Murfreesboro, TN - Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford has named Ashley Holloway, Dr. Richard Michaelson, and Mark Polk to the hospital’s board of directors. They begin their terms of service alongside the current board members this coming Monday, July 1, 2024.
Ashley Holloway, a Murfreesboro native and Riverdale High School graduate, holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Samford University. Committed to community service, she is active with The Charity Circle of Murfreesboro, Rutherford CABLE, and the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce. Holloway has served as President of the Junior League of Murfreesboro and dedicated nine years to the Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Foundation, holding key roles including secretary and trustee committee member. In 2016, she founded Holloway Accounting Services and is involved in professional organizations such as the Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants, the American Institute of CPAs, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
Dr. Rick Michaelson has been integral to Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford since 1988, starting as Director of Laboratories. He earned his medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina College of Medicine and completed residencies at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Wake Forest University School of Medicine. Dr. Michaelson is board-certified by the American Board of Pathology. He has held numerous leadership roles, including Chief of Staff and Chairman of the Physician Excellence Committee. Currently, he serves as co-president of the Anatomic & Clinical Laboratory Associates. In 2022, he received the Clinical Excellence Award, highlighting his dedication to patient care and the medical staff.
Mark Polk, an attorney at White & Polk, P.C., is also a Murfreesboro native and graduate of Oakland High School, Middle Tennessee State University, and the University of Tennessee School of Law. Polk is deeply involved in community service, serving as a deacon and Sunday school teacher at Cason Lane Church of Christ. He engages with organizations such as the Rutherford County Sportsman’s Club and Blue Raider Athletic Association. Polk has supported Project Help and organized fundraisers benefiting Rutherford County. His leadership includes a nine-year tenure on the Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford Foundation board, where he served as a board member and past president. “It is critically important that we look for board members from our community who have a dedication to the mission of Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford,” said Gordon B. Ferguson, president and CEO of Ascension Saint Thomas Rutherford. “These three have so much talent and experience in our community, we are confident they will bring their knowledge to our board of directors
and help us continue great success in community healthcare in Rutherford County.”
Ascension Saint Thomas is a leading health care system with a 125-year history of providing care to the community, and is the only faith-based, non profit health system in Middle Tennessee. Today, the health system offers a highly comprehensive system of care, with more than 250 sites of care that cover a 45-county area in Tennessee consisting of 16 hospitals and a network of affiliated joint ventures, medical practices, clinics and specialty facilities. Across the state, Ascension Saint Thomas and its partner organizations employ more than 10,700 dedicated associates who care for millions of patients each year.
Ascension Saint Thomas is part of Ascension, one of the nation’s largest faith-based healthcare organizations committed to delivering compassionate, personalized care to all, with special attention to persons living in poverty and those most vulnerable. Ascension includes approximately 134,000
associates, 35,000 affiliated providers and 140 hospitals, serving communities in 19 states and the District of Columbia. Visit www.ascension.org.
