Wertheim College fills three prestigious Wertheim-named roles

The Herbert Wertheim College of Business at Florida State University has announced the appointment of two of its own world-renowned scholars and one workforce-focused healthcare executive to prestigious Wertheim-named positions.

The appointees are:

• Michael Holmes, Ph.D., a prolific and heavily cited researcher in the Department of Management, as the Herbert Wertheim Distinguished Professor of Business Administration
• Patricia H. Born, Ph.D., a preeminent expert in healthcare-related economics and finance in the Department of Risk Management/Insurance, Real Estate and Legal Studies, as the Herbert Wertheim Chair in Health Systems Operations
• Patricia Kenney, a Doctor of Nursing Practice, executive and leader in workforce engagement and development at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, as the Herbert Wertheim Chair in Healthcare Workforce Leadership

Michael D. Hartline, dean of the Wertheim College, said the appointments underscore the continued impact of a recent $65 million philanthropic investment from Dr. Herbert Wertheim.  

“These three individuals embody Dr. Wertheim’s drive, energy, innovation, positivity and commitment to further elevating our college, especially our students,” Hartline said. “All three also have expressed a deep sense of humility, gratitude and honor to carry Dr. Wertheim’s name, vision and legacy.”

Hartline noted that two of the appointments, Born’s and Kenney’s, focus on the college’s growing commitment to programs in the business of healthcare, a passion of Dr. Wertheim, who made healthcare innovation a component of his historic investment. Born and Kenney will play key roles in the college’s new Business of Healthcare Initiative, in alignment with FSU Health and Dr. Wertheim’s vision of resolving the business challenges of healthcare.

Here are details about the three appointees:

Michael Holmes

Holmes studies micro foundations of strategy and entrepreneurship, examining how characteristics of groups or individuals affect organizational outcomes. His work in strategy and entrepreneurship mirrors Dr. Wertheim’s passion for innovation and long-term strategic thinking.
Photo by Kallen M. Lunt 

“I’m grateful beyond words,” Holmes said of his appointment. “To be singled out for this award is an honor and a privilege given so many deserving faculty members in this college.”

Hartline touts Holmes, the college’s doctoral coordinator for organizational behavior and human resources (OBHR) and strategy majors, as “a deeply committed educator and mentor” whose “tireless service to the college and to our doctoral students and faculty committees makes him uniquely deserving of this distinguished professorship.”

Holmes, an FSU faculty member since 2010, studies micro foundations of strategy and entrepreneurship, examining how characteristics of groups or individuals affect organizational outcomes. His work in strategy and entrepreneurship mirrors Dr. Wertheim’s passion for innovation and long-term strategic thinking.

Holmes’ work has been published in multiple leading academic journals, including the Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Perspectives, the Academy of Management Review, the Journal of Applied Psychology, the Journal of Management, the Journal of Management Studies, the Strategic Management Journal, Personnel Psychology, and Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes.

His accolades include the Wertheim College’s Charles Hardwick Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award, Core Values Award and Outstanding Research Award for Senior Faculty, all within the past several years.  

Holmes, who simultaneously holds a visiting professorship at South Africa’s University of Johannesburg, called Dr. Wertheim’s remarkable investment and the spectacular new Herbert Wertheim Center for Business Excellence “absolute game-changers” for the college.  

“The financial resources can be used to support research and teaching in new ways,” he said, noting the potential, for example, of an increased ability to purchase datasets, sponsor survey research and fund experimental research. “And for students, new scholarships and other funding, including for professional development, are extremely important because students are our lifeblood. As someone who attended undergraduate on an academic scholarship, that means a lot to me.”

Patricia H. Born

Born is an expert in health economics and managed-care finance and has also studied insurance market structure and performance, professional liability, health insurance and the management of catastrophic risks.
Photo by Kallen M. Lunt 

“I am honored to serve in this new role and especially grateful for the opportunity to work with such an experienced and talented group of faculty,” Born said.  

Hartline hailed Born, a former research economist at the American Medical Association and an FSU faculty member since 2008, as “a high-impact” scholar whose “profound expertise in health economics and managed-care finance aligns with the chair's mission to drive continuous improvement within healthcare systems.”

Hartline said Born also brings “a vital, macro-level perspective” to the Business of Healthcare Initiative, with a deep understanding of how healthcare organizations are structured, financed and regulated.

Born, who for many years served as the doctoral coordinator for Risk Management and Insurance, also has studied insurance market structure and performance, professional liability, health insurance and the management of catastrophic risks.

Her work has appeared in leading academic journals, including the Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, the Journal of Risk and Insurance, the Journal of Regulatory Economics, the Columbia Business Law Review, and the Journal of Business & Economic Statistics.  

Born is a member of the board of the American Risk and Insurance Association and serves on the editorial boards of the Risk Management and Insurance Review and the Journal of Insurance Issues. She also serves as chair of the Florida Panhandle District Long-Term Care Ombudsman Council.  

She has served as a visiting lecturer at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich; Fudan University in Shanghai; and Shanghai Normal University.

Her awards include the Richard P. Nathan Public Policy Fellowship during the 2022-23 academic year, FSU’s Faculty Undergraduate Research Mentor Award in 2023, and the Wertheim College’s Outstanding Senior Scholar in 2024.

Born said she sees the Wertheim chair as an opportunity to build on her foundation in healthcare research “and, together with an outstanding group of colleagues, expand the questions we can ask and the impact our research can have.”

Patricia Kenney

Kenney's more than 38 years of nursing experience includes more than 30 years as a family nurse practitioner, plus development of workshops, training programs and coaching sessions for healthcare workers.

“I’m extremely honored, humbled and grateful for the incredible generosity of Dr. Wertheim,” said Kenney, who has spent 12 years as executive director at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare. “Dr. Wertheim’s vision – his belief in the power of business education and what it can do to transform healthcare – is precisely why I went back to school to get my MBA in Healthcare Administration after being a nurse practitioner for more than 30 years.”

She holds a master’s degree in nursing/family nurse practitioner, in addition to her MBA and Doctor of Nursing Practice/Educational Leadership and Administration.

Hartline saluted Kenney, who served as an adjunct professor in the Wertheim College and the FSU College of Nursing, for her “extensive blend of executive healthcare experience, academic engagement and specialized leadership training.”  

Kenney’s educational and professional backgrounds, including published research on nurse retention, emotional work demands and psychological safety, equip her to “bridge clinical practice with strategic workforce leadership to drive impactful solutions,” Hartline said.

At TMH, Kenney has overseen the Office of Nursing Engagement, which handles nurse recruitment, professional development and academic partnerships, including with FSU’s College of Nursing. She has also led TMH’s Office of Patient Experience, which provides patient advocacy, assistance and support for families and physicians.  

Her more than 38 years of nursing experience includes more than 30 years as a family nurse practitioner. It also includes development and delivery of workshops, training programs and coaching sessions for healthcare staff members and leaders. Before joining TMH, she founded a nursing workforce engagement department as a certified nurse specialist at South Carolina-based Palmetto Health, now Prisma Health.  

Kenney added: “I feel that my background as a nurse, nurse practitioner, clinical educator and hospital administrator, including my work in workforce recruiting and engagement, has led me to this position, and I’m thoroughly excited about this appointment and our work to help transform healthcare.”

-- Pete Reinwald