Mark McDaniel is a Policy Fellow at Chapin Hall. He partners with public and private decision makers to enhance and align policies, programs, and practices; inform systems innovations and reforms; improve the capacity of public systems and private providers to operationalize and evaluate outcomes; and address barriers to child and family well-being. McDaniel has experience designing and implementing comprehensive community change, education, and service systems reforms, as well as economic development initiatives to improve the socio-economic outcomes of low- and moderate-income residents.
Prior to joining Chapin Hall, McDaniel was Principal at Inclusive Innovations LLC. Before that, he was a Senior Research Associate at the Center for Community Capital & Urban Investment Strategies Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In this position, McDaniel managed and coordinated education and community economic development initiatives among a range of constituencies, including government regulators, foundations, financial institutions, and community development intermediaries. He also partnered with early childhood, secondary, and postsecondary education institutions to increase investment in low-income communities. McDaniel previously served as a Program Associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation and as a Program Officer at the Polk Bros. Foundation.
Mark and his wife Makeba have been married for 22 years and reside in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. They are the parents of Mikayla ( a recent college graduate from North Carolina A&T State University) and Malayna, a budding visual artist (maybe SCAD bound??).
McDaniel has a Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from Morgan State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Geography from the University of North Carolina.