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ABOUT US

Board Members

Daniel Puhlman, PhD

Board President

Dan is a faculty member in the human development and family studies program at University of Maine, part of the School of Educational Leadership, Higher Education and Human Development. His research is focused on family processes such as fathering and parenting. Specifically, he looks at co-parenting relationships and how mothers and fathers influence one another in the raising of children. Daniel’s work centers around theory development and qualitative exploration of these family processes. He is also a Marriage and Family Therapist and has worked clinically with families for the past 15 years. He received a PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy from Florida State University. Daniel comes to the University of Maine with his wife Jane and 3 children, Max, Nathyn, and Jack. He is from Pittsburgh and is an avid Penguins fan and loves to be outdoors.

J. Kenneth Stewart III

Board Treasurer

Ken is the Regional Senior Vice President for our Retail Division in New England overseeing our Maine Retail Banking market. His family relocated from Baltimore where most recently he was a commercial manager overseeing the VIP banking relationships (sports teams, legal, political and manufacturing). Kenneth holds a BS in International Business, a Graduate Degree from MD School of Banking, and multiple years of experience with involvement in local and regional Boards supporting a variety in interest including but not limited to (Elder Care, Youth Activities, Museum and historical preservation, Homelessness and low income urban families, Orphan and Minor housing and education services)

His most memorable Maine moments are proposing to his wife, Heidi, on Mount Kineo, and the birth of his second son, Maxell.

Leslie A. Forstadt, PhD

Board Secretary

Leslie lived in the Midwest before moving to Maine in 2004. Since 2007, she’s worked at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension on campus in Orono. She earned her PhD in Educational Psychology and her research focused on alternative education for youth at-risk for high school dropout. Her current work in Human Development with UMaine Extension focuses on communication and well-being of farm families and awareness of ACEs and resilience in farms and beyond.

Leslie was a founding member of the Maine Resilience Building Network and served on the Leadership Team before transitioning to Board President. In 2019, she completed her certification in mediation. She loves spending time with her husband and two sons, and practicing communication moment by moment in her precious time with friends and family.

Samantha Hackney

Board Member

Samantha is a social impact consultant and organizational development expert. She is the co-founder and principal of Marigold Strategy, a woman-owned consulting firm working at the intersection of diversity, equity, and inclusion and organizational development. Marigold works with nonprofits, foundations, companies, and other actors interested in building more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and resilient organizational cultures and structures.

Samantha holds a M.A.L.D. in International Business and Development Economics from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and a B.A. in French from Amherst College. She lives in Portland, Maine with her husband and pup Cholula.

Kristy Ouellette, PhD

Board Member

Kristy serves as an Extension Professor, Positive Youth Development Specialist, and Co-State Program Leader for 4-H Youth Development at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. In her role, she leads the onboarding and professional development of Maine 4-H staff, emphasizing positive youth development. Her efforts focus on streamlining initiatives and shaping the vision of positive youth development across all aspects of the Maine 4-H program.

As a native Mainer, Kristy loves Maine for its unique blend of rural charm and innovation, which provides the perfect backdrop for fostering growth, learning, and connection. Kristy lives in Litchfield with her husband and two sons.

Shaun Haskins

Board Member

Shaun is a Maine native, and no stranger to issues affecting youth resilience. Despite a challenging home environment, he managed to graduate high school and attend Hamilton College and Vanderbilt University, then to launch a successful career as an educator and educational administrator. During his career, Shaun has contributed to or led a number of important efforts to improve outcomes for vulnerable members of his community. Shaun currently serves as Co-Executive Director of Cobscook Institute, a community development non-profit that uses education, the arts, and social connection as tools for positive social change and the promotion of community well-being. As part of the MyT Board, Shaun hopes to build a future where the youth of Maine all have access to the kinds of supports he had that enabled him to thrive in spite of the circumstances of his youth.

Jim Roche

Board Member

Jim Roche has led the Maine Bankers Association (MBA) as president since 2021. MBA is comprised of 30 retail banks and four trust companies that collectively operate 443 offices throughout the state and employ over 9,000 residents. MBA’s mission is to provide advocacy, education, and resources to safeguard and advance the interests of its members.

Prior to MBA, Jim was president of the Business & Industry Association of New Hampshire (NH’s statewide chamber of commerce) for nearly 17 years. Previous positions include leading a regional chamber of commerce in Upstate New York, and working in economic development, marketing, and public policy in Minnesota. Jim is originally from Minneapolis, comes from a family of 10 children, and is father to two of his own— Abby and Joe.

Amanda Methot-Vigue, MSW, J.D.

Board Member

Amanda holds a law degree and has been a member of the Maine State Bar since 2017. Additionally, she has a master’s in social work and worked in direct care prior to switching careers. Amanda has always had the goal of using her law degree to create large scale change for disenfranchised populations and struggling communities. She found that working with communities and non-profits to maximize their federal funds did just that. She has helped municipalities and non-profits leverage roughly $500,000 in grant funding in the last year. Prior to starting Methot Method Amanda was the Housing and Community Development Compliance Officer for the City of Portland. She managed roughly $15 million in federal funds and spearheaded the best plan of action for roughly $40 million of COVID recovery funds.

Catherine Biddle, PhD

Board Member

Dr. Biddle’s research focuses on ways in which rural schools and communities respond to social and economic change in the 21st century. She is particularly interested in how schools can more effectively leverage partnerships with external organizations or groups to address issues of social inequality and how non-traditional leaders—such as youth, parents and other community members—may lead or serve as partners in