Featured Speakers

Robert “Navy Bob” Roncska is a renowned leader known for transforming underperforming teams into top performers through his research-based leadership philosophy centered on empathy, trust and love. He has shared his strategic vision and operational excellence, inspiring audiences with his unwavering commitment and high-stakes decision-making experiences. Dr. Roncska is the author of Beyond the Sea and High Reliability Healthcare and currently teaches leadership at the University of Central Florida, where he combines compassion with accountability in his teachings.

Steve Miff is the President and CEO of Parkland Center for Clinical Innovation (PCCI), a leading, non-profit, artificial intelligence and cognitive computing organization affiliated with Parkland Health, one of the country’s largest and most progressive safety-net hospitals. Spurred by his passion to use next-generation analytics and technology to help serve the most vulnerable and underserved residents, Steve and his team focus on leveraging technology, data science, and clinical expertise to obtain unique social-determinants-of-health data and incorporate those holistic, personal insights into point-of-care interventions.

Dr. Shannon Idzik is a Professor and Associate Dean for the DNP Program at the University of Maryland School of Nursing. She currently maintains a faculty practice as a nurse practitioner in the University of Maryland Comprehensive CARE Center where she cares for uninsured/underinsured and medically complex patients.

Dr. Idzik is the president for the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) and previously served as the NONPF Treasurer. She was the NONPF representative for the current revision of the National Taskforce Criteria for Evaluation of NP programs. She is active in the professional community, serving as a Collegiate Commission on Nursing Education (CCNE) site visitor, and previously served as a member of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing AACN Task Force on Implementation of the DNP.  In addition, she has served the profession as an item writer for national NP certification exams.  With a focus on quality education and outcomes, she has more than 50 publications, presented more than 100 times, served as the principal investigator on more than 2.2 million in grants funding and as key personnel or coinvestigator on more than 20 million.

She has served as a president of the Nurse Practitioner Association of Maryland (NPAM). She has served on numerous statewide committees including as board member of the regional health information exchange, an appointed member of the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission Physician Alignment and Engagement workgroup and the Maryland Intimate Partner Violence Taskforce.  She served as one of 11 non-federal members (and the only NP) on a federal advisory commission to make recommendations to the United States Congress on diabetes care in the US.  She was awarded the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) State Award for Excellence in 2012 and received the NONPF policy award in 2015.  

Dr. Kristen Starnes-Ott is the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston, Texas, a role she has fulfilled since January 2020. In this capacity, she provides strategic leadership for academic programs and support divisions within the School of Nursing, with a strong emphasis on educational innovation, instructional design, and organizational evaluation. Additionally, Dr. Starnes-Ott oversees two academic departments and maintains a faculty appointment at the UTMB Graduate School for Biomedical Sciences. She is also the inaugural holder of the Betty P. Akins Chair in Nursing at UTMB.

With a nursing career spanning more than 30 years, Dr. Starnes-Ott has worked in various tertiary care environments and held diverse roles. She has made significant contributions to nursing education and administration, including the establishment of two public university post-BSN to Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs in Nurse Anesthesia in Texas. Her academic leadership extends to serving as a faculty chair for doctoral students, particularly in the areas of nurse anesthesia practice, organizational and systems leadership, and value-based care modeling.

Dr. Starnes-Ott has held leadership roles in several professional organizations, including the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists and the Texas Nurses Association. She currently serves as President of the Texas Nurses Foundation. Her professional accomplishments have been recognized through her designation as a Fellow in both the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology and the National Academy of Practice in Nursing.

Dr. Dale Beatty is the Chief Nurse Executive and Senior Vice President at Stanford Health Care, a premier academic health system and the flagship hospital of Stanford University. He is also the Immediate President of the Association for California Nurse Leaders. (2024).

Dr. Beatty has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Ohio Wesleyan University, a Master of Science with Distinction from DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois, and a Doctor of Nursing Practice from the University of Illinois, Chicago, Illinois.

Dr. Beatty is the recipient of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing & the University of Illinois - Chicago College of Nursing – Alpha Lambda; Nursing Leadership Recognition Award for 2015; and the UIC College of Nursing Outstanding Alumnus Award for 2021. Stanford Medicine Nursing is the world's first and only Sigma Practice Chapter, with over 400 members, of which he is the Vice President. Dr. Beatty is also recognized by US News and World Report's Top Twenty-two Hospital's Chief Nursing Officers in 2023-24. Dr. Beatty has been inducted as a Fellow in the Academy of Diversity Leaders in Nursing, American Organization of Nurse Leaders, and the American Academy of Nursing.

Dr. Eileen Danaher Hacker is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Nursing and Director of the Argyros Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Oncology Nursing at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She has extensive experience in clinical oncology nursing, cancer research, education, and academic leadership. Her research has been funded by the American Cancer Society, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Nursing Research, and Oncology Nursing Society. Her work has been published in leading cancer journals. She is the recipient of multiple research and teaching awards. Dr. Hacker is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, and she was inducted into the International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame in 2024.

Dr. Julie Zerwic has been dean at the University of Iowa, College of Nursing since 2017. Recently, Dean Zerwic has focused her scholarship on nursing workforce issues, including formulating solutions to diversity the nursing profession and implementing strategies that provide students with the skills to care for diverse patient populations. Dean Zerwic is also the co-chair of the AACN Essentials Implementation Steering committee.

Betty Jo has more than 30 years of experience in nursing, joining Advocate Health in November 2024. Her previous experience includes nursing leadership roles at Mercy, a well-known nonprofit Catholic health care organization headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, and in the Mount Carmel Health System in Columbus, Ohio. Betty Jo has a passion and drive for leveraging technology and data analytics to support nursing and clinical teams to enhance patient care outcomes. Betty Jo serves on the TELA Bio Board, Medtronic Chief Nurse Advisory Board, and the Mytonomy Advisory Board. She is also an accomplished speaker and has written publications in support of nursing practice and operations, technology, supply chain and analytics.