Page 29 - Healthcare News Mar/Apr 2021

MELISSABLISSETT
DR. DAVID BROWN
MICHELLE BAITY
MICHELE SNIZEK
COLLEEN HOLMES
MARCH/APRIL 2021 WWW.HEALTHCARENEWS.COM 29
CAREER PULSE
Brown to Lead Cooley Dickinson as Interim President, CEO
NORTHAMPTON — Dr. David Brown has begun serv- ing as the interim president and CEO at Cooley Dickinson Health Care. Brown steps in to lead the organization after Joanne Marqusee announced her resignation in January following seven years of service to Cooley Dickinson.
Brown, chief of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Massa- chusetts General Hospital (MGH), will serve in an interim capacity while a search is conducted for a permanent president and CEO. The search process will be aligned with the Mass General Brigham United Against Racism priority
and will include a diverse search committee and slate of candidates for consideration.
Brown, who has been a member of the Cooley Dickin- son Health Care board of trustees since the Northampton hospital joined the MGH family in 2013, will continue to oversee the MGH Department of Emergency Medicine as well as maintain his major administrative and committee roles at both MGH and Mass General Brigham.
After receiving his undergraduate degree at Princeton and then his medical degree at Columbia University Col- lege of Physicians and Surgeons in 1989, Brown began
his career in emergency medicine as an intern at MGH, later becoming vice chair, then department chair. He is
the MGH trustees professor of Emergency Medicine at Harvard Medical School, a diplomate of both the American Board of Emergency Medicine and the American Board of Internal Medicine, and a fellow of the American College
of Emergency Physicians and the American Academy of Emergency Medicine. He has also served for many years as the physician for the New England Patriots.
Viability Welcomes Holmes as New President, CEO
SPRINGFIELD — Viability kept employment, inclu- sion, access, and empowerment for people with disabilities in the forefront despite the pandemic, says Viability’s new president and CEO, Colleen Holmes.
“For people confronting chal- lenges ranging from mobility to mental health, capability stereo- types to substance abuse, isola- tion to meeting daily basic needs, just saying ‘we’ll get through this together’ rings hollow,” she added. “Viability had to move into hyper- drive to combat the new barriers of
social distancing, shutdowns, and fear.”
Holmes brings 30 years of human-service experience to
her new role with Viability, which began in November fol- lowing a nationwide search. A resident of Springfield, she was most recently president and CEO of 18 Degrees and started in the field at Human Resources Unlimited, one of the agencies that formed Viability.
Viability is a community-based human-services agency providing employment services, vocational and life-skills training, and other supports to more than 4,000 individu- als across five states. Viability partners with more than 600 employers and leverages community resources to overcome barriers with a mission of helping to build a world where individuals with disabilities and other disadvantages can realize their full potential.
Square One Names Blissett VP of Family Support Services
SPRINGFIELD — Square One announced the promo- tion of Melissa Blissett to vice president of Family Support
MHA Names Metcalf Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategist
SPRINGFIELD — MHA announced it has engaged Genisha Metcalf as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategist. Metcalf will lead DEI training sessions and develop a DEI roadmap to ensure a strategic approach that ensures equitable practices throughout MHA’s organiza- tion.
Metcalf began her career in child-welfare services, with a focus on training, community engagement, and behavioral- health counseling. She has trained hundreds of corporate, nonprofit, and community leaders in culturally respon- sive practices, fundraising, and community-engagement strategies. She has held leadership positions at City Year New York, DoSomething.org, and Utica College’s ABSN program. In 2018, she leveraged her decade of experience in building diverse teams, designing immersive solutions for equitable practices, and leading social-impact programs to create Genisha Metcalf Consulting (GMC).
Metcalf is the founder and principal of GMC, a social- impact and DEI consulting firm dedicated to supporting nonprofit organizations and businesses in reimagining their approach to DEI, community engagement, and phi- lanthropy. To date, GMC has raised $10 million in funding for workforce-development and social-justice initiatives serving communities of color. Among GMC’s clients are Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC, Lincoln Hall, Harlem Grown, and Carolina Herrera.
Metcalf holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Temple University and a master’s degree in social work from Fordham University, where she serves as an adjunct professor and course developer.
BFAIR Promotes Baity to Senior VP of Human Resources
NORTH ADAMS — BFAIR announced the promotion of Michelle Baity to the position of senior vice president of
Services.
A native of Springfield, Blissett joined Square One in 2014 as a Springfield College School of So- cial Work intern. Upon graduation in 2015, she joined the agency’s Healthy Families and Supervised Visitation programs. In 2017, she went to work as a Child and Family Law Division social worker for the
Committee for Public Council Services in Springfield. In 2018, she returned to Square One as assistant vice president of Family Services.
Blissett graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a degree in psychology and developmental disabilities. She earned her master of social work degree from Spring- field College, where she currently serves as an adjunct pro- fessor. She is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. and actively volunteers for the Reading Success by 4th Grade initiative.
Square One currently provides early-learning services to more than 500 infants, toddlers, and school-age children each day, and family support services to 1,500 families each year, as they work to overcome the significant challenges in their lives. The large majority of Square One families come from situations involving poverty, homelessness, food inse- curity, and other significant barriers that may inhibit their ability to get their children off to a good start in life.
RVCC Welcomes Snizek as New Senior Program Director
HOLYOKE — River Valley Counseling Center (RVCC) named Michele Snizek its senior program director. Snizek will oversee RVCC’s school-based health centers and HIV/ AIDS Project to ensure that these grant-funded programs are responsive to funder terms and conditions and compli- ant with grant rules and regulations.
Snizek received a bachelor’s de- gree in social work from Elms Col- lege and a master’s degree in public administration from Westfield State University. She has extensive experience managing federal and state grants in the Greater Holyoke community, development and writ- ing of grant proposals, managing
grant compliance, and reporting and budget management for both federal and state applications. She is also a licensed social worker.
Prior to joining RVCC, Snizek was the director of Reten- tion at Holyoke Community College. A key focus of her work was closing HCC’s equity gaps, which were further widened during remote operations this year. This put a spotlight on the need for enhanced mental-health services for students. She started her career at HCC as a Title III activity director, managing a five-year, $1.8 million Depart- ment of Education grant focused on first-year students. For more than 20 years, she held two different positions, direc- tor of Planning and Development and director of Program Operations, at Holyoke, Chicopee, and Springfield Head Start Inc.
Human Resources.
Baity joined BFAIR’s senior- management team three years ago and brought with her numerous years of experience in human resources as well as the human- services field. Since joining the team, she has formed a strong Human Resources department that has been invaluable with assisting
the agency to manage the enormous challenges it has faced over the past year.
According to Ethel Altiery, BFAIR’s executive director, “Michelle has been with BFAIR for three years, and work- ing closely with her has been a wonderful experience for me. She has brought my level of knowledge and experi- ence in the world of human resources to a new level. I look forward to working with Michelle for many more years to come.”
Baity is directly responsible for crafting employee-benefit offerings and developing an educational-assistance policy to support skill development in pursuit of an organization focused on creating opportunities for advancement.
New York Life Foundation Grant Honors Baystate’s Schmidt
SPRINGFIELD — Baystate Health Foundation received a $50,000 grant from the New York Life Foundation to sup- port its Spiritual Services program.