Carlie Houchen, director of Health Systems for Sunflower Foundation, recently began serving on the Governor’s Council on Wellness, which advises the governor, the secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and others on ways to improve the health of Kansans.
The council’s work aligns with the Healthy Kansas 2030 State Health Improvement Plan by promoting and supporting the importance of physical activity, good nutrition and tobacco-use prevention.
Appointed by the governor, council members serve three-year terms. Houchen’s appointment, which began Jan. 1, ensures that the foundation will continue having representation on the council. Sunflower President and CEO Brandon Skidmore finished his term on the council in December.
Houchen oversees the foundation’s work in behavioral health, integrated care, public health, and healthcare access and helps coordinate the foundation’s initiatives in Food is Medicine and nonprofit capacity building.
Prior to joining the foundation, Houchen held a leadership role in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas’ Pathways to a Healthy Kansas initiative, where she worked to address social determinants of health in Kansas communities. She previously served as a senior analyst for the Kansas Health Institute, where she worked on population health issues and led process facilitation work to support effective state policymaking. Houchen also has led working groups of the Special Committee on Mental Health Modernization and Reform (2020) and the Governor’s Substance Use Disorder Task Force (2018).
Houchen, of Roeland Park, earned a Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition from Kansas State University and a Master of Public Health from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.