HIM Mentor Program

Through an active and interested group of locally based, nationally prominent health care and business leaders, the HIM Mentor Program provides students with an educationally oriented experience that enhances their personal and professional growth. Each year, students choose a mentor with whom they meet regularly to discuss such issues as current topics in health care management, relevance of course work, and career planning. Two participating mentors have recently taken leadership roles in national associations.

Gary Mecklenburg, President and CEO of Northwestern Memorial Hospital since 1985, is also currently serving as Board Chairman of the American Hospital Association. Mecklenburg took his undergraduate degree from Northwestern and his MBA from the University of Chicago. Following his MBA he worked as an administrator, first at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals, then from 1977 - 1980 as administrator of Stanford University Hospitals and Clinics, then as CEO of St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee prior to joining Northwestern Memorial.

He has been very active in a wide variety of organizations from the Chicago area Boy Scouts to the Institute for Diversity in Health Management to Kellogg's Dean's Advisory Board.

Mark Neaman, the President and CEO of Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Corporation, is Chairman-Elect of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE), Neaman has spent his career at Evanston Hospital or its parent corporation, which he now heads. Neaman has both his bachelor's and master's degrees from The Ohio State University. He came to Evanston Hospital from Ohio State in 1974 as an Administrative Assistant and climbed steadily up the ladder.

Neaman is active in many organizations as well. He held several positions in ACHE since he was named their "Young Healthcare Executive of the Year" in 1988. He has been active in the Illinois Hospital and Health Systems Association, the American Hospital Association and the International Hospital Federation.