Danita Johnson Hughes, Ph.D.

As Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Danita Johnson Hughes leads Edgewater Health in providing behavioral health care, primary care and child welfare services to residents of Gary and Northwest Indiana. Her ultimate goal is to help make a measurable difference in community health and well-being. She specializes in organization transformation and has had much success in managing organizations through challenging times. Edgewater Health has enjoyed much success for more than 20 years under her leadership. Some of the more recent examples include the following: In January 2014, Edgewater Systems opened the doors to a new $16M housing complex for homeless individuals. In July 2015, the organization opened the Rapid Access Center (RAC), the first of its kind in Indiana, for persons experiencing an acute psychiatric episode. In August of 2016, Edgewater began operating its newly acquired primary care practice with locations in both Gary and Griffith, Indiana. Danita is the recipient of numerous awards including the state of Indiana Governor’s Distinguished Hoosier Award. She is a 2013 inductee into the Northwest Indiana Business & Industry Hall of Fame. In addition to being a healthcare industry executive, Dr. Danita Johnson Hughes is a speaker, author and entrepreneur. Through her professional work, keynotes, writing and philanthropic activities, she inspires people to dream big and understand the role personal responsibility plays in achieving success. Dr. Hughes is a graduate of Indiana University with both Bachelors and Master’s degrees in Public Administration. She also holds a Master’s degree in Social Service Administration and a Graduate Certificate in Health Administration and Policy from the University of Chicago. Additionally, she earned a Ph.D. from Walden University. Dr. Hughes is very active in professional and civic activities. She is an avid runner and fitness enthusiast. She has completed 6 marathons. Dr. Hughes is also an award winning porcelain doll artist. As a doll artist and collector, her collection consists of over 300 dolls. She enjoys gardening as well.