Thank you for joining the Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation for the 2024 Bernstein Event!
You can use this page to find:
- Event agenda
- Information about the speakers and awardees
- The history of FHLI’s Founding Director, James (Jim) D. Bernstein
- Information about the 2024 graduating class of Bernstein Fellows and the incoming Fellowship cohort
The 2024 Bernstein Event Is Brought to You by Presenting Sponsor:
2024 Bernstein Event Agenda
6 p.m. | Networking Reception and Dinner Stations
6:45 p.m. | Transition to the Grumman Auditorium
7 p.m. | Bernstein Event Program
- Welcome
- Keynote Address: Secretary Kody Kinsley
- Featured Speaker: Director Antrell Tyson
- 2024 Bernstein Fellowship Graduation
- Presentation of the Jim Bernstein Community Health Leadership Award
- Presentation of the FHLI Community Achievement Award
- Closing Remarks
7:45 p.m. | Dessert reception, sponsored by Dr. Sandra Greene
Support FHLI’s Work
On the heels of Medicaid Expansion, now is the time to capitalize on our momentum and create real, lasting health equity for every person in our state.
With your support, FHLI will build capacity and expand its work, helping more communities drive solutions to the systemic access gaps they face.
2024 Featured Speaker
NCDHHS Secretary Kody Kinsley
Kody H. Kinsley serves as Secretary of the NC Department of Health and Human Services; appointed to the cabinet position by Governor Roy Cooper and unanimously confirmed by the North Carolina Senate.
Secretary Kinsley has identified three priority areas of focus: Behavioral Health & Resilience, Child & Family Wellbeing, and Building a Strong & Inclusive Workforce. By focusing on these three areas, Secretary Kinsley believes the state can make smart investments that drive health for individuals and value for public resources.
At the event, Secretary Kinsley will discuss the importance of working across sectors, including city and county lines, agencies, and aisles, to improve the health and well-being of all North Carolinians. He will also reflect on our shared historic accomplishments and talk about how we can continue collaborating to prioritize health throughout our state.
2024 Featured Speaker
HHS Regional Director Antrell Tyson, Esq
In March 2022, Antrell Tyson was appointed to serve as Regional Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for Region IV. As a Presidential Appointee, Regional Director Tyson provides executive leadership in Region IV as the primary representative for the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The Office of the Regional Director, based in Atlanta, Georgia, is also tasked with intergovernmental and external affairs, which brings together federal, state, local and tribal government organizations, and private sector businesses. In his role, Regional Director Tyson is responsible for eight Southeastern states, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, as well as the Region’s six federally recognized Tribes.
Before joining HHS, Regional Director Tyson served as the Director of Business Services and Policy for the City of Atlanta’s Workforce Development Agency. In this role, Regional Director Tyson re-established the City’s federally-funded On-the-Job training program by creating, implementing, and overseeing every aspect of the employer engagement cycle. Additionally, He served as the agency’s top legal advisor to ensure the agency’s compliance with local, state, and federal laws and regulations.
2024 FHLI Community Achievement Awardee
Joseph Bell, MD
Joseph Bell, MD (Lumbee) is from Pembroke, NC. He graduated from the UNC School of Pharmacy in 1982 and the UNC School of Medicine in 1986. He is the first Lumbee pediatrician and the first Native American pediatrician in North Carolina.
Dr. Bell worked four years in tribal health and the Indian Health Service in Oklahoma and 24 years on the Catawba Reservation in Rock Hill, South Carolina. He is currently the managing partner for Children’s Health of Carolina, which has pediatric clinics in Cumberland, Hoke, and Robeson County. He has also been a general pediatrician in their Pembroke clinic for 26 years.
Dr. Bell is also a past president and current member of the Association of American Indian Physicians and a board member for the North Carolina American Indian Health Board and the UNC Alumni Committee on Racial and Ethnic Diversity. He is also a past member of the North Carolina Pediatric Society board and the AAP Committee on Native American Child Health.
2024 Jim Bernstein Community Health Career Achievement Awardee
Barbara Pullen-Smith, Ph.D.
Barbara Pullen-Smith, Ph. D., has more than 35+ years of public health experience. During her 27 years at the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), she served in several key positions, including 19 years as the founding director of the North Carolina Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities.
During her career, Dr. Pullen-Smith developed and implemented a statewide Cultural Diversity Training Initiative and North Carolina’s first Interpreter Services Training Initiative for bi-lingual individuals working in local public health and other health services agencies. She established the Community Health Ambassador program in 2007, expanding the network to include more than 300 health advisors across the state, and she led the development of the first North Carolina Health Disparities report card. In partnership with UNC Chapel Hill researchers, she conducted the first American Indian Tribal Health Needs Assessment, including eight tribes and four Urban Indian Associations.
At the national level, Dr. Pullen-Smith served as the past president of the National Association of State Offices of Minority Health (NASOMH) and a contributor to the National Partnership for Action to End Health Disparities.
Since retiring from DHHS in 2012, Dr. Pullen-Smith has continued to serve the broader community as an author, public health consultant, and entrepreneur. Three years after her retirement, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, which altered the course of her life and affirmed her life’s work for others. During this period, she wrote a book titled, “The New Woman in the Mirror,” documenting her journey and experience beating cancer.
The Legacy of FHLI’s Founding Director, James (Jim) D. Bernstein
Community-driven approaches to systems-level change.
Over his 35-year career, Jim Bernstein developed strong, trusting relationships wherever he went—from the heart of rural communities to the halls of Congress. He brought together unique coalitions of local leaders, health care providers, and policymakers to drive collaborative, community-based solutions.
“What was magic about Jim was that he could work with such a wide breadth of people. He encouraged people to tackle the impossible, all while making it look like fun.” — Nancy Lane, a health care management consultant
Jim’s journey began with a simple yet profound belief that communities know best how to address the challenges they face. As leader of the NC Office of Rural Health, the first in the country, he and his team operated on a few core principles:
- Act only upon request.
- Never tell the community what they need.
- Be present and listen.
To sum up his legacy in short: community-driven approaches to systems-level change.
Today, FHLI programs and the Jim Bernstein Health Leadership Fellows carry on this legacy of community-driven care for a healthier, more equitable North Carolina.
“Rare is the leader who so many would claim as mentor and friend.” — National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services
As we honor Jim’s legacy—and our graduating class of Bernstein Fellows—we celebrate the belief that meaningful change starts at the community level. Your support helps us continue our mission. By donating to FHLI, you will invest in community-driven solutions, ensuring every North Carolinian has the opportunity to thrive. Join us in carrying forward Jim’s legacy of community-driven approaches to systems-level change.
Read more:
Thank You to Our 2024 Sponsors
Silver Sponsors
Bernstein Fellowship Graduation Sponsors
2024 Event Bar Sponsor
2024 Event Dessert Reception Sponsor
Dr. Sandra Greene
FHLI Sustainers
Friends of FHLI
