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 Roberts, FACHE
Chief Executive Officer
Northeast Texas Public Health District

Panelists:

W. Stephen Love
President & CEO
Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council

Lisako McKyer, PhD, MPH, FAAHB
Professor & Chair, Dept. of Population and Community Health
UNT Health

Matt Richardson, DrPH, FACHE
Director
Denton County Public Health

Speakers’ Bios:

Mr. Stephen Love is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of the Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council which promotes collaboration, cooperation, and advocacy on behalf of its 90 member hospitals. The Hospital Council also has approximately 100 Associate Members (business and industry), including prominent accounting, legal and consulting firms. The primary mission is to drive evidence-based improvement in patient care and health equity in North Texas. He was the United Nations Association Award Winner in 2018 for Global Goals. He served as 2015 Chair for the Conference of Metropolitan and Regional Hospitals Association in the United States. He received the 2020 D CEO’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He also received the Dallas Medical Society’s Millard J. and Robert L. Health Award for a non-physician providing outstanding leadership to the community. He previously served on the Children at Risk Board for North Texas, Southwest Region Board for the American Heart Association, and the Chair for the March of Dimes Walk for Babies Campaign, Mothers Against Drunk Driving Dallas, and Cure Glaucoma Foundation Advisory Board. He serves on the Southwest Transplant Alliance for organ transplants; North Texas Eye Research Institute; the Metropolitan YMCA Board of Directors and received the 2024 Theodore P. Beasley Distinguished Leadership Award in 2024; the Board of Directors of Prism Health North Texas and the Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. He was the Chair for the Irving-Las Colinas Chamber for 2024-2025. Mr. Love has worked in healthcare management for over 50 years. He has demonstrated leadership in tax exempt, investor-owned, specialty and private hospitals in operations, finance, and corporate governance. Prior to joining the Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council, Mr. Love was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of a Fortune 500 healthcare company that owned over 50 hospitals and managed approximately 200 facilities in the United States.

Dr. Lisako McKyer was a non-traditional student, earning a BA in Psychology from California State University Northridge, where she was awarded a NIGMS-funded undergraduate research training grant under Dr. Maria Elena Zavala and Dr. Carrie Saetermoe. Next, she pursued doctoral training in two programs at Indiana University; Clinical Science (Psychology 1995-1999 [incomplete]), and Health Behavior (completed in 2005), where she also earned an MPH degree along the way.

She started her faculty career at Indiana University, where she directed the annual statewide school-based ATOD survey at the Indiana Prevention Research Center. She moved to Texas A&M University in 2006, where she held appointments in the College of Public Health, the School of Medicine and the School of Education and Human Development. During her 16 years at Texas A&M, she rose through the ranks to tenured full professor and served in various leadership positions. Prior to joining UNT Health in 2024, she served as the Inaugural Vice Dean for Faculty Affairs and Inclusive Excellence at the Alice L. Walton School of Medicine

Dr. Matt Richardson was appointed as the Director of Public Health for Denton County in the summer of 2014. He previously served as Director with the City of Amarillo and Potter/Randall Counties for 9 years. He has authored peer-reviewed publications, testified to the Texas Legislature regarding public health issues, and continues to advocate for public health practice and resources for Denton County and the state of Texas. Matt is currently the past president of the Texas Association of City and County Health Officials and was recently appointed as a board member of the National Board of Public Health Examiners. He has been a Council on Education in Public Health (CEPH) accreditation site reviewer since 2013, as both a public health practitioner and site review chair. He is an expert in accreditation efforts across many academic and practice environments—from national public health university programs to individual credentials and certifications.

He has a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Abilene Christian University and both Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Public Health from the University of North Texas. He is currently board-certified and a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

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. NET Health 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 45 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 served as the East Texas ACHE Chapter President in 2023. He is a member of the Board of the Texas Health Institute, Carter BloodCare, the Piney Woods Regional Advisory Council, Mosaic Counseling, the Tyler Family Circle of Care and the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce. He recently completed his service to the American Board of Preventive Medicine where he served as the First Public Member of the Board. 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 38 years, and they have 2 children – Claire (32) and Travis (28).