The Healthcare MBA (HCMBA) program at FIU Business continues to distinguish itself nationally, having received the CAHME/Canon Award for Excellence in Sustainability in Healthcare Management Education and Practice in April of 2025. The honor, bestowed by the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME), highlights the program’s innovative and sustainable impact in shaping future healthcare leaders.
Adding to the celebration, a student team from the program including Julie Keegan Strosser, Yazmin Odia and David Horman secured second place at the American College of Healthcare Executives of South Florida Annual Future Healthcare Business Leaders Strategy Competition. Competing against top institutions including the University of Florida and the University of Miami, the FIU team walked away with a $2,000 prize and praise for their strategic proposal addressing real-world healthcare challenges faced by tech-forward virtual care company Included Health.
“The students delivered a compelling, high-level strategy that proposed AI integration, partnerships with Medicare Advantage, and hybrid care models involving retail clinic partnerships,” said Paulo Gomes, assistant professor of information systems and business analytics. “What set them apart was their ability to create a cohesive narrative that aligned the problem with thoughtful, feasible solutions.”
(L to R) Yazmin Odia, David Horman, Julie Keegan Strosser, at the ACHE of South Florida Annual Healthcare Business Leaders Strategy Competition. (Photo courtesy ACHE of South Florida)
FIU’s participation in this competition spans nearly a decade, with past teams achieving top finishes. According to Gomes, such experiential learning initiatives are key to student success. “These competitions expose students to real strategic problems, build their storytelling and analytical skills, and place them in front of C-suite executives. It’s invaluable.”
Equally impressive is the program’s capstone project, the Team Consulting Presentations, conducted with Baptist Health South Florida and Cleveland Clinic Florida. As part of the curriculum, students collaborate on faculty-published healthcare case studies, develop policy analysis reports and present their recommendations directly to healthcare leaders.
Closing out this semester, teams in the capstone course presented to Cleveland Clinic Florida executives. Under the guidance of clinical professor Sue Ganske, one team composed of students Dennis Par, Yesenia Brito and Jaime Bou Garcia proposed an AI-driven solution to improve HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) scores by enhancing medication communication through integrated bedside and post-discharge technologies.
(L to R) Jaime Bou Garcia, Yesenia Brito, Dennis Par at the Spring 2025 commencement.
“I think that this really was a culmination of everything that we've learned throughout the program and for this project, specifically, we had to view it through the lens of what would be possible administration,” said Par.
The Cleveland Clinic Florida’s feedback was glowing:
“I have to tell you that I was very impressed by this team. They demonstrated a thorough understanding of the problem at hand and the products they offered as solutions… They spoke eloquently, with almost no fillers and displayed confidence throughout their presentation,” said an anonymous reviewer with the Cleveland Clinic Florida.
This milestone caps a dynamic year for the HCMBA program, which not only champions academic excellence but also hands-on learning and social responsibility. Through advanced coursework, Lean Six Sigma certifications, and direct interaction with healthcare organizations, FIU HCMBA students are being groomed to lead with purpose.
Behind much of this success is the program’s longtime director, Miriam Weismann, whose leadership has shaped a curriculum that is both academically rigorous and socially impactful.
“We want our students to be changemakers,” said Ganske. “And from what we’re seeing—they are.”