Candidates for 2026 THA Board of Trustees

Allen Harrison
President
Medical City Healthcare
Dallas, TX

Allen Harrison serves as president of Medical City Healthcare, HCA Healthcare’s North Texas Division. Medical City Healthcare is one of the largest divisions in the HCA Healthcare portfolio with 22 hospitals,16 ambulatory surgery centers, over 50 CareNow Urgent Care centers and more than 17,000 colleagues. The division boasts 6 Magnet® hospitals on 10 campuses recognized for nursing excellence by the American Nurses Association, 12 trauma centers and three accredited comprehensive stroke centers. Rapides Regional Medical Center in Louisiana is part of the HCA North Texas system.

Prior to joining Medical City Healthcare in January 2023, Harrison served for five years as president and CEO of Methodist Healthcare in San Antonio. Previously, he served as CEO at Methodist Hospital and Methodist Children’s Hospital in San Antonio; CEO at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center in Austin; and COO of Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Medical Center in Denver, Colorado. Harrison started his career as a biomedical engineer, responsible for overseeing the design, fabrication, and delivery of custom medical equipment to people with disabilities.

Harrison earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Colorado at Denver, a Master of Engineering from the University of Virginia and he graduated magna cum laude from Oral Roberts University with a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering.

Marie Alvarez
Division President
Acadia Healthcare
El Paso, TX

As Division President, Marie Alvarez oversees operations oversight for 11 Acadia Healthcare hospitals that provide inpatient and outpatient psychiatric care and residential treatment, ECT services, and specialty programs for Active Duty Servicemembers, Veterans, and First Responders. Marie’s facilities include four in Texas—Rio Vista Behavioral Health, in her hometown of El Paso, Red River Hospital, in Wichita Falls, Cedar Crest, in Belton, and Cross Creek, in Austin. Ms. Alvarez is very proud of her facilities, which have won top awards from Acadia Healthcare for patient safety and care, employee engagement, nursing leadership, and solid outcome measures. In addition, Rio Vista Behavioral Health in El Paso received the 2024 Press Ganey award, Guardian of Excellence, Patient Experience, the first of its kind for a behavioral health hospital.

Marie’s dual operations and clinical experience allow her to keep a strong focus on operations while always ensuring patient care and safety remain top priorities.

Previously, Alvarez was the CEO of Rio Vista Behavioral Health Hospital, Senior Divisional Director of Admissions, Director of Admissions and Utilization Review, and a Clinician. Her 25+ years of experience in the Behavioral Health and Chemical Dependency field have played a key role in her desire to continue learning to spread her knowledge and experience to future leaders. Alvarez is an active member of her community. She is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Southwest Healthcare Executives Association, El Paso Behavioral Health Consortium, Texas Association of Behavioral Health, a Graduate of The Texas Hospital Association Leadership Fellowship Program and serves on the Texas Hospital Association’s Behavioral Health Council and Foundation Board of Trustees. Alvarez is married with three children and five grandchildren. She is proud to say that her roots are deep in El Paso, Texas.

Donald Baker, CPA
Regional President
Ardent Health
Tyler, TX 75708

Donald Baker serves as Regional President for Ardent Health’s Texas Region, known as the Lone Star Region. In this role, he oversees strategy development and operations for hospitals and health services in comprehensive delivery networks across Amarillo, Harker Heights, and East Texas, driving strategic growth, clinical excellence, and community-focused care.

Previously, Mr. Baker served as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer for UT Health East Texas, where he led a comprehensive network that included nine hospitals, an academic medical center, regional rehabilitation facilities, freestanding emergency centers, more than 90 physician clinics, and a full continuum of outpatient and in-home healthcare services. Under his leadership, the system operated the region’s only Level 1 trauma center and maintained a robust emergency transport network with over 65 ambulances and four helicopters, serving a 40-county region with nearly 8,000 employees. Before joining UT Health East Texas in 2020, Mr. Baker spent more than two decades with Hillcrest HealthCare System in Oklahoma, including 10 years as Market CFO. There, he supported seven hospitals, over 95 clinic locations, and 7,000 employees. His expertise spans managed care contracting, FP&A, financial operations, and executive leadership at large academic medical centers.

Mr. Baker currently serves on the Texas Hospital Association Board of Trustees, the HOSPAC Board, and the Tyler Economic Development Council Board of Directors. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Langston University and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

Edmundo Castañeda, FACHE
Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer
Parkland Health
Dallas, TX

Edmundo Castañeda, FACHE, was named Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in January 2022. Prior to joining Parkland, Castañeda worked for Dignity Health, part of CommonSpirit Health, in the greater Sacramento, CA, area for nine years. There he served as President of Mercy General Hospital and Woodland Memorial Hospital. From 2015-2017, he was responsible for Mercy General Hospital and Mercy Hospital of Folsom. Before joining Dignity Health in 2012, Castañeda served as Chief Executive Officer at Tenet’s Sierra Medical Center in El Paso from 2007-2012. He has also held leadership positions at Lea Regional Medical Center in Hobbs, NM, where he served as CEO, and as COO at Mountain View Regional Medical Center in Las Cruces, NM, among other leadership positions early in his career.

Castañeda, who is fluent in Spanish, is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. He earned his Master of Healthcare Administration from Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, and his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Trinity University in San Antonio.

