Leadership

Hugh Tilson, JD, MPH, is the executive director of the NC AHEC Program and an associate dean of the UNC School of Medicine.

As program director, Mr. Tilson leads the NC AHEC network of nine regional North Carolina Area Health Education Centers, advancing the program’s mission to provide and support educational activities and services with a focus on primary care in rural communities and those with less access to resources. This work aims to recruit, train, and retain the workforce needed to create a healthy North Carolina and supports the NC AHEC vision of ensuring every North Carolinian is healthy and supported by an appropriate and well-trained health workforce that reflects the communities it serves.

Before joining NC AHEC, Mr. Tilson led his own consulting company, Tilson Solutions, leveraging more than 20 years of experience at the NC Hospital Association to provide strategic planning, public affairs, and communications consulting services to North Carolina companies.

Mr. Tilson earned his undergraduate and law degrees from UNC Chapel Hill and a Master of Public Health from Harvard University.