ST. LOUIS, July 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascension is pleased to announce six members of the new Ascension Board of Directors:

• The Rev. Dennis H. Holtschneider, CM, EdD, President, DePaul University, Chicago, who will serve as interim Chair. Father Dennis, former Vice Chair of the Ascension Board of Directors, is also a professor of education at DePaul and a faculty member in the Harvard Graduate School of Education's Management Development Program, as well as Boston College's Institute for Administrators in Catholic Higher Education.
• Eduardo Conrado, Senior Vice President, Marketing & IT, Motorola Solutions, Inc., Schaumburg, Ill. Mr. Conrado is past national chairman of the Business Marketing Association, and is on the Board of Directors for the American Red Cross of Greater Chicago and the Association of National Advertisers.
• Stephen M. Dufilho, CPA, Principal, Goldsmith, Fillis & Dufilho Capital Partners, LLC, San Antonio, Texas. Mr. Dufilho, former Vice Chair of the Ascension Health Board of Trustees, has served as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board of CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health Care Corp. and on the Boards of several non-profit organizations.
• Eve J. Higginbotham, SM, MD, Vice Dean for Inclusion and Diversity, Perelman School of Medicine, Senior Fellow, Leonard Davis Institute for Health Economics, and Professor of Ophthalmology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Dr. Higginbotham most recently served as a Visiting Scholar for Health Equity at the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) in Washington, D.C.
• Sr. Kathleen Kelly, CSJ, PhD, Consultant, Development, St. Mary's Academy, Inglewood, Calif. Sr. Kathleen, former Chair of the Ascension Board of Directors and Ascension Health Board of Trustees, and former member of the Ascension Health Sponsors Council, served at the United Nations in the Sisters of St. Joseph Federation Non-Government Office.
• W. Stancil (Stan) Starnes, JD, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, ProAssurance Corp. (NYSE:PRA), Birmingham, Ala. Mr. Starnes is also a member of the St. Vincent's Health System Board in Birmingham. Under his leadership, ProAssurance has solidified its reputation as a leading specialty insurance company, with a focus on healthcare liability and related lines. Prior to joining ProAssurance, Mr. Starnes was a nationally known attorney who represented healthcare providers and institutions as well as a number of national and international corporations.

In late fall 2013, members of the Ascension Sponsor and Boards came together to identify ways to strengthen Ascension governance as part of an integrated ministry operating in today's rapidly evolving healthcare environment. The result was the creation of a new Ascension Board of Directors.

"We are delighted with the caliber of individuals serving on the Ascension Board," said Gino Pazzaglini, Chair, Ascension Sponsor. "We have named candidates who bring competencies and qualifications from different market sectors to enhance the gifts of our ministry, and to support the continued advancement of our Mission of service to all, with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable."

"I'm excited about the exceptional qualities and strengths of our new Board members," said Anthony R. Tersigni, EdD, FACHE, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ascension. "Their insights and experience will serve our ministry well as we continue to expand and diversify beyond healthcare delivery into new supporting business sectors as One Ascension, all to advance our Mission to serve all persons across the continuum of care."

Biographies and photographs of the new members of the Board of Directors are available for download here.

About Ascension
Ascension is a Catholic healthcare organization dedicated to the transformation of healthcare through excellent clinical care throughout the continuum of care and through innovation. Ascension is the nation's largest Catholic and non-profit health system, providing the highest quality care to all with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable. Last year Ascension provided $1.5 billion in care of persons living in poverty and community benefit programs. Its Mission-focused Health Ministries employ more than 155,000 associates serving in more than 1,900 sites of care in 23 states and the District of Columbia.

Ascension is sponsored by Ascension Sponsor, a non-congregational public juridic person whose members include both laypersons and representatives of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, St. Louise Province; the Congregation of St. Joseph; the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet; the Alexian Brothers Congregation; and the Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother.

SOURCE Ascension