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Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah has awarded three senior administrative staff members the inaugural Leadership Distinction Award. Established in 2025, this award honors superior achievements and ongoing contributions by director-level staff administrative leaders at our institution who have made a lasting impact on Huntsman Cancer Institute’s mission and vision.
Each of this year’s awardees were chosen by Huntsman Cancer Institute’s CEO Cabinet based on the individual’s outstanding administrative accomplishments and attributes that uniquely advance our vision of passionate individuals and teams delivering a cancer-free frontier through scientific discovery and human touch.
Administrative staff members Max Loveless, Alyson Harding, and Kat Stevens were recognized during an annual awards dinner held during Huntsman Cancer Institute’s Founders’ Week, which honors the history, people, and spirit that make the institute so special.
Max Loveless, MBA
Loveless serves as senior administrative director, overseeing all administrative functions related to research at Huntsman Cancer Institute—including a dozen departments.
Research is at the heart of Huntsman’s mission to understand cancer from its beginning and to use that knowledge in the creation and improvement of cancer treatments. Loveless helps make that possible by managing the systems, staffing, and resources that researchers rely on every day. From supporting the team who submits and maintains grants to the facility support for Huntsman Cancer Institute’s buildings, he enables scientists to focus on discovery and innovation.
Kevin Cheney, MBA, CPA, executive director of finance and administration at Huntsman Cancer Institute, describes Loveless as a “Huntsman Cancer Institute success story.”
“After starting as a mailroom clerk in 2005, Max has grown to be one of our most impactful and influential leaders. He is a champion of Huntsman Cancer Institute, building a network of collaborators across the institute, the university, and Cancer Centers nationwide,” Cheney says. “He goes the extra mile with every responsibility, executing ideas and initiatives with a deep level of thoughtfulness. Max leads with a remarkable combination of dedication, intelligence, grace, humor, objectivity, and heart. A most worthy recipient of the inaugural Huntsman Cancer Institute Leadership Distinction Award.”
Loveless, who has worked in various research administration roles at Huntsman Cancer Institute over the past two decades, says he is honored to receive the award and to be part of an organization that is making a significant impact in cancer research.
“I hope to spend my entire career at Huntsman Cancer Institute. We have visionary leaders who continually inspire me to keep moving forward,” Loveless says. “Our teams are dedicated to the cause. At the end of my career, I know that we will all be able to look back at our collective efforts as objectively improving the world.”
Alyson Harding, MS, ML
Harding is the first person to hold the title of director of support services at Huntsman Cancer Institute, with over a decade of service in the role.
Harding first started working at the hospital in 2008 as the quality manager for the blood and marrow transplant outpatient clinic. From there, she worked in risk management for СAPP. Then, she took on the title of director of support services, where she oversees all non-clinical services—from facilities management and engineering to food services—ensuring the hospital runs smoothly, safely, and efficiently.
Don Milligan, MBA, Huntsman Cancer Institute Hospital executive director, says Harding’s exceptional leadership directly affects the quality of patient care.
“Alyson is an effective and valued leader. She skillfully leads a large and important segment of the cancer hospital that is referred to as support services. These services are foundationally important in supporting every aspect of patient care,” Milligan says. “Additionally, effective leadership of support services ensures we have a safe, secure, and clean environment for patients, staff and providers. I’m thrilled that Alyson has received the Huntsman Cancer Institute Leadership Distinction Award.”
Harding says she is honored by the recognition and grateful for the staff members she works with every day.
“We couldn’t run a hospital without the support team—to clean the rooms, stock the supplies, and make sure everything is ready for patient care,” Harding says. “I get to work with some of the most amazing people on the planet. That’s what I love about this place: We’re all in this together to make Huntsman Cancer Institute the best place to be.”
Kat Stevens
Stevens first began working at Huntsman Cancer Institute in 2016 as an executive assistant to Huntsman Cancer Institute CEO . As special assistant to the CEO and senior director of programs, planning, and development, she plays a pivotal role in advancing the CEO’s strategic agenda by coordinating and driving key priorities and initiatives forward.
Stevens works closely with leaders across Huntsman Cancer Institute and the University of Utah and is known as a connector, innovator, and collaborator. Stevens works closely with leaders to keep teams aligned and initiatives on track. Recently, she has been instrumental in supporting the development of Huntsman Cancer Institute’s Comprehensive Cancer Center in Vineyard, which will open to patients in fall 2028.
“Kat embodies Huntsman Cancer Institute's guiding principle of ‘Excellence in All We Do.’ Her passion for our mission, vision, and values is inspiring to everyone who has the privilege to work with her,” says Beckerle. “Kat is a natural leader who is always finding new ways to add value, to serve our patients, and to engage our community, both inside and outside of Huntsman Cancer Institute. Huntsman Cancer Institute is better because of Kat.”
Stevens says she is humbled to receive the Leadership Distinction Award and that she is inspired daily by the people she works with.
“I feel so honored to work alongside and learn from such remarkable people, and the fact that they see me as someone contributing positively to Huntsman Cancer Institute means more than I can say,” Stevens says. “Each day here reminds me that I’m part of a mission that truly matters, and that’s deeply fulfilling.”