Jordan Powell is the President & CEO of the Illinois Primary Health Care Association (IPHCA) and the fourth CEO in the organization’s 37-year history. 

Jordan has been with IPHCA since 2013 and previously served as IPHCA’s Senior Vice President of Public Policy and Governmental Affairs where he secured more than $14 billion in state and federal funding.  Most recently, he worked with the Illinois Governor and legislature to pass legislation that includes $50 million in capital funding for IPHCA’s members. And in Chicago, Jordan worked in 2019 with the City of Chicago to include up to $10 million in new funding for community health centers to expand the city’s mental health capacity.

A healthcare strategist and change leader with the personal and professional goal of improving health outcomes and the lives of individuals and communities, Powell has dedicated his career to public service after being raised in a low-income household by a single mother. Now, his role as CEO positions him to carry out strategic initiatives that include increasing the public’s awareness of the value and impact of community health centers and positioning IPHCA as the state’s leading health care trade association.

Jordan has been locally and nationally recognized for his work, and currently serves as the Co-Chair of the National Association of Community Health Centers’ Health Policy Committee. Prior to joining IPHCA, he served as Deputy Director of Government Relations at the Illinois Press Association and worked as a Legislative Liaison for the State of Illinois. Jordan began his career as a James H. Dunn Fellow after being selected for the prestigious fellowship within the Illinois Governor’s Office.

Jordan is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science while he was also a member of the Fighting Irish track team. In addition, he holds an MBA from the nationally ranked Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis.

Amber Kirchhoff
Director of State Public Policy + Governmental Affairs
akirchhoff@iphca.org

As the Director of State Public Policy and Governmental Affairs, Amber provides direct support on state and federal policy priorities, fostering relationships with member agencies, elected officials, government decision makers, and other stakeholders. 

Amber represents IPHCA in policy advisory meetings to advance the priorities of Federally Qualified Health Centers, and helps draft and develop support for Association initiatives. 

Ashley assists IPHCA Organizational and Associate members with their workforce needs, including recruitment and retention. She maintains a database of job seeking candidates, organizes and promotes health center vacancies, places print and web advertisements for CHC vacancies and attends job fairs to promote member health centers. Ashley develops relationships with primary care residency programs and medical and dental training programs in an effort to reach students and residents. She serves as a National Health Services Corps Ambassador, providing assistance to health centers and clinicians in the areas of scholarship and loan repayment programs. Ashley develops tools and shares resources with members regarding hiring practices, employee retention, visa sponsorship, credentialing and contracting. Ashley also leads the IPHCA Recruitment & Workforce Development Network and staffs the Clinical Support Committee, Medical Director’s Roundtable and Behavioral Health Discussion Group.

Paula is responsible for coordinating the Association’s efforts surrounding the Health Insurance Marketplace, with a strong focus on Outreach and Enrollment training and technical assistance. She also provides strategic direction to the Association’s work in assisting members with Marketplace and other insurance contracting. She is a graduate from Illinois State University in Community Health, with over 16 years of public health experience.

Cristina is responsible for coordinating the implementation of grant funded programs. This involves facilitating partnerships between FQHCs and local health departments to improve the quality of care in chronic disease management. She assesses the capabilities of the electronic health record systems, provides technical assistance and develops resource guides on hypertension and diabetes prevention and control to members. Cristina  participates in the national oral health network in activities that integrate and strengthen oral health in primary care for safety net providers. Activities include providing resources, organizing webinars and inter-professional trainings. She provides staffing support for the Dental Directors Network and submits resources for the Dental Directors Monthly Digest. Cristina provides periodic reports to funding agencies, IPHCA’s Clinical Support Committee and the Clinician Professional Staff section. 

Megan serves as the Public Health Initiatives Manager, working on the IDPH Chronic Disease grant, focusing specifically on diabetes and hypertension as well as supporting the PCA grant chronic disease activities. Megan has experience working on community projects, regional needs assessments, educational outreach and much more. Megan also has a background as a Health Educator/Health Literacy Coordinator and served for a year as an AmeriCorps Member.

Naila is responsible for coordinating the implementation of grant funded programs. Specifically, she collaborates with Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) on grant funded activities to improve immunization coverage levels. This involves providing and developing resources, organizing webinars, and facilitating technical assistance around improving immunization rates at health centers. In addition, she supports the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)’s Primary Care Association (PCA) grant related activities. These include developing resources and organizing trainings/technical assistance for FQHCs for quality improvement. Naila assists in developing a resource around the Uniform Data System (UDS) clinical indicators that involves literature review and identifying evidence-based practices. She also participates in key informant interviews with health centers to highlight and share promising practices. Naila provides staff support for the Clinical Support Committee. 

Naila Quraishi, MPH, PCMH CCE
Clinical Quality Improvement Manager
(312) 692-3007
nquraishi@iphca.org

Grecia serves as the Health Information Technology (HIT) Project Manager. She leads and supports health IT projects for participating health centers in the Health Center Control Network (HCCN), Partnership for Technology-Enabled Transformation in Community Health (P-Tech) Network. She is responsible for the development and execution of trainings, support, and technical assistance related to health information technology.

Staci is responsible for coordinating the implementation of grant funded programs. She primarily works with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)’s Primary Care Association grant specifically focused on providing technical assistance and organizing trainings on behavioral health and substance use disorders for FQHCs In addition to providing technical assistance on the Primary Care Association grant, Staci assists IPHCA members in their recruitment efforts by maintaining a database of job seeking candidates and FQHC job opportunities and connecting with health professions schools to promote careers in FQHCs.  She also provides staff support for the Clinical Support Committee.

 Staci Ashmore, MA
Grants Program Coordinator
sashmore@iphca.org
(217) 541-7420

Rachael is responsible for the strategic development and implementation of internal and external communications that promote awareness, education and public relations efforts within the Association. Rachael plays a key role in promoting IPHCA by directing, creating and editing informative content, press releases, social media, and other media opportunities. Rachael also oversees the Administrative Services Department. 

Nicole oversees all aspects of event planning and management for IPHCA. This includes training facility rentals, onsite trainings, and webinars. Nicole works with staff to develop, coordinate and implement IPHCA training and events, and ensure that all identified and requested training needs align with the orgnization's goals. Nicole also assists in the Administrative Services Department with data entry, membership dues, and maintaining membership files. She provides direct support for various IPHCA Committees including CHC Finance & Operations, Clinical Support, Community Development, and Insurance.

Jozy supports the senior leadership team with administrative duties and serves as the Executive Assistant to the President & CEO. Jozy also assists with on-site training, special events and committee meetings.

Maria Kapantaidaki was born in Germany and raised in Greece where she obtained her degree in accounting. She has 11 years of experience in management and over 12 years of experience in accounting where she has served in different positions. Working as a bookkeeper and accounting specialist in Greece, she managed all aspects of accounts payable, accounts receivable, and payroll. She has also worked as a restaurant manager where she handled the finances, payroll, operating expenses, food sales, and inventory.

From 2011 to 2019, she worked as an accounts receivable clerk for an association management company in Springfield, Illinois. She was responsible for managing the accounts of seven different entities, both for-profit and not-for-profit.

Maria currently works for IPHCA's Accounting Department as an accounting specialist, performing accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll and other accounting functions and procedures.