Alexandra Willis earns national recognition at AUPHA annual conference

Alexandra Willis, MPH, in collaboration with Ginger Raya, EdD, MHA, MPA, presented the award-winning poster “Collaborative Excellence: Transforming Healthcare Education with Case Competitions” at the 2025 AUPHA Annual Conference, held June 16–19. Their submission earned 2nd Place in the Best Poster competition, a notable achievement among graduate health administration scholars.

The poster explores a ten-year analysis of the George McMillan Fleming Center Healthcare Capstone Case Competition at UTHealth Houston, highlighting its impact as a high-impact, experiential learning model for future healthcare leaders. The study combined quantitative trends and qualitative reflections to examine how faculty mentorship, emotional resilience, and communication skills contribute to student success.

Key findings showed that students with less formal professional experience often outperformed more seasoned peers—pointing to innovation, adaptability, and storytelling as valued traits. The analysis also revealed increasing institutional investment and evolving case topics that reflect real-world healthcare challenges such as behavioral health and access to care.

Willis expressed heartfelt gratitude to the UTHealth community and especially to Dr. Raya, calling her mentorship “one of the greatest blessings of my career.” Their work advocates for the integration of competitive capstone experiences as curriculum alternatives to traditional thesis projects.