A former AIEF scholarship recipient, MaKenley is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation tribe. She earned her bachelor’s in healthcare administration from Northeastern State University and her master’s from Oklahoma State University. MaKenley has been working in Tribal health care since college, completing job shadows and internships at W.W. Hastings Hospital, which is Cherokee-operated. She started her career with Cherokee Nation Health Services as an Administrative Officer for a value-based care program the Tribe participates in and then was promoted to Director of Patient Access Management to direct the scheduling and registration departments for the hospital and new outpatient health center. Since 2019, MaKenley has been serving as the Deputy Hospital Administrator for W.W. Hastings. She always wanted to work in healthcare but, more specifically, the health care system of her own Tribe. MaKenley brings her knowledge of healthcare (rural and tribal), finance, operations, and strategic planning to PWNA.