NAHEC, through collaborative efforts, improves access to quality health care by promoting improvements in the supply, training, development and distribution of health professionals in a 5-county area.
Why do our staff love working here? Check out this fun video that showcases staff from Northern Area Health Education Center, Central New York Area Health Education Center, and Health WorkForce New York and why they love what they do!
Established in July 2001, NAHEC is a non-profit 501(c)(3) community-based organization working to improve health care access, delivery, and outcomes in a 5-county region of Northern New York.
The NAHEC service area is home to hospitals and health care providers located in predominantly rural areas. There are numerous geographic pockets of federally designated Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs) within the NAHEC region, specifically in the areas of primary health care, mental health care, and dental health care. Our Pipeline to Practice approach connects students to careers, professionals to communities, and communities to better health.
The NAHEC’s mission was adopted in June 2002 and reads as follows: NAHEC, through collaborative efforts, improves access to quality health care by promoting improvements in the supply, training, development and distribution of health professionals in a 5-county area.
Strategic planning is guided by the mission and allows NAHEC to focus its efforts in four priority areas:
As part of the larger New York State AHEC System, NAHEC is one of nine centers in the State of New York offering statewide capacity for addressing healthcare workforce needs. NAHEC serves Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Franklin and Clinton counties.
Richard Merchant
CEO
rkm@nahecnet.org
Whitney Callaghan
NAHEC Center Director
whitney@nahecnet.org / 518.813.7468
Bryn Donovan
NAHEC Program Manager
bryn@nahecnet.org / 603.412.2690
Lisa Levison
Chief Operating Officer – Compliance Officer
lisa@hwny.org/ 315.212.2963
Christina DeLorenzo
CFO
cdelorenzo@nahecnet.org / 315.379.7701
Ashleigh McGowan
HWNY VP of Innovation and Design
amcgowan@cnyahec.org / 607.423.9199
Kris Merchant
HWNY Director of Projects and AHEC SET Program Coordinator
kris@hwapps.org / 315.212.7517
Ben Aldrich
HWNY Director of Technology and Data Security
ben@hwapps.org / 315.244.7260
Tasnim Islam
HWNY Instructional Technology Specialist
tasnim@hwny.org / 929.375.1454
Judi Wesser
InService Solutions Specialist
jwesser@cnyahec.org / 607.863.3981
Chair
Gerald R. Cayer, MPH
Chief Executive Officer
Lewis County General Hospital
Vice Chair
Joe Keegan
President
North Country Community College
Saranac Lake Campus
Treasurer
Rodney Boula, MHA, MHQI
Chief Administrative Officer
Self Regional Healthcare
Secretary
Paul Dingman
Administrator (Retired)
Plattsburgh City School District
Members
Katherine L. Beissner, P.T., Ph.D.
Dean, College of Health Professions
SUNY Upstate Medical University
Lennart D. Johns, Ph.D., ATC
Dean, Lewis School of Health Sciences
Clarkson University
Kassandra Beauregard
Business Operations Director
Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital
Rich Duvall
Chief Executive Officer
North Star Health Alliance
(Claxton, Carthage, Meadowbrook Terrace and NCOG)
As part of the larger New York State AHEC System, NAHEC is one of nine centers in the State of New York offering statewide capacity for addressing healthcare workforce needs. NAHEC serves Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Franklin and Clinton counties. The NYSAHEC System is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Award titled Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Program (U77). The content and information is solely the responsibility of the authors and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.
