Marcus Galloway

Health care award – Marcus Galloway, center, receives the 2015 Healthcare Management Award from, at left, Bart Millstead, vice president/administrator of Memorial Hospital of Carbondale. Peter Mykytyn, right, is chair of the management department in the College of Business at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.  (Photo by Russell Bailey)

April 27, 2015

Health care organization honors student

by Christi Mathis

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Marcus Galloway, a senior business management major specializing in health care at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, recently received an award from a professional health care organization in recognition of his academic excellence, volunteer activities and leadership. 

Galloway, of Charleston, is the recipient of the 2015 Healthcare Organization Management Award from the MidAmerica Health Executives Forum, a local branch of the American College of Healthcare Executives. The local organization represents more than 200 health care professionals with leadership roles in organizations including hospitals, health care systems and other health-care related businesses in central and Southern Illinois. 

Galloway, the son of Richard and Kimberly Galloway of Wellington, plans to go on to graduate school and complete his master of public administration degree after graduating in May with his bachelor’s degree. His future plans include joining U.S. Navy Medical Corps and he said he is looking forward to a career in the community health field. 

“I really enjoy helping other people and want them to do well. I’ve had help along the way and I want to help others,” Galloway said. 

Galloway said the honor, which includes a certificate and monetary award, was a surprise to him and he’s “extremely happy” about it. 

Bart Millstead, vice president/administrator of Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, along with College of Business officials, presented the award to Galloway earlier this month. 

Peter Mykytyn, chair of the college’s management department, said Galloway is a deserving recipient for a number of reasons. He said Galloway has done well in SIU’s health care management courses, has a very good overall GPA and is involved with health care organizations outside of SIU as well. 

Galloway’s GPA is 3.28 and he has also been active in campus activities as well as working for the SIU Foundation. Galloway volunteered more than 100 hours with the Carle Foundation, headquartered in Champaign-Urbana, in the summer of 2014. He helped the organization edit and restructure its quarterly report so that new data could much more quickly be shown on reporting charts, saving employees a lot of time. In addition, he studied with the quality director, observing interviews and a leadership program. 

During the 2014 spring break, he also worked with and shadowed on a volunteer basis the area manager of Southern Illinois Health Foundation (SIHF), based in Effingham. The organization helps people at or below the poverty line gain access to medical care. 

Mykytyn said SIU’s partnership with SIH and the MidAmerica Health Executives Forum is valuable as it “provides our students with access to health care management personnel and executives, serving as a sort of networking perspective for them. It alerts the health care industry in our area that there are opportunities available to them as employers to consider offering internships and externships to our students as well as employment opportunities after students graduate. It’s a win/win for all.”