Health Care Symposium

Nicole is the Executive Director of the Quad City Health Initiative (QCHI) where she develops and facilitates cross-sector collaborative partnerships to create a healthier community in eastern Iowa and western Illinois. Formerly, she was a health care consultant. Her expertise includes strategic planning, community health assessments, and project leadership. Nicole holds a M.B.A. in Health Care Management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA and an A.B. with majors in Biology and Government from Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH. She currently resides in Bettendorf, IA with her husband and son and enjoys traveling and reading.

Dr. Rich Whitaker began his career in the Quad Cities in 1994 as a doctoral intern at the historic Marriage and Family Counseling Service in Rock Island, Illinois as part of his Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy from Brigham Young University. Since that pivotal year, Dr. Whitaker has pursued a career in community mental health, providing services, supervision, and executive administration at community mental health centers in Grand Island, Nebraska (9 years as COO) and Jasper, Indiana (12 years as CFO). Since January 2017, Rich has served as the CEO of Vera French Community Mental Health Center in Davenport, Iowa.

In addition to serving as a Director of Region 7 on the Board of the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, Dr. Whitaker also serves as a Government Relations Committee member for the Iowa Association of Community Providers, as a Board member of Churches United in the Quad Cities, and as a member of the Eastern Iowa MHDS Regional Advisory Committee.

Haley DeGreve is a Communications Manager at John Deere and 2020 graduate of Augustana College, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Communication Studies. Throughout her education, she was inspired to start a mental health awareness and suicide prevention non-profit called The Gray Matters Collective in 2018. Since she began mental health advocacy, she’s spoken at many local schools, events, and workplaces to advocate against mental health stigma and educate crisis intervention. In the past two years alone, she has spoken to over 50,000 people globally on the topic. Most importantly, she continues to fight each day to prevent suicide and hopes to change the world, one person at a time.

Carl Behne, FACHE, serves as President and Chief Strategy Officer at Hy-Vee Health | Exemplar Care, where he leads efforts to tackle healthcare challenges and drive innovative solutions. With over 15 years of executive healthcare experience, including roles as CEO at Burgess Health Center and Greene County Medical Center, Carl has been instrumental in reshaping healthcare delivery, especially in rural settings. In 2023, Exemplar Care expanded its impact by acquiring Aplos Health Plans, aiming to provide cost-effective, personalized healthcare options to employers and employees in Iowa. Carl’s leadership has earned him numerous accolades, including the Iowa Hospital Association’s Young Executive of the Year (2013) and the IHA Grassroots Advocacy Award. He is deeply committed to improving healthcare access, transparency, and patient experience.