ARH Celebrates September Manager Mentor Program Graduates

NEWS RELEASE - October 8, 2026

ARH Celebrates September Manager Mentor Program Graduates

Lexington, KY - Appalachian Regional Healthcare (ARH) is proud to recognize five employees who successfully completed the Manager Mentor Program in September, marking an important milestone in their leadership development journeys.

The Manager Mentor Program was designed to support employees transitioning from peer roles into managerial positions through structured mentorship, professional guidance, and meaningful relationship-building. By connecting developing leaders with experienced mentors, the program helps strengthen leadership skills, build confidence, enhance performance, and support continued organizational and cultural growth throughout ARH. All Manager Mentor Program training is provided through the ARH Institute as part of its commitment to developing and empowering leaders across the organization.

ARH congratulates the September Manager Mentor Program graduates and recognizes their mentors:

• Sarah Barnett - Mentor: Brittany Maggard
• Betsy Jarnecke - Mentor: Rocco Massey
• Bessie Barnett - Mentor: ARH Institute Team
• Antony "Scottie" Adkins - Mentor: Chris Moller
• Manuel Vanderpool - Mentor: Susan Stewart

For ARH mentor Brittany Maggard, the program represents much more than professional development. It provides an opportunity to encourage emerging leaders while strengthening the relationships that make ARH a place where employees can grow and succeed.

"Being a mentor has been so much more than simply sharing knowledge or experience. It has been about building a relationship, being someone to lean on, celebrating the wins, and offering encouragement through the challenges," said Maggard. "I've learned that sometimes the greatest impact we can have is simply believing in someone before they fully believe in themselves."

As a third-generation ARH employee with a fourth generation continuing her family's connection to the organization, Maggard also views mentorship as an opportunity to carry forward ARH's longstanding commitment to its employees and the communities it serves.

"This opportunity has been very heartfelt to me because I have the privilege of giving back to the organization and the profession that has shaped me," Maggard shared. "Mentorship represents more than sharing knowledge-it is about carrying forward a legacy of caring, leadership, and commitment to the people and communities we serve."

Through programs like Manager Mentor, the ARH Institute continues to invest in ARH's greatest strength-its people-by creating opportunities for employees to develop their leadership abilities, build meaningful professional connections, and confidently take the next steps in their careers.

ARH congratulates September's graduates and extends its appreciation to the mentors who dedicate their time, experience, and encouragement to developing the next generation of ARH leaders.

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About Appalachian Regional Healthcare (ARH)
Appalachian Regional Healthcare (ARH) traces its roots back to 1955, when the United Mine Workers of America opened the Miners Memorial Hospital system - a network of 10 hospitals dedicated to providing care throughout the coalfields of eastern Kentucky and southern West Virginia. Seventy years later, ARH has grown into a 14-hospital not-for-profit health system that serves more than 500,000 residents of central Appalachia each year. ARH hospitals in Barbourville, Harlan, Hazard, Hyden, Martin, McDowell, Middlesboro, Paintsville, Prestonsburg, West Liberty, Whitesburg, and South Williamson in Kentucky, and Beckley and Hinton in West Virginia, ensure that residents, tucked away in even the most remote areas, can access the highest quality of care without traveling hours from home. ARH's hospitals, clinics, multi-specialty physician practices, home health agencies, home medical equipment stores, retail pharmacies, and medical spas boast more than 6,700 employees with a network of more than 1,300 providers, making it the single largest employer in southeastern Kentucky and the third-largest private employer in southern West Virginia.