Gregory (Greg) Haralson, FACHE
President – Central Texas Region
Baylor Scott & White Health
Temple, TX

Greg Haralson is president of the Central Texas Region at Baylor Scott & White Health, the largest not-for-profit health system in Texas. The integrated delivery network includes 52,000 employees, 51 hospitals, 7,000 affiliated physicians, more than 1,100 access points, Scott and White Health Plan, Baylor Scott & White Research Institute and one of the nation’s largest accountable care organizations, Baylor Scott & White Quality Alliance.

In his role, Haralson oversees the Central Texas Region’s four hospitals and clinic network. Prior to joining Baylor Scott & White, Haralson served 11 years as CEO of 3 separate hospitals in the Memorial Hermann Health System including the Memorial Herman – Texas Medical Center.

Haralson is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and is a board member of Texas Hospital Association. He is the former chair of the Texas Hospital Association’s HOSPAC Board, and former member of its Council on Policy Development. Active in his local community, he serves on the board of Ralph Wilson Youth Club.

Haralson received his BS from Texas A & M University and an MS in Healthcare Administration from Trinity University.

Daniel (Dan) Miller
President and CEO
Methodist Healthcare System
San Antonio, TX

Dan Miller was appointed President of Methodist Healthcare in 2023, bringing with him over twenty years of healthcare leadership experience.

Methodist Healthcare is a 50-50 co-ownership between Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc., South Texas’ largest non-public funding source of community health care for uninsured patients; and HCA Healthcare, the leading provider in Texas and the nation for world class healthcare services. With over 80 facilities, including 11 hospitals and 10 freestanding emergency departments, over 2.6 million inpatients and outpatients are served annually. The Methodist Healthcare team is comprised of 13,500 employees, making the system the second-largest private employer in San Antonio. With more than 3,400 credentialed physicians, Methodist Healthcare provides the largest array of medical services in the region, including neurosurgery, cardiovascular services, oncology and women’s services.

Prior to joining Methodist Healthcare, Dan held the title of Chief Executive Officer of Methodist Hospital and Methodist Children’s Hospital. Under his leadership, Methodist Hospital maintained an award-winning reputation and received many acclaimed accreditations and awards for clinical excellence and quality outcomes. Methodist Hospital was named among the Fortune and Merative 100 Top Hospitals list, was recognized as Best Regional Hospital by U.S. News & World Report for the past five consecutive years and has received innovation and people’s choice awards. Dan was instrumental in expanding Methodist Hospital’s robust service lines, having recently become the largest hospital in Texas for inpatient admissions.

Prior to joining Methodist Healthcare, Dan held the title of Chief Executive Officer of the Medical Center of Aurora in Colorado and previously served as the Chief Operating Officer of Swedish Medical Center in Englewood, Colorado. Both facilities are part of HCA healthcare’s network of hospitals.

Dan earned a Bachelor’s in Science from Vanderbilt University and a Masters in Health Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. Dan and his wife Rachel have been married for 14 years and have two children, Danny (11) and Maddy (9). Dan and Rachel are active in the South Texas community supporting the McNay Art Institute, St. Mary’s Hall school, American Heart Association and the Alzheimer’s Association, where Dan served as Co-Chair for the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. Dan also currently serves on the board of the Texas Biomedical Research Institute.

Debra (Debbie) F. Sukin, PhD, FACHE
President and Chief Executive Officer
Texas Children’s
Houston, TX

Dr. Debra F. Sukin is the President and CEO of Texas Children’s, one of the nation’s largest and most comprehensive pediatric and women’s health care organizations. She oversees all administrative and clinical areas of the Texas Children’s system which includes four hospital locations in the Texas Medical Center, Katy, the Woodlands, and Austin, as well as more than 70 pediatric clinics and urgent care locations across the state. In addition, she leads the Texas Children’s Health Plan, the Texas Children’s Research Institute, and the Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute. Texas Children’s has a long-standing affiliation with Baylor College of Medicine, serving as their primary pediatric training site with a shared commitment to excellence in clinical care, education, and research.

Prior to joining Texas Children’s, Dr. Sukin served as Executive Vice President of Houston Methodist, where she was responsible for five suburban hospitals. She also served as Chief Executive Officer of Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital.

Dr. Sukin earned a PhD in Health Policy and Health Management from The University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. She received her Master of Healthcare Administration degree from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. She is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Russell (Russ) Weaver
Vice President, Mission, Community & Government Advocacy
AdventHealth
Burleson, TX

Russell T. Weaver is an accomplished healthcare executive based in Burleson, Texas, currently serving as Vice President of Mission, Community, & Government Advocacy for AdventHealth’s Southwest Region (Texas). In this role, Weaver provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for four hospitals, driving mission and ministry priorities, chaplaincy programs, and partnerships with safety-net organizations and area churches. He oversees community engagement and advocacy efforts, including the development of community health plans, coordination of supplemental payment programs, and monitoring legislation and advocacy efforts.

Previously, Weaver held key financial leadership positions at Texas Health Huguley, including VP of Revenue Cycle/Finance and AVP of Revenue Cycle & Managed Care Contracting, where he directed revenue cycle activities, supply chain management, and physician contract administration. His career also includes significant roles in managed care contracting at Providence Healthcare Network and executive operations at Seton Medical Center, where he coordinated physician practice startups and billing services.

Weaver earned his MBA from Baylor University and a BBA from Southwestern Adventist University. He is deeply involved in his community, serving as board chair for Harvest House, board member for One Safe Place, board member for Burleson Area Chamber of Commerce, and past president of the Burleson Area Midday Rotary Club and Burleson Toastmasters Club. Weaver is recognized for his commitment to healthcare excellence, community engagement, and effective advocacy efforts.