TRCC Staff
Our Staff
Our staff is committed to furthering the goals of the coalition, bringing deep government relations and Capitol Hill experience, research expertise and insights, as well as networking and partnership ideas that bring our members' work and collaborations to fruition.
Barbara Petee
President
Ms. Petee has served as the inaugural President of the Coalition since its founding in 2015. Drawing from more than 38 years of experience in healthcare communications and government relations, Ms. Petee leads the Coalition's efforts to unite cross-sector organizations under the common goal of achieving health equity. The Coalition's membership has grown from 17 inaugural partners into a diverse collection of more than 90 leading organizations from various states, sectors and services. Committed to helping develop and implement a new model of healthcare delivery that considers all the various social, physical and mental needs of individuals, Ms. Petee’s work in the social drivers has been widely recognized across the nation.
Leigh Maltby
Administrative Director
Leigh Maltby serves TRCC as the Administrative Director. As Administrative Director, Leigh oversees the operations, business strategy and strategic partnerships for TRCC and advises the TRCC President and Board of Directors on these matters.
Leigh brings over a decade of professional association and nonprofit management experience to TRCC, including serving as the first Chief Staff Executive of Americans for Patient Access, leading the development of a 50-state advocacy organization for the personal injury space. Leigh began her career in association management during college when she interned for the Transatlantic Business Dialogue in Brussels, Belgium and continued to explore the world of public-private sector relations through her work with the US Department of State, the Bank Insurance and Securities Association, the Restoration Industry Association, and the State Government Affairs Council. Leigh is an active member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), and is in the process of earning her Certified Association Executive (CAE) designation.
Daniel Dawes
Senior Health Equity Advisor
Daniel Dawes is the Senior Health Equity Advisor for The Root Cause Coalition. In this role, Daniel holds regular, exclusive briefings to TRCC Members on key legislative and policy issues that impact health equity, provide education sessions on TRCC’s priority topics and will work with the Coalition’s leadership and the Advocacy Committee to develop a comprehensive advocacy strategy that will impact all levels of our advocacy work from federal to local engagement.
Daniel has dedicated his career to addressing health equity issues impacting vulnerable, under-resourced and marginalized populations. He is an internationally recognized health policy expert and attorney and is the Senior Vice President, Global Health & Executive Director, Institute of Global Health Equity at Meharry Medical College. Prior to this role, Daniel served as the Executive Director of the Morehouse School of Medicine, Satcher Health Leadership Institute and professor of health law, policy and management in the department of community health and preventive medicine. He has been a long-standing and engaged friend and advocate to TRCC.
Devon Seibert-Bailey
Policy Advisor
Devon Seibert-Bailey serves as the Policy Advisor for The Root Cause Coalition, overseeing the Federal advocacy efforts of the coalition.
In addition, Devon is the Senior Vice President in Strategic Health Care’s Washington D.C. office and is responsible for health policy. Devon was recognized as a Top Lobbyist by The Hill newspaper in 2022 and 2023.
Devon comes with a wealth of experience as a health policy expert in research, analysis, and development, most recently serving as the Legislative Director for Congressman David B. McKinley, P.E. (WV-01).
Prior to joining the Congressman’s staff, Devon was the Manager of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs for the research and consulting non-profit Altarum Institute. She also served in the Bush Administration at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Prior to that she was on the staff of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and Representative Marge Roukema of New Jersey. Devon served a total of 12 years on Capitol Hill.
Devon received her undergraduate from University of New Hampshire. She earned her Master’s degree in Public Policy from George Mason University.
Hannah Miller
Senior Advisor, Advocacy
Hannah Miller is the Senior Advisor for Advocacy for The Root Cause Coalition. She manages the organization's advocacy efforts by analyzing priority issues affecting health disparities and tracking relevant legislation and regulations that address them.
She has extensive experience working with state legislators across the country and researching and writing about key public policy issues related to social and economic equity. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Denison University and earned her Master of Science degree from American University’s School of Public Affairs.
Alexandra Lewin-Zwerdling
Senior Advisor, Research
Alexandra Lewin-Zwerdling, PhD, MPA, is the Senior Advisor, Research for The Root Cause Coalition. She also is the owner of Fruitful LLC, a food and nutrition consulting business in Washington, DC. With nearly 15 years of experience working at nonprofits, member associations and the United States Department of Agriculture, Alexandra specializes in the intersection of consumer insights, communications and public affairs. Prior to Fruitful LLC, Alexandra served as the Vice President, Research & Partnerships, for the International Food Information Council.
Kristen Van Dusen
Senior Advisor, Marketing & Communications
Kristen Van Dusen brings over 20 years of experience in healthcare marketing and digital communications to The Root Cause Coalition. She is also the owner of KVD Marketing Group, a strategic marketing and communications consulting firm. Over her career, Kristen has focused on supporting healthcare organizations and has held leadership positions at Socially Determined, Edelman, and Johns Hopkins Medicine. Most recently, she led the marketing, communications, and film teams at findhelp.org, a social care network that connects individuals with social services in their communities. Kristen has spoken at national industry events and is recognized as a thought leader in her field. She serves on the board of Pawfectly Delicious Dog Treats, a nonprofit whose mission is to provide young adults with disabilities the opportunity to engage in meaningful work and job training.
Lori Bennett, CMP, CCM, HMCC
Senior Advisor, Meetings
Lori Bennett has more than 36 years of meeting planning experience. She specializes in using her marketing and technical background to manage meeting logistics, coordinate housing and manage registration, work with audio visual companies and plan meeting room layouts, food and beverage and speaker management. Lori has worked with the National Summit both with their virtual events and the in-person conference. Lori is an active member of Meeting Professionals Internationals. She served on the Board of Directors for 5 years and remains a volunteer leader. She was awarded the MPI Rocky Mountain Chapter Planner of the Year in 2017 and Rising Star in 2012. She graduated with a BS degree in Marketing from the University of Colorado at Denver.
Lisa Cline
Business Manager
Lisa Cline manages the business operations of TRCC and Strategic Health Care, and is responsible for accounting functions, office management, and administration of all client accounts. She has more than 28 years of experience in association management and business administration. Lisa also brings to the firm her knowledge and depth of experience in developing and managing successful meetings, ranging from educational workshops to major professional conferences.
Lisa holds an associate degree from Columbus State Community College in Secretarial Science, Legal Division, and she has furthered her education with numerous accounting, management, and computer courses.