Dwain Harris

Dwain Harris has been NAO CEO since 2019. AS CEO, he is responsible for the management and direction of all operations, programs, and affairs of NAO under the direction and framework of the NAO Board of Directors. During his tenure, NAO has experienced significant growth in membership and member engagement, programming, national partnerships, and funding. He began his AHEC career in 2004 as center director of the Southern Kentucky AHEC, where he worked closely with his team in all areas of the AHEC mission, including student rotations, preceptor development, health career promotion, continuing education, and community health initiatives. He was the director of marketing and communications for a rural healthcare system from 1997 until 2004, and prior to that worked as a community journalist. He has a bachelor’s in print journalism and master’s in health administration from Western Kentucky University. He is a past president of the Kentucky Rural Health Association and past board chair of Rural Transit Enterprises Coordinated. Always interested in community development and encouraging healthy lifestyles, Harris is an avid runner and tennis enthusiast. He serves as vice president of the Lake Cumberland Tennis Association and directs the national award-winning Countywide Stride run/walk series, which has introduced recreational running and walking to hundreds since 2012. Harris lives in Somerset, KY, with his wife, Julie, son Matthew, 17, and 12-year-old twins, Piper and John Parker.