E. Frank Ellis, M.P.H.

Frank Ellis served as Founder, Chairman and CEO of Swope Health Services. Originally named Model Cities Health Corporation, Swope Health Services opened in 1969 in the basement of Metropolitan Baptist Church in Kansas City. He and his dedicated board saw the need to provide primary health services to those who fell through the cracks of the health care system – the working poor.

That first year, with a budget of $100,000 and 20 employees, 2000 patients were served. As a true nonprofit entrepreneur, Mr. Ellis grew the organization and founded FirstGuard Health Plan in 1996. He grew the company after an initial $5 million in raised equity to over $250 million in revenue and later sold it to Centene Corporation for $123 million in 2004.

During his forty-two years as head of Swope Community Enterprises, Mr. Ellis has received local and national recognition for his impact as a nonprofit entrepreneur—effectively applying business principles and practices to address the total health and economic well-being of the indigent and working poor. He served as the Chairman of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, where he was leading the efforts on the Chamber’s Big 5 Ideas to create a better business climate, create jobs, and to make Kansas City the most entrepreneurial city in the world. He also sits on the boards of the Heart of America Boy Scouts, United Missouri Bank, the University of Missouri-Kansas City Trustees, and the Midwest Research Institute Board of Trustees.

He graduated from the University of Michigan with a Master of Science degree in Public Health. He has postgraduate work at Harvard University School of Business and UMKC’s Henry Block School of Business and Public Administration. He is happily married to Dr. Janice S. Ellis, Ph.D., and they have three children and four grand kids.

Today Frank serves as a Senior Search Advisor to The Moran Company to provide specialized onboarding services as needed for our clients upon conclusion of our nonprofit executive searches. His efforts ensure a smooth transition for the new leader while promoting retention in the role. In addition to his work with our firm, Frank is the Managing Principal of PL Strategies, LLC, an executive coaching, management, consulting and investment services company that provides target value added services across multiple industries advising nonprofits and private sector clients.