American Heart Association names Qiana Cressman executive director, Tampa Bay
Cressman to bring communications and healthcare experience to increase community heart and brain health awareness throughout Tampa Bay
TAMPA BAY, Fla. — The American Heart Association, the world’s leading nonprofit committed to advancing heart and brain health for all, is pleased to announce that Qiana Cressman has been named executive director in Tampa Bay. In this role, Cressman will lead a staff of 12 who are responsible for initiatives such as advocating for health policies and laws, improving access to food and healthcare, promoting the Association‘s funded research, and increasing awareness of heart disease and stroke. Additionally, she will oversee revenue, field operations, board of director development, volunteer recruitment and fundraising and community engagement initiatives to reduce health disparities.
This new role aligns with Cressman’s personal mission to increase community awareness of heart and brain health by convening and working alongside community groups to reduce health disparities in every Tampa Bay zip code through initiatives that address issues such as healthy food access, hypertension, maternal health and tobacco use.
“I consider it my mission to work to make healthcare accessible, affordable, and inclusive for all and at the same time, to give back to our communities through corporate social responsibility and philanthropy. For it is philanthropy that lies at the heart of the best of humanity,” said Cressman.
Cressman has more than two decades of communications, fundraising and leadership experience. She most recently served as vice president of community impact with the American Heart Association, Tampa Bay. In that role, she provided strategic direction, leadership, management, and technical expertise for the Tampa Bay community impact staff and worked to provide comprehensive, strategic, and proactive support for programs, initiatives and fundraising development efforts.
“Bringing over 20 years of working within the non-profit sector, including more than a decade of leading small and large teams, Qiana’s passion for healthcare philanthropy was born early in her career when she served as a clinical scientist and observed firsthand the impact that funding and public policy can create for those who need it most,” said Beth Mourelatos, American Heart Association senior vice president, Southeast region.
Prior to her roles with the American Heart Association, Cressman served as executive director of donor operations at Miller-Keystone Blood Center in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania where she was recognized as a YMCA Woman of the Year, one of the Greater Lehigh Valley Business Power 20, and a Woman of Influence by Lehigh Valley Business. Additionally, she served as a national spokesperson for the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America and a board member for MTS Sickle Cell Foundation. Cressman also founded Emerge Enterprise Media, a multimedia platform promoting women in leadership. She currently serves on the board of directors for the St. Petersburg Free Clinic, Dress for Success Tampa Bay, and as an associate director of First Commonwealth Federal Credit Union.
For more information about the American Heart Association, Tampa Bay, or how to get involved, please email tampabay@heart.org.
