Now
Spokane Regional Health District
Administrative Officer
Leading strategy, operations, culture, and stewardship for public health in Spokane County.
A steady hand for consequential work.
I have spent more than two decades leading across government, nonprofit organizations, healthcare, and academia. Today, I serve as Administrative Officer of the Spokane Regional Health District, helping one of Washington’s largest local public health agencies build a strong culture and a durable future.
My work is grounded in systems thinking: seeing the connections between policy, finance, operations, and human behavior. I believe institutions earn trust through competence, candor, and the daily discipline of following through.
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02 Publications
Public health scholarship.
Research and commentary on public-health systems, rural health, preparedness, behavioral health, and policy.
2026Responsible AI in Mental Health Care: Policy Directions and Stakeholder InsightsFrontiers in Public Health · Co-author↗
2025Leveraging Academic Health Departments for Place-Based Disaster ResponseJournal of Appalachian Health · With Sarah B. Thach and Ellis V. Matheson↗
2025Tailoring Statewide Training for Local ImpactJournal of Appalachian Health · Co-author↗
2024Public Health Policy that Leads with Equity in Rural AppalachiaDisaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness · Co-author↗
2024The Collective Approach: Facing the Substance Use Disorder EpidemicNorth Carolina Medical Journal · Guest editor’s introduction↗
2022Spatial Cases of Endocarditis in Southern West VirginiaJACC: Cardiovascular Interventions · Co-author↗
2018Fitting a Square Peg into a Round HolePreventive Medicine Reports · Co-author↗
2017Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Tax in West VirginiaWest Virginia Medical Journal · With Sherri Young↗
2017Medical Marijuana Legal in West Virginia?West Virginia Medical Journal · With Sherri Young and James Felsen↗
2016Public Health West Virginia 3.0Marshall Journal of Medicine · With David Didden↗
View Google Scholar profile
03 Books & fiction
Published novel
The Algorithm
A near-future work of political and dystopian fiction from a writer whose professional life has unfolded at the intersection of policy, ethics, technology, and government.
Buy The Algorithm on AmazonShort fiction
Stories from Appalachia and beyond.
Five works exploring family, dignity, faith, mortality, and the complicated bonds between people and place.
04 Selected work
Leadership across sectors.
2021–26
Burke County Public Health
Public Health Director
Led a dual-accredited department recognized as North Carolina’s 2024 Health Department of the Year.
Earlier
Medicine, government & finance
Executive and public servant
Led the West Virginia State Medical Association and coordinated approximately $1.8 billion in federal recovery funding in the Governor’s Office.
NationalRoemer Prize
Creative local public health work
North CarolinaDogwood Award
Service to the health and well-being of communities
NationalW.C. Woodward Award
Outstanding leadership in health administration
EducationPublic Health Educator of the Year
Excellence in translating public health knowledge into practice
West Virginia University Institute of TechnologyAlumni of the Year
Professional achievement, service, and leadership
Delta Omega Honor SocietyAlumni Inductee
Distinguished contributions to public health
05 In practice
Public health is a team sport.
A few scenes from the work: teaching, convening, listening, recognizing colleagues, and building the professional relationships that sustain public service.
06 Essays & insights
Newsletter
Field Notes on Public Health
Essays on systems, stewardship, organizational leadership, and the practice of building public institutions that people can trust.
From Burke County to Spokane: What Changes, What Endures
A reflection on place, transition, and the leadership commitments that remain constant when the community and institution change.
Coming soonLeading the whole institution
Finance, workforce, operations, policy, and culture as parts of one interconnected system.
Institutions that earn trust
Competence, candor, partnership, and the disciplined work of following through.
Developing the next generation
Lessons for emerging professionals and the leaders responsible for helping them grow.
07 Credentials & service
Experience in practice, policy, and education.
Education
MPH, Health Policy
MBA
BS, Management
Academic appointments
UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health
Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine
West Virginia University School of Public Health
Professional standing
Professional Member, National Academy of Public Health
Fellow, Royal Society for Public Health
Fellow, American College of Healthcare Executives
Certified in Public Health
Professional service
Governing Councilor and Education Board Member, American Public Health Association
Site Visitor, Public Health Accreditation Board
Board Member, North Carolina Institute of Medicine
Editorial Board Member, North Carolina Medical Journal
Member, National Association of Counties Opioid Leadership Network
MPH Advisory Committee, Lenoir-Rhyne University
08 In the news
Conversations about leadership and public health.
The Spokesman-Review · May 2026
Bringing stability to Spokane Regional Health District
A profile of my path from Appalachian coal country and finance to public service—and the work of rebuilding culture and trust at SRHD.
Read the profile ↗ Spokane Journal of Business · May 2026Meet & Greet with Danny Scalise
A conversation about how finance prepared me for public health leadership, the opioid crisis, and my priorities for the district.
Read the interview ↗ Inlander · June 2026New leadership at the health district
Coverage of the work ahead to restore relationships, strengthen the organization, and give employees a durable sense of direction.
View the story ↗Leadership is the obligation to leave the institution and the people in it stronger than you found them.”
09 Contact
Good work begins with a serious conversation.
For speaking, teaching, writing, or professional inquiries, contact me by email or connect with me on LinkedIn.