UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — In the latest episode of Invent Penn State’s “Dare to Disrupt” podcast, host Ryan Newman interviews Doug Leech, founder and CEO of Ascension Recovery Services (Ascension RS), who graduated from Penn State with a degree in accounting.
The mission of Ascension RS is to expand access to care by opening fully integrated, comprehensive and person-centered Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and co-occurring mental health disorder treatment centers across the country providing for all who need treatment, regardless of insurance type or ability to pay, advancing behavioral health equity.
In this episode, Leech talks about his own struggles with addiction and subsequent recovery. He talks about how he developed a passion for helping those suffering from the disease of addiction and set out to increase access to SUD treatment across the country. Ascension RS has been recognized as one of the fastest growing healthcare companies in the country and is a leader in developing and managing behavioral health treatment centers.
“It was so shocking to me as I moved forward and was opening up programs, two things. One, the lack of resources across the entire continuum of care. And number two, it wasn't just about starting a business, which is hard enough, it was starting a business that everybody in the community pushed and fought against you opening. It all comes down to the stigma,” Leech said during the podcast interview.
Listen to this interview to learn more about Leech’s journey.
At the end of the episode, Elyse Johnson, a fifth-year student studying general science at Penn State, joins the conversation. She is a recent participant in the Happy Valley LaunchBox powered by PNC Bank FastTrack Accelerator with her startup, LifeBoxes. The startup recycles shipping containers to provide customizable and scalable housing solutions. She was also recently a finalist in the Penn State Nittany AI Challenge. Leech shares with Johnson the importance of making your presence known within a community as a social entrepreneur.
Students can apply or be nominated to be on the show here.
About Dare to Disrupt podcast
Dare to Disrupt is a podcast from Invent Penn State about Penn State alumni who are innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders, and the stories behind their success. The podcast is hosted by alumnus Ryan Newman, a graduate of the Smeal College of Business and a Schreyer Scholar alumnus who is now a managing director at Goldman Sachs.
Past episodes of Dare to Disrupt include interviews with Matt Brezina, David Rusenko and Jess Weiner.
New episodes of Dare to Disrupt release monthly. Learn more at invent.psu.edu/dare-to-disrupt and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Play.
Invent Penn State is a commonwealth-wide initiative to spur economic development, job creation and student career success.