West Virginia Executive Winter 2019 | Page 71

A new degree completion agreement has been inked between West Liberty University’s (WLU) Sara Whitaker Glass School of Dental Hygiene and Bridge- Valley Community & Technical College. “This has been in the works for a while, and we are pleased to have it finalized,” says Stephanie Meredith, program di- rector for WLU’s dental hygiene depart- ment. “It offers BridgeValley students who have earned their associate degree an opportunity to advance their educa- tion and complete a bachelor’s degree in dental hygiene at West Liberty University in a seamless manner. We welcome these BridgeValley graduates and are looking forward to working with them.” Meredith describes the new degree com- pletion program as consisting of mostly online classwork, making it very attractive for distance learners who wish to earn a bachelor’s degree. WLU has long been known for its ex- cellence in providing dental hygienists with a first-class education in its Sarah Whitaker Glass School of Dental Hygiene, which was established in 1938. It has graduated thousands of alumni success- fully employed throughout the region and beyond. Valley Health Announces Key Administrative and Clinical Promotions Valley Health Systems, Inc. is pleased to announce key administrative and clin- ical promotions within its organization. Mathew Weimer, M.D., has been named chief medical officer and vice president of health services; Josh Ham- monds has been promoted to chief infor- mation officer and vice president of data informatics; and Mary-Beth Brubeck is the new chief financial officer and vice president of finance. “In light of Valley Health’s growth and in response to leaders who are pre- paring to retire, these leadership tran- sitions within our organization have been designed to meet the needs of our dynamic and progressive organization,” says Valley Health President and CEO Steve Shattls. Valley Health Systems, Inc. is a net- work of more than 30 nonprofit health centers and public programs. A tri-state leader in the delivery of primary health care since 1975, Valley Health provides services to nearly 70,000 across Southern West Virginia and southeastern Ohio every year, including family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, behavioral health and dentistry. West Virginia Eye Consultants Announces New Practice in Ripley West Virginia Eye Consultants (WVEC) has opened a full-time practice in Ripley, WV. Dr. James Caudill, one of the owners of WVEC, has been performing eye sur- geries in Ripley since 2013. When two well-known optometrists in the Ripley community—Dr. Keith King and Dr. Don King—decided to retire in 2018, they partnered with WVEC to help with its transition to become the new full-time provider to patients in Jackson County and to ensure their patients continued to have local access to quality eye care. WVEC’s Ripley office is located beside Jackson General Hospital at 134 Pinnell Street and is open Monday-Friday with an on-site optical shop available for patients. Dr. Caleb Cart will be providing comprehensive eye exams to Ripley patients while Caudill will continue performing surgeries. Cart has exten- sive clinical experience, and his focus of care includes pediatrics, ocular disease, contact lenses and primary eye care. Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern West Virginia Announces 2019 McGala Theme The theme for Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) of Southern West Vir- ginia’s 2019 McGala, set for March 2, 2019, will be Light Up the Night. “McGala is our biggest fundraiser of the year, and we are grateful for everyone who plays a role in making it have such a huge impact,” says RMHC of Southern West Virginia Director Dewayne Dickens. “We would like to thank our co-chairs, Jeremy Nelson and Susan Moses Persinger; Chef Paul Smith, DJ Nick Scott and Kelly Broyles for helping us put together what we know is going to be an amazing night; as well as our staff, volunteers and sup- porters for helping us continue our mission of keeping families close.” During the evening, two individuals—a community member and a family who has stayed at the Ronald McDonald House— will be recognized as Heroes of the House. During last year’s event, long-time sup- porter and prominent local attorney Tom Smart Office Reduce Your Office Operating Expenses With Us! Look to KOMAX Business Systems when you need to increase productivity and reduce operating costs. We can also provide service and supplies for you current printer fleet. • Multifunction Printing Systems • Production Print Systems • Wide Format Systems • IT Services / Managed IT • Print Cost Recovery • Folder & Inserter Solutions • Document Imaging & Management • Paper Shredders • OCR & Document Conversions • Managed Print Services - MPS • Postage Meters (Service for HP, Lexmark, Dell, etc.) 500 D Street South Charleston, WV 25303 (304) 744-7440 Visit us at: www.komaxwv.com WWW.WVEXECUTIVE.COM WINTER 2019 69