Leadership - Southcentral Foundation

Melissa Merrick, LCSW, MSW
Executive Vice President of Primary Care Services

Melissa Merrick was born and raised in Colorado. She holds a master’s degree in social work and is a licensed clinical social worker and longtime leader at SCF. Since 2007, Merrick has played a key role in quality and clinical improvements in both SCF’s Medical and Behavioral Services divisions, including behavioral health integration, medication assisted treatment, and persistent pain management in primary care, rural, and specialty behavioral and medical clinics.

Michelle Baker, MBA
Executive Vice President of Behavioral Health Services

Michelle Baker, of Yup’ik and Caucasian descent and a Bristol Bay Native Corporation shareholder, was born and raised in Koliganek, Alaska. Baker was recently named executive vice president of Behavioral Health Services. A University of Alaska Fairbanks graduate with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in business administration, she has worked in Behavioral Health Services since 2000. Michelle is married with two children.

Michelle Tierney, PhD
Executive Vice President of Organizational Development and Innovation,
Chief Compliance Officer

Michelle Tierney has supported transformational change at Southcentral Foundation since 1996. In her current role she is responsible for compliance, human resources, learning and development, Family Wellness Warriors, and more. She also served on the Baldrige Board of Examiners. Tierney holds a master’s degree in public administration and a PhD in human and organizational systems. Certifications include healthcare compliance, healthcare privacy, human resources, learning and development, and healthcare quality.

Lee Olson, CPA
Executive Vice President of Finance and Facilities,
Chief Financial Officer

Lee Olson has served on the Southcentral Foundation leadership team since 1997. As the organization’s chief financial officer, he plans, organizes, and coordinates its finances under the general direction of the president and CEO. Prior to his career with SCF, he worked in Bethel, Alaska. He has a bachelor’s in business administration and is a certified public accountant.

Doug Eby, MD, MPH
Executive Vice President of Specialty Services

Dr. Doug Eby has served on the leadership teams of Southcentral Foundation and the Alaska Native Medical Center since 1995. He has played a key role in the development of SCF’s innovative primary care system, and speaks, nationally and internationally, on health care system design and quality improvement. In addition to his medical degree, he holds a master’s in public health and is a certified physician executive.

April Kyle, MBA
Southcentral Foundation President and CEO

April Kyle, of Athabascan descent, is the President and CEO for Southcentral Foundation and its two-time Malcolm Baldrige Award-winning Nuka System of Care. SCF’s Nuka System of Care is a customer-owned system that provides health care and related services for approximately 70,000 Alaska Native and American Indian people. A CIRI shareholder, April began her career at SCF in Human Resources in 2003 and most recently served as vice president of Behavioral Services. April received her master’s degree from the University of Washington Foster School of Business. She received the Top 40 Under 40 award from the Alaska Journal of Commerce in 2013, and completed the Alaska Pacific University Alaska Native Executive Leadership Program in 2014. Kyle is a mother and enjoys spending time at her family’s cabin in Ninilchik.

Jessie Marrs, MD, Aleut
Director

Ms. Marrs, a gynecologist in Seattle, is a graduate of Washington’s School of Medicine specializing in women’s health. She provides person-centered, compassionate care for women with gynecologic concerns, with a focus on minimally invasive surgery including robotic assisted surgery. Dr. Marrs aligns her professional experience with her council and board service, serving organizations such as First Hill Surgery Center and Southcentral Foundation.

Roy M. Huhndorf, Yup’ik
Director

Early in his career, Mr. Huhndorf worked for the Alaska Federation of Natives and served as director of the Indian Health Service’s Community Health Aide Program. He went on to serve as a Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (CIRI) incorporator and was continuously elected to the board through 1998. He also served as CIRI president and CEO for 21 years and is Chairman Emeritus.

Sandra Haldane, BSN, RN, MS, Tsimshian
Director

Ms. Haldane has dedicated her nursing career serving Indigenous families and communities. She served as an IHS congressional fellow and chief nurse of the Indian Health Service. Ms. Haldane has directed ANTHC and SCF’s Maternal Child Health program, the IHS Improving Patient Care program, and served ANMC as Surgery’s Chief Nurse Executive and as the administrator for Nursing Services. Ms. Haldane is currently a school nurse in Anchorage.

Carol Gore, Aleut
Director

Ms. Carol Gore served as president and CEO of Cook Inlet Housing Authority from 2000 to 2023. A leader in numerous housing and community efforts, she has earned recognition from YWCA, is a member of the Anchorage ATHENA Society, and recipient of the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce Gold Pan Award. Gore has served on the Cook Inlet Region, Inc. Board of Directors since 2023, serves on the Anchorage Homelessness Leadership Council, and has served on the boards of Covenant House Alaska, Providence Alaska, Cold Climate Housing Research Center, as well as on the governing board of The Foraker Group. She currently works for Weidner Apartment Homes.

Greg Encelewski, Dena’ina Athabascan and Aleut
Director

Mr. Encelewski is the current president and chairman of Ninilchik Traditional Council and president and CEO of Ninilchik Natives Association Inc. He retired from ConocoPhillips (initially Arco) in 2009. A hunter and commercial fisherman, Mr. Encelewski helped fight for subsistence rights and was instrumental in Ninilchik’s land selections under ANCSA. A member of the Federal Subsistence Regional Advisory Council, he has served as the Council’s chairman since 2015. Mr. Encelewski also served in the U.S. Navy.

Terry Simpson, MD, FACS, Athabascan
Treasurer

Mr. Simpson, a surgeon, began his career with the Indian Health Service. He is currently in private practice in Ventura, California. He continues to write books, scientific papers, and works to bring science to the people in his writings, blogs, and podcasts. He is also a former chairman and a chairman emeritus of the Cook Inlet Region, Inc. board of directors.

Thomas Huhndorf, Yup’ik
Secretary

Mr. Huhndorf is Chairman Emeritus of Cook Inlet Region Inc. He worked for Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. since 1996 and is a member of its Section 29 Advisory Board. Mr. Huhndorf is a former director of the Alaska Federation of Natives, CIRI Alaska Tourism Corporation, Salamatof Native Association, and the former owner of Huhndorf Electric. He served on the Cook Inlet Tribal Council for several years.

Lisa Wade, Ahtna Dene Athabascan
Vice Chair

Ms. Wade serves many roles within her community. She is the Health and Social Services Division Director for the Chickaloon Village Traditional Council, the Tribal Council Secretary, and serves as a Tribal Court Judge. She has been a partner with Southcentral Foundation for over ten years. Ms. Wade’s work is integral to the health and wellbeing of community Elders and the advancement of Alaska Native youth.

Karen Caindec, Tlingit
Chair

Ms. Karen Caindec was born in Anchorage and raised in Eagle River, Valdez, and Seward, Alaska. She is a Tlingit and Haida Tribal member and a Cook Inlet Region, Inc. shareholder. As a recipient of The CIRI Foundation scholarship, Ms. Caindec earned a degree in international business from Georgetown University. She serves as chairman of the Southcentral Foundation Board of Directors, is a member of the executive, audit, and compensation committees, and is involved with the SCF Learning Institute. Ms. Caindec serves as a director for the Alaska Native Medical Center Joint Operating Board and is chair of the Policy Committee. In 2014, she was awarded the National Indian Health Board Regional Impact Award in recognition of her essential work with American Indian/Alaska Native health research.