Susan Halsey Executive Leadership Award

PRESENTED BY
The Susan Halsey Executive Leadership Award is a recognition program presented by the Fort Worth Chamber and sponsored by Jackson Walker to honor leadership excellence in business in the Fort Worth Metro area. It recognizes presidents, principals or chief executive officers that devote time and energy to strengthen and transform the organization they lead. This includes specific situations or initiatives where the recipient’s insight, discernment and ability to lead and inspire have guided their organization to a new level of growth, achievement or recognition.

QUALIFICATIONS

The nominee’s employer must be a current member of the Fort Worth Chamber and be located within the Fort Worth metro area. Fill out a Nomination Form here describing the nominee’s qualifications and how the individual uses their best efforts to: accelerate advancement and innovation, inspire others and increase community involvement. 

Timeline

February 24, 2023 – Deadline for Nomination Forms
February 27, 2023 – Winner Selected
March 30, 2023 – Award recipient honored at Annual Meeting

Submit Your Nomination

Recipients

2024 Award Recipient
Rosa Navejar
President of The Rios Group, Inc.,
Rosa is currently President of The Rios Group, Inc., a civil engineering firm headquartered in Fort Worth that provides Subsurface Utility Engineering and Utility Coordination services. She manages staffing, outreach for business development, branding, and marketing, as well as contract implementation and timeline of projects.

Rosa Navejar is a versatile and active member of the Fort Worth business community who has worked to support M/WBE programs and companies for over 30 years. Rosa has a deep personal knowledge of the Fort Worth community, having lived there since birth and served as the first woman President/CEO of the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (FWHCC). Prior to her work at the Chamber, Rosa worked in banking for 25 years, starting with First of Fort Worth Bank and ending at Bank of America.

Currently, Rosa is serving on the board of the Health Science Center Foundation. She is also a Board Member of The United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, North Texas LEAD, Texas Wesleyan University, The North Texas Commission’s Executive Committee, and serves on the board of advisors for the UTA College of Engineering.

Rosa served as the past Chair of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, ACEC Tarrant County, John Roach Executive Roundtable, Safe City Commission, and Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County. She also formerly served as a board member for The Rotary Club of Fort Worth, An Executive Committee member for the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), the Co-chair for the City of Fort Worth Race and Culture Committee, an appointed member of the National Freight Advisory Committee by Secretary Ray LaHood, and Vice Chair of Trinity Metro, formerly the Fort Worth Transportation Authority.

Throughout her Career, Rosa has received accolades for her community involvement. She received the Honorary Alumnus Award from Texas Wesleyan University (2023), Texas Can Academy Honoree (2022), NCTRCA John P Kelly Lifetime Achievement Award (2022), awarded the Madrina Recognition Award by the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas (2022), a BOLD Woman Honoree by Girls Inc. of Tarrant County (2020), recognized by the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (2018), and by Larry Anfin, with the John V. McMillan Hall of Fame Award (2018), she also was awarded The Rosa Parks Diversity Leadership Award by the Women’s Transportation Seminar (2018). Additional awards Rosa has received include the Minority Leader in Business by the Fort Worth Business Press (2016), and induction into the Fort Worth Business Press’ Entrepreneur Hall of Fame for her work and civic involvement in the community (2016).
2023 Award Recipient
Dan Berce
President and Chief Executive Officer of GM Financial
Dan Berce serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of GM Financial. He has been active in many civic and philanthropic organizations, including serving as the past President of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce and past Chairman of Cook Children's Health Care System. Berce is a Certified Public Accountant, a graduate of Regis University in Denver, and a Wisconsin native.
2022 Award Recipient
John Avila
Owner and Chairman of Byrne Construction Services
John Avila, Jr. is the Owner, Chairman of Fort Worth based Thos. S. Byrne, Ltd., the largest commercial construction services company in Tarrant County and the largest minority owned commercial construction company in the State of Texas. His 40 years of experience as a senior-level executive for several of the nation’s top commercial construction firms have contributed to Byrne’s reputation as one of the most highly regarded contractors in the industry.
2021 Award Recipient
Barclay Berdan
CEO of Texas Health Resources
Berdan was named CEO of Texas Health in September of 2014, after serving as senior executive vice president and chief operating officer the previous two years. He is one of the longest serving CEOs of a major health care system in North Texas and is a nationally recognized and respected professional in the industry.
2020 Award Recipient
Paul Andrews
Founder and CEO of TTI, Inc.
Paul Andrews is founder and CEO of TTI, Inc., a globally recognized electronics distribution company that he founded nearly 50 years ago. As a self-made business man, Andrews leveraged his collective know-how and entrepreneur spirit to turn his dream into a reality.
2019 Award Recipient
Michael Williams
President of UNT Health Science Center
Dr. Michael Williams, President of UNT Health Science Center since 2013, is a Fort Worth native, a 1981 graduate of UNTHSC and the first alumnus to lead the 49-year old institution. He practiced anesthesiology and critical care medicine in Dallas and Fredericksburg, Texas, for more than 20 years.
2018 Award Recipient
Rusty Reid
Chairman & President of Higginbotham & Associates
Rusty was named president and CEO of Higginbotham in 1989 at the age of 25. At that time, he implemented the firm’s defining “single source” service model whereby customers can obtain all their insurance and financial services under one roof. He also had the foresight to establish Higginbotham’s employee ownership structure, aligning all employees’ interests in the success of the firm.
2017 Award Recipient
Rick Merrill
President & CEO of Cook Children’s Health Care System
As president and CEO of Cook Children’s Health Care System for the past eight years, Rick Merrill led the organization at a time of unprecedented growth; including the historic expansion of Cook Children’s Medical Center which nearly doubled the size of the campus to respond to the growing need for its services.
2016 Award Recipient
Lillie Biggins
President of Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital
Lillie Biggins became hospital’s first female president in 2012. In her years at Texas Health Fort Worth, Lillie has improved hospital operations and played a vital role in enhancing performance in the areas of strategic planning, program development, cost effectiveness, clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction.
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