Meet the new Grady Hospital Board

Metro Atlanta

Grady board chairwoman Pam Stephenson on Friday made the long-awaited appointment of a 17-member board charged with pulling the state's largest public hospital out of a financial mire that threatened its existence. Meet the members

The new board charged with halting Grady Health System's decade-long financial slide is made up of some of the city's most powerful business and civic leaders. Here's a brief look at the members and their work. F. Duane Ackerman, retired CEO of BellSouth. Bachelor's and master's degree from Rollins College; master's degree in business from Massachusetts Institute of Technology; chaired board of Georgia Research Alliance and served on the boards of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.

A.D. Pete Correll, chairman emeritus Georgia-Pacific Corp. Bachelor's degree from University of Georgia; master's degrees from University of Maine; chaired Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and Central Atlanta Progress boards; is or has been on board of The Nature Conservancy, the Georgia Aquarium, The Carter Center and the University of Georgia Foundation; headed capital campaign for Emory University School of Medicine.

Beverly Hall, superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools. Bachelor's degree from Brooklyn College; doctorate from Fordham University; chairs the advisory board of Harvard University's Urban Superintendents Program; on the board of the Atlanta Falcons Youth Foundation, Communities in Schools of Atlanta and Junior Achievement of Atlanta.

James Stephenson, CEO Yancey Bros. Co., the country's oldest Caterpillar dealership. Bachelor's degree from Yale; law degree from Duke University. Current or former member of the boards of the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority, Metro Atlanta Chapter of the American Red Cross and the Trust for Public Land.

Thomas D. Bell, CEO of Cousins Properties, commercial real estate developers. Attended University of Tennessee and New York University; is or has been member of the boards of Emory Healthcare, New York Presbyterian Hospital, Regal Entertainment Group, AGL Resources, Inc. and the Metro Atlanta and U.S. chambers of commerce; chaired the Committee on the Next Agenda for President Ronald Reagan's second term.

Retired Ebenezer Baptist Church pastor, the Rev. Joseph Roberts, is one of three community representatives.

Robert Burroughs, real estate attorney; partner in the firm Burroughs Johnson Hopewell, LLC. Bachelor's degree from North Carolina Central University; law degree from Emory University; served in U.S. Marine Corps, 1971-1975. Grady can provide a safety net for the poor while staying sound financially, said appointee Robert Burroughs, a DeKalb County real estate lawyer. "I believe it can be done," he said. "And I don't think the other members would take it on if they didn't agree."

Michael Russell (left), CEO H.J. Russell & Co., a construction and real estate firm, is seen here with his brother Jerome Russell (right). Bachelor's degree from University of Virginia; MBA from Georgia State University; is or has been on the boards of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, the Commerce Club, the University of Virginia Engineering school, Georgia State University Athletic Association, Children's Healthcare Foundation and 100 Black Men of Atlanta.

Robert W. Miller, retired partner of King & Spalding, specializing in health care law; adjunct professor at Emory University School of Law. Bachelor's degree from University of Georgia; law degree from Yale Law School. "There's a great deal to be done," said appointee Robert Miller, a health care lawyer. "Much of it involves money --money Grady doesn't have. It's been difficult for the board that's been running Grady and it's going to be difficult for the new board."

Louis Sullivan, former Secretary Health and Human Services from 1989-1993, also the founding president of Morehouse School of Medicine. Bachelor's degree from Morehouse College; medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine; internship and residency at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. Is or has been trustee of the National Health Museum and board member for Medical Education for South African Blacks, Africare, the Southern Center for International Studies

Some board members like Pamela S. Stephenson, Grady Board chairwoman and hospital CEO, will serve on both boards --the new private, nonprofit Grady Memorial Hospital Corporation and the old Grady board, officially the Fulton-DeKalb Hospital Authority.

So will Sandra Holliday, a retired hospital administrator.

And lastly, Michael Hollis, an attorney.

Pierluigi Mancini, a doctor, was also named. The naming of the board is a monumental step in a year of intense examination, debate and discussion about Grady's future that reached from the Metro chamber to the halls of state government.

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The new board charged with halting Grady Health System's decade-long financial slide is made up of some of the city's most powerful business and civic leaders. Here's a brief look at the members and their work. F. Duane Ackerman, retired CEO of BellSouth. Bachelor's and master's degree from Rollins College; master's degree in business from Massachusetts Institute of Technology; chaired board of Georgia Research Alliance and served on the boards of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.

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