HCC Board Bios

Dr. Rosangely Cruz-Rojas serves as Vice President and Chief Diversity & Equity Officer for Main Line Health.
In her role, Dr. Cruz-Rojas directs the system’s diversity strategy across the enterprise, leading the development of sustainable policies, processes and initiatives designed to build cultural competence, foster diversity and achieve equity in an inclusive environment. Dr. Cruz-Rojas is an engaging and dynamic leader with extensive experience in health care disparities, healthcare analytics, factors influencing health outcomes, quality, safety and patient experience. Previously, she served as System Director for Performance Measurement, Improvement & Analytics overseeing a team of process improvement, project managers and QI data analysts under the broader department of Quality, Safety and Equity.
Dr. Cruz-Rojas earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a Master of Public Health in Biostatistics at University of Puerto Rico. She obtained a doctoral degree from the Sociomedical Science program at Columbia University, School of Public Health.
She completed a five-year pre-doctoral program in Psychiatric Epidemiology and was awarded the Eugene Litwak Prize in Sociomedical Sciences for excellence in preparation of a dissertation research proposal in 2007. In 2012, she was awarded the Social Inequalities Research Award for excellence in doctoral research from the Center for the Study of Social Inequalities and Health at Columbia University.

Jeshahnton (Shaun) V. Essex is currently the Chief Operating Officer of Baylor University Medical Center (BUMC) in Dallas, TX. BUMC is the 914-bed flagship campus of Baylor Scott & White Health. He joined BUMC/BSWH in December 2022.
In this executive role, Jeshahnton is responsible for the hospital’s overall operations which includes responsibilities such as Oncology Services, Transplant Services, Women’s & Children’s Services, the Neurosciences Service Line, Orthopedics Service Line, and many other departments such as Surgical Services, Laboratory Services, Food & Nutrition, Environmental Services, Physical Medicine & Rehab Services, and Facilities & Engineering to name a few.
Prior to joining BUMC / BSWH, Jeshahnton served at the Main Line Health (MLH) System in suburban Philadelphia, PA for 10.5 years. His most recent role was Vice President – Operations at Bryn Mawr Hospital, a 253-bed community hospital in Bryn Mawr, PA. Before that time frame with MLH, Jeshahnton served in several administrative roles with Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare in Memphis, TN and Cooper Green Hospital in Birmingham, AL.
Jeshahnton received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Health – Natural Sciences from The Johns Hopkins University (JHU) and a Master of Business Administration and Master of Science in Health Administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) along with a Certificate in Gerontology. He is involved with several healthcare-related and community organizations such as the National Association of Health Service Executives (NAHSE) where he has held several chapter and national leadership roles and currently serves as the national chair of NAHSE’s Membership Committee. Jeshahnton has been a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives for over 20 years and is also Board Certified as a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Jeshahnton additionally serves on the advisory boards for the UAB MSHA program and the MHA program at Auburn University at Montgomery. Jeshahnton and his wife Demika have four children and eight grandchildren. A native of Marion, AL, Jeshahnton and his family currently reside in Dallas, TX.
Jeshahnton has been associated with the Health Career Collaborative for more than a decade. He served as a faculty advisor and on multiple occasions served as the emcee for HCC finales.

Dr. Liana Gefter is the National Director for the Health Career Collaborative.  Dr. Gefter brings over twenty years of experience in developing partnerships between medical schools and underserved schools.  Dr. Gefter received her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine and her master of public health degree from the University of California Berkeley. Prior to medical school, she served for three years as a Teach for America corps member in East Palo Alto, CA where she taught elementary and middle school and was awarded the Unsung Hero award – a national teaching award for excellence in teaching.  As an undergraduate Women, Gender, and Ethnic Studies major, Dr. Gefter’s thesis work involved extensive qualitative and epidemiologic research with girls in juvenile detention.  Dr. Gefter also works for Stanford School of Medicine in the Division of Primary Care and Population Health where she developed the Stanford Youth Diabetes Coaches Program partnering medical residents with underserved high schools.  Her Stanford program is now being implemented nationally and internationally.  Her primary areas of interest include healthcare disparities, education equity, medical education, and community partnership.

Mr. John W. Gruber is a senior faculty member in the Upper School Science Department at Friends’ Central School in Wynnewood, PA. John holds an undergraduate degree in Environmental Studies and a graduate degree in Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy.
With 25 years of teaching experience, John has led the design and implementation of integrated science curricula at many different student levels. In 2001, he was a Teacher Recognition Awardee in the United States Presidential Scholars Program. As a long-time student of evolutionary biology and natural history he is particularly interested in ways to incorporate laboratory research, field research and service learning into the secondary school classroom. John serves as the Director of the Distinguished Visiting Scientist Program at Friends’ Central and also coordinates the  Advanced Summer Science Institute.  In addition to his work and research as an educator and administrator, he is involved in an active research program in insect ecology and the systematic biology of moth species in collaboration with the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. John also serves on the Board of Directors of Next Step Integral, a non-profit organization.

Dr. Barry Mann is System Medical Director for Equity for the Main Line Health System in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania and Professor of Surgery at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Dr. Mann also served as Program Director of the Lankenau Medical Center Surgical Residency.
Dr. Mann has received national recognition for his work in surgical education, including the prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha Robert P. Glaser Distinguished Teacher of Medicine Award from the American Association for Medical Colleges and the Outstanding Teacher of Surgery Award from the Association for Surgical Education. He is a past president of the Association for Surgical Education. Dr. Mann’s textbook entitled SURGERY: A Competency-Based Companion, published by Elsevier, has become a medical textbook series with volumes in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics and Medicine for which Dr. Mann serves as series’ editor. For the past decade, in his role as Executive Director of the Annenberg Center for Medical Education at Lankenau Medical Center, Dr. Mann has been instrumental in the development of the Main Line Health Healthcare Disparities Colloquium. In 2008, Dr. Mann initiated an educational enrichment program designed to help disadvantaged high school students develop the skills necessary to explore and pursue careers in health care. This program has grown to become the Health Career Collaborative.

As a dynamic and collaborative professional, with over 10 years of Healthcare Administration and Project Management experience, Crystal Reed excels in aiding businesses with the development of equitable opportunities in traditionally exclusionary sectors.
Crystal currently serves as the Associate Director for the Workforce Connect Healthcare Sector Partnership, where she brings her sharp ability to move ideas into action and her understanding of operations and quality improvement to the Intermediary team. In this role, she is able to integrate her love for her community with her passion for helping people become the best versions of themselves.
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Crystal received her MBA in Health Services Management from Ursuline College, preceded by the attainment of a Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration from The University of Toledo. She is a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and of the National Black MBA Association. Recently appointed to the National Board of Directors for the Health Career Collaborative, Crystal continues to focus on equity initiatives that promote systemic change.