2025 Annual Bernstein Event

Paul Cunningham, MD, FACS, is a distinguished Jamaican-American surgeon and medical educator. He earned his medical degree from the University of the West Indies in 1972, then completed surgical training at New York’s Mount Sinai Hospital, followed by early surgical practice at the Bronx VA and Elmhurst hospitals in New York City.   

In 1981, Dr. Cunningham relocated to North Carolina, joining Bertie County Memorial Hospital in Windsor and subsequently Pitt County Memorial Hospital in Greenville, where he began teaching medical students from East Carolina University (ECU). He became a full-time faculty member in 1984 and, by 1989, was a tenured Professor of Surgery at ECU. After a six-year tenure as Professor and Chair of Surgery at SUNY Upstate Medical University (2002–2008), he returned to ECU as Dean of the Brody School of Medicine and Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Medical Affairs in 2008.   

During his deanship, Dr. Cunningham advanced the school’s educational mission and championed access to medical care in underserved communities. He published extensively in the areas of trauma, bariatric surgery, organ transplantation, and allografts. In recognition of his leadership, he was named Dean Emeritus in 2016, following nearly three decades of service at ECU, including eight years as dean. Currently, he continues to serve on the North Carolina Medical Care Commission.   

Among his many honors, Dr. Cunningham received the Presidential Award from the National Medical Association in 2013, the Order of the Long Leaf Pine from the Governor of North Carolina in 2016, and the Jacobi Medallion from Mount Sinai’s Icahn School of Medicine in 2018.

C.J. Atkinson, MD, serves as the Deputy Chief Physician Executive at Novant Health. Inspired by his father, who was a family Physician in Marion, NC for 42 years, Dr. Atkinson observed how people always felt comfortable approaching him with their problems—regardless of the time or place. Through his father, he learned the importance of connecting with people, regardless of circumstances, and to always “step up” when people are in need.   

The day after September 11, 2001, he joined the Army. The Army discovered that he was planning to attend medical school, so they covered the cost of his education at Wake Forest University. He served in the Army until 2013 before making the decision with his family to leave military service and join Novant Health.  

When Hurricane Helene hit in September 2024, a Western North Carolina county official reached out to the Novant Health Government relations team the day of the storm and said, “We need help!” Dr. Atkinson was contacted and immediately called his Senior Leader, Dr. John Mann, who responded with, “Go do the right thing and stay as long as you need to. We will get you anything you need.” For the first week, Dr. Atkinson was on the ground in the hardest hit areas overseeing the medical shelter for evacuated patients and helping lead search and rescue efforts—which included the airlift of an expectant mother facing a breech birth from the side of a mountain. For the next month, Dr. Atkinson, along with the team from Novant Health (Andrea Flynn, Dr. Stan Fuller, Dr. John Mann, Elizabeth Outten and Dr. Pam Oliver) worked with the Red Cross and the county to provide medical care through established shelters and Community Cruisers at FEMA care sites—all at zero cost to the patients.  

Shannon Dowler, MD, CPE, is a family physician and national leader in public health and sexual health education and advocacy. She serves on the Board of Directors for the American Academy of Family Physicians and is the Acting Chief Medical Officer for the US HHS Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy and is a health policy consultant with several statewide organizations in NC.  

Formerly Chief Medical Officer for North Carolina Medicaid, Dr. Dowler led statewide innovations in telehealth and health equity during the COVID-19 pandemic and was a key leader in implementing Medicaid expansion. She recently completed a five-year term on the CDC/HRSA advisory committee on HIV, hepatitis, and STDs (CHACHSPT).  

After Hurricane Helene hit, Dr. Dowler’s community had no electricity or water. With her brother-in-law and sister, they quickly set up a generator at their rural cafe providing free meals seven days a week and established a first aid and emergency supply station in the garage next door with donations from generous neighbors from across the Southeast. Dowler described the hurricane devastation and community response in Marshall, where she lives: “Every day for three weeks we offered assistance. And every day, cars and trucks—many with out-of-state plates—stopped to ask what we needed and stocked our shelves; whenever those shelves emptied, the kindness of strangers refilled them.” Dr. Dowler describes a lesson she learned while attempting to give relief to her community: “There are no limits to the lengths people will go to support each other—neighbor to neighbor, community to community, state to state.” 

Amanda North, MHA is the Executive Director of the Center for Rural Health Innovation (CRHI) in Spruce Pine, North Carolina. As Executive Director, she handles a broad range of duties: from daily operations to designing and implementing programs, but she is happiest when she can make spreadsheets and budgets work to improve access to health care.  

Too squeamish to be a medical provider but interested in working in health care, North studied at Georgia Tech in Atlanta and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned her Executive Master’s in Health Care Administration. She has extensive experience in the health care industry, working in the medical device field with Ethicon, as well as managing a rural private practice in Western North Carolina.  

North first served on the CRHI board as a founding member in 2010, before becoming the executive director. Under her leadership, CRHI has established and grown a school-based telemedicine program (Health-e-Schools) from three pilot sites to now serving over 130 schools in 12 rural counties, which she now supervises. She manages a growing and evolving team of clinical and operations professionals who deliver health care and care coordination to thousands of rural North Carolinians every year. She also serves on the Advisory Board of the Mid-Atlantic Telehealth Resource Center (MATRC), is Co-President of the NC School-Based Health Alliance, and sits on the Executive Board of Partners Aligned Toward Health (PATH).  

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, she led her team to manage the blessing that quickly became a burden when thousands of medical supplies were sent into their community. Her team helped receive, organize, and redistribute medical supplies throughout Mitchell, Yancey, and Avery Counties, a project that lasted an entire year. 

Dr. Steve North is a board-certified family physician with additional certifications in addiction and adolescent medicine. He received his MD from the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and completed his Family Medicine Residency, Adolescent Medicine Fellowship, and Master’s in Public Health at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry.  

Dr. North practiced at rural health centers in Mitchell County, NC, from 2006 to 2020, followed by five years in addiction medicine leadership. In 2025, he returned to Mountain Community Health Partnership (MCHP) in Bakersville, NC, where he now serves as Medical Director and provides comprehensive care.   

A 2007 Jim Bernstein Fellow, Dr. North founded the Health-e-Schools telemedicine program, now serving over 130 schools in 12 rural counties. He chairs the board of Impact Health—a Healthy Opportunities Lead Entity—and serves on the boards of the Toe River Health District and Advocates for Youth. Dr. North lives in Mitchell County, where he continues to advance rural health access, school-based care, and quality improvement at MCHP.  

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Dr. North coordinated medical volunteers—military medics, physicians, nurse practitioners, and more—ensuring that patients with urgent needs and chronic conditions alike could be treated, even when the local healthcare system was down. Together, both Steven and Amanda North helped turn Burnsville into a free clinic for six months, provided care in remote communities, and offered stability for those living through chaos. Their work was not only about immediate relief—it was about restoring dignity, health, and connection.

Schell McCall is a visionary rural health leader with decades of experience advancing community-based solutions in Western North Carolina. She began her career in child protective services in Yancey County, an experience that shaped her deep commitment to equity and grassroots advocacy.   

Since 2014, McCall has served as Executive Director of Partners Aligned Toward Health (PATH), a nonprofit organization addressing critical needs such as public health, youth mental health, food security, and substance use in Mitchell and Yancey counties. Under her leadership, PATH has become a trusted convener and catalyst for collaborative, cross-sector solutions rooted in the lived experiences of rural communities.   

A Jim Bernstein Fellow (2017–2019), McCall is recognized for her strategic, relationship-driven leadership, mentoring emerging leaders, and amplifying the voices of those historically excluded. Her work earned national recognition during the Hurricane Helene response, where she co-led an inclusive, grassroots relief effort. Known for leading with authenticity and integrity, McCall continues to inspire the next generation of leaders in rural health. 

Mayor Weyling J. White is a nonprofit executive, public health leader, and the first African American Mayor of Ahoskie, North Carolina. He previously served as Executive Director of Care Share Health Alliance and in leadership roles at Roanoke Chowan Community Health Center, where he advanced health equity and expanded access to care. He also served as Vice President of State and Regional Impact at Education Reform Now, where he led multi-state initiatives to strengthen funder networks and advance educational equity. As Mayor, he is championing economic revitalization, violent crime prevention, youth empowerment, and many other town needs through initiatives, policy, and advocacy. 

Deeply committed to education and opportunity, he has helped launch local scholarships and youth programming while building partnerships across philanthropy, healthcare, and civic leadership. Guided by a belief in collaboration and the power of community, he continues to drive systemic change at both the local and state levels. Mayor White serves on boards such as the North Carolina Rural Center, North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, and many others in addition to being the Chair of the Hertford Health Maintenance Alliance. While he has been recognized across the state and nation for his leadership, his proudest accomplishment is giving back to his hometown, and his greatest joy is being a father.