Mike McCauley, JD

Our Team

Principal Consultant and Founder

Mike McCauley is a mission-oriented leader with 25 years’ experience developing and administering policies and programs to advance the health, education, and economic prosperity of communities. A graduate of The Citadel and the Charleston School of Law’s inaugural class, Mike is a former member of the federal government’s Senior Executive Service. During his tenure in Washington, DC, Mike served as White House Liaison for the U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services (HHS) during the H1N1 pandemic and initial implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Later, he served as Chief of Staff of HHS’s Administration for Children & Families, a $62 billion agency administering over 60 federal programs promoting the economic and social well-being of American communities.

At Watershed, Mike works with state and local governments, businesses, foundations, statewide associations and coalitions, and community-based organizations to maximize impact and realize watershed moments in the places, markets, and populations they serve. Mike’s practice includes advising communities and cross-sector partners on leveraging federal investments and incentives, including those made under the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (or Bipartisan Infrastructure Law), the $280 billion CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act.

Mike and his family reside in Columbia, where he is vice chair of the Richland Library Friends and Foundation, the nonprofit arm of Richland County’s nationally-recognized library system, which raises awareness and support for services in literacy, workforce development, social services and inclusion, and innovative programming. He is a past president of the Shandon Neighborhood Council and is a former advisory board member of the Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Center (TCTAC) at the University of South Carolina.