hudson Institute of Coaching and has enjoyed his transition to coaching as a part-time career.
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In his work as CEO, he is responsible for strategic direction, operations management, human resources management, policy development, government relations, and community relations. As a college-level instructor, he has developed a curriculum for and provided instruction in the area of leadership, which is his passion. He has provided hosting/facilitation and training for numerous organizations locally and internationally and has served on many Boards of community organizations.
For the past 13 years, he has worked to develop a corporate culture of participatory leadership within the organizations where he is CEO. This real-world experience in developing a unique corporate culture serves to inform the hosting, facilitation, training, and consulting he does with other organizations. He enjoys working with the executive leadership of organizations to support them in developing organizational cultures that help their organizations thrive and also support their staffs to realize their highest possibilities.
Meditation, the use of intentional dialogue, leading strategic change initiatives, and teaching are all areas of keen interest to him.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Kenyon College, a Master’s degree in Counseling and Guidance from Fairfield University, and a Ph.D. in Counseling and Guidance from The Ohio State University. He lives with his wife Laura and is a proud father, stepfather, and grandfather, all of whom are the loves of his life.
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“I am an energetic, lifelong learner who yearns to meaningfully connect with and impact the people and world around me.”
Stephanie has a wholehearted interest in helping physician peers and healthcare colleagues attain well-being and fulfillment in all aspects of their lives and strives to remind them of the desire that prompted them to seek careers in medicine. She is the Director of the Physicians Leadership Academy and uses her robust well-being knowledge and experience as a 2016 PLA graduate to design and coordinate the Alumni Program for the Academy. Stephanie completed coaching training through the Hudson Institute and is certified through the International Coaching Federation. Having coached and supported hundreds of physicians during the pandemic, she enjoys using her coaching skillset to support physicians in the Leadership Academy and in the Central Ohio community. Stephanie enjoyed a 25-year practice in obstetrics and gynecology at the Kingsdale site of Avina Women’s Care in Columbus and has now fully devoted her career to supporting people working in healthcare in their quest for leadership development, well-being, and deep fulfillment. Meaningful relationships and time with family, friends and colleagues are of primary importance to her. A practitioner of mindfulness, one of her favorite ways of cultivating personal growth and awareness is by spending prolonged periods of time hiking in nature. Challenging herself physically and connecting with nature in a meditative way reminds her that she is part of a larger whole and prompts her to think about how she wants to belong in that whole.
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Melinda Schumacher, MD is an Assistant Professor-Clinical in the Community Pathology Branch. Dr. Schumacher earned her MD in 1982 from Wright State University School of Medicine in Dayton, OH. She began her residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at Kettering Medical Center in Kettering, OH, subsequently completing it at The Ohio State University in 1987. She continued and completed her training at Ohio State with a fellowship in medical microbiology in 1988.
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I was born in Cincinnati, but I essentially grew up in Chicago. I graduated from Iowa State University in 1980 and then attended Medical School at Rush Medical College in Chicago. I did my residency in Family Practice at Grant Hospital. Following two years of practice in German Village, and two years of practice in rural Virginia, I started my own group, Westerville Family Physicians. After 25 years of patient care and managing the practice, I retired, or as my wife states, was repurposed. I am currently the Chief, Medical Director of Primary Care for the OhioHealth Physician Group.
I thoroughly enjoy travel, especially hiking both nationally and internationally. I am also an extensive reader of history. I married my high school sweetheart and we have one son, who is finishing his residency in FP this year.
I found coaching during my transition several years ago. Coaching is all about developing and accepting change. We can all improve ourselves in so many ways. Coaching is a wonderful way to help others become self-aware and develop their true ideal potential.