Board of Trustees

Julie J. Sprengel 

Julie J. Sprengel serves as the President of CommonSpirit Health’s Southern California Division, which encompasses Southern California, Central California, and the Central Coast. With more than 20 years of progressive leadership experience, she currently oversees hospital operations for 18 acute care hospitals and a workforce of 25,000 dedicated individuals serving more than a million people.

Sprengel was initially recruited to the organization in 2016 to serve as Senior Vice President of Operations for the Dignity Health Southern California service area, and took on an expanded executive position in 2019 as CommonSpirit Health’s Southwest Division President.In these roles, she successfully led an innovative and strategic planning process, which led to notable financial turnaround and exceeded budget projections for the Southern California Division.

With a commitment to expand access to care,Sprengel served as CEO and played a pivotal role in opening the Los Angeles Surge Hospital at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. She also led the division in a partnership with AEG, the LA Galaxy, and the city of Carson to vaccinate more than 20,000 community members at the Dignity Health Sports Park.

With the majority of her career working in faith-based, nonprofit health care systems, Sprengel has held a series of executive positions. Prior to rejoining Dignity Health, she served as both Chief Operating Officer and Chief Executive Officer at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California. Before that, she served as director of emergency medical services for several organizations, including Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center in Los Angeles, Centinela Hospital Medical Center in Inglewood, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Sprengel began her career as an emergency room staff nurse and draws upon her combination of clinical and administrative expertise to effectively lead hospital teams with a focus on safety, quality, population health, and patient experience.

She is on the Board of Trustees of both the California Hospital Association and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, a member of the Association of California Nurse Leaders, and has received numerous awards for her leadership in health care, including theSan Fernando Valley Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Award, Modern Healthcare Magazine’s Up & Comer Award, and Ventura Blvd Magazine’s Women in Business Award.

Sprengel holds a nursing degree from the Los Angeles County/Universityof Southern California School of Nursing, and a bachelor’s degree in management and a master’s in business administration from Pepperdine University.