Steve Swenson, president and CEO of Nashville Public Radio, says he will retire in late spring or early summer this year. A search is underway for his successor.

Swenson joined Nashville Public Radio in April of 2019 and led the organization through significant growth. Before joining Nashville Public Radio, Swenson worked for CBS Radio for nearly four decades as a broadcast journalist and then in station leadership as a news director, program director, and SVP/general manager.

During Swenson’s tenure, Nashville Public Radio launched a new music discovery station, WNXP; added a daily, live one-hour news show, This Is Nashville; tripled the number of reporting beats; added editorial staff; and partnered with multiple national news organizations including ProPublica, New York Times, Serial, and NPR’s Embedded. WPLN News also garnered accolades, including the prestigious Peabody and Edward R. Murrow Awards.

Health Care Council names 2025 fellows class

The Nashville Health Care Council has named 27 members to its 2025 class of the Council fellows program. This program brings together 27 health care leaders to address the industry’s most pressing challenges and opportunities.

Marking the Council Fellows 12th year, the 2025 class highlights the organization’s ongoing evolution alongside the health care landscape. For three decades, the Council has been part of Nashville’s rise as a global health care hub, fostering partnerships that drive progress and transformative change.

Members of the 2025 Council Fellows class include:

• Salman Ali, chief executive office, Kouper Health

• Dr. Tobi Amosun, FAAP, deputy commissioner for population health, Tennessee Department of Health

• Andre Juan (“A.J.”) Bahou, partner, chair AI practice, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

• Katina Beard, chief executive officer, Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center, Inc.

• Eric Bohannon, vice president, regional president Medicare operations, Humana

• Courtney Bolton, chief behavioral health officer, Imagine Pediatrics

• Patrick Brown, senior vice president, Surgery Partners,

• Dr. Jonas de Souza, vice president strategy & innovation, HCA Healthcare

• Dan Farrell, Strategy & Innovation, chief revenue officer, SpecialtyCare Associates

• John Fryer, chief growth and development officer, president, Lumeris

• Anika Gardenhire, chief digital and information officer, Ardent Health Services

• Dr. Alex Jahangir, senior vice president, physician network development & ACMO; vice-chair and professor Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

• Rachel Kern, senior vice president, First Trust Capital Partners

• Nicholas Lanzi, vice president – Healthcare Delivery, CVS Health

• Jessica Le Roy Moore, vice president of enterprise strategy, The Cigna Group

• Henry Leventis, health care regulatory & enforcement partner, Holland & Knight

• Drew Mason, president, Region 1, Community Health Systems

• Meghan McManama, vice president, product, Premise Health

• Jeremy Mercer, vice president, public sector growth, Optum

• Kevin O’Hara, senior vice president, platform solutions and product strategy, HealthStream, Inc.

• Elmer Polite, president – eastern division, Lifepoint Health

• Emily Rash, chief value-based care officer, US Heart & Vascular

• Safwan Shabab, principal, TPG Capital

• Timothy Sides, senior vice president – operations finance, Acadia Healthcare

• Whitney Staub-Juergens, vice president, care transformation and innovation clinical operations and integration, Healthcare Corporation of America

• Michelle Steele, D., associate vice president of external affairs and chair of applied education, Meharry Medical College

• Dr. Stan Thompson, chief clinical officer, TeamHealth Lifepoint Group, and chief diversity officer, TeamHealth

Java Medical Group names chief risk officer

Java Medical Group, a hospital management company that partners with rural hospitals nationwide to ensure patient care and improve financial performance, has added Jeremy Cook as chief risk officer.

He brings almost two decades of health care experience and risk management to the role. Before joining Java Medical Group, Cook served as chief operating officer and risk manager and chair of the Grievance Committee at Unity Medical Center in Manchester, one of Java’s partner hospitals.

Cook earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Governor’s University. Previously, he worked in nurse administration, environmental services at United Regional Medical Center. He holds certifications in dietary management and food safety.

BELL Construction adds new owner

Chris Bagley, P.E., has been named an owner of BELL Construction.

Bagley, who has served as civil division manager since joining BELL in January 2023, will take on an expanded leadership role, contributing to the company’s strategic direction and continued growth.

Bagley oversees operations for BELL’s civil division, specializing in heavy civil grading and utility work. A licensed professional engineer in Tennessee and Texas, he has more than 25 years of expertise in estimating, project management, design and design-build. He brings a wide array of certifications, including Licensed Master Plumber, Licensed Fire Sprinkler Contractor and Licensed Professional Engineer.

Bagley has worked at construction firms across Tennessee since 1999 and holds a degree in civil engineering from the University of Tennessee.

McNeely Brockman PR welcomes 3, relocates

Nashville-based McNeely Brockman Public Relations has added three staff members – Amanda Reinbold, senior advisor; Rachel Wood, creative director; and Amelia Fox, intern. This growth comes as MBPR will move to a new office in Brentwood in February.

Reinbold joins MBPR with nearly 15 years of agency and communications experience, most recently as a senior leader at MP&F Strategic Communications and a freelance writer and editor. A Nashville native and graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Reinbold has spent her career guiding clients in industries such as health care, education, government, transportation and public transit, and construction. She will provide strategic counsel, writing, media and client relations support to MBPR clients.

Wood joins MBPR as the agency’s first creative director, specializing in creative marketing, illustration and brand development. Before joining MBPR, Wood worked as the creative director at Southall in Franklin. She is a graduate of Anderson University and led teams in Dallas before landing in Nashville.

Fox is a Nashville native and a senior at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where she majors in marketing with a minor in leadership and serves as a copy editor and opinion section writer for the university’s newspaper, The Daily Beacon. Fox recently interned for Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s office. She also is a member of Women of Haslam, an organization for women in the college of business.

Pierce Public Relations adds account manager

Allie Clouse has joined Pierce Public Relations, a Brentwood-based public relations firm.

Clouse drives strategic media relations, content creation and thought leadership to achieve client goals, leveraging her background in journalism and communications.

Previously, Clouse was a journalist at Knox News, part of the USA Today network. She covered business, real estate, elections, entertainment and more. She then transitioned to an account executive role at MoxCar Marketing + Communications.

Clouse holds a degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and is a member of the Public Relations Society of America.

Belmont names director of data, AI collaborative

Belmont University has named Dr. Michael “Jeff” Donahoo executive director of the Belmont Data & AI Collaborative, marking the transformation of the former Belmont Data Collaborative to include artificial intelligence alongside its data science initiatives.

Joining from Baylor University, where he served as professor of computer science and co-creator of its interdisciplinary cybersecurity program, Donahoo brings more than 25 years of experience in computer science education and research. His expertise spans networking, cybersecurity and computer systems design.

Donahoo’s career includes serving as deputy executive director of the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC) and director of research and development at the Central Texas Cyber Range. A prolific author and researcher, Donahoo has published numerous peer-reviewed articles and co-written several books in the Morgan-Kaufmann Practical Guide series. His recognition includes multiple teaching awards at Baylor University, along with significant research funding throughout his career.

Donahoo will lead the Collaborative’s strategic initiatives and partnerships, oversee the development of data and AI education programs and work with stakeholders across campus and the broader Nashville community to advance the University’s vision for data innovation.

The Collaborative will serve as Belmont’s central hub for data and AI education, leading a comprehensive university-wide strategy that combines research partnerships, industry collaboration and initiatives in digital innovation and transformation.