By Dan Margolies

Greg Graves, chairman and chief executive officer of the Kansas City, Mo.-based engineering and architecture firm Burns and McDonnell, has been elected the new chairman of the University of Kansas Hospital Authority Board.

Graves, who was vice chairman of the authority board and leads the hospital’s fundraising drive for its new patient tower, succeeds Bob Honse, the former president of Farmland Industries.

The hospital authority is the public overseer of KU Hospital and its operations. “Greg Graves brings a national and local track record for leadership in business and civic affairs,” Bob Page, president and CEO of the hospital, said in a statement.

“He will help us further our success in the metropolitan area and across the country.” David Dillon, former CEO of the Kroger supermarket chain, was elected vice chairman of the authority board.

Dan Margolies is a reporter for Heartland Health Monitor, a news collaboration focusing on health issues and their impact in Missouri and Kansas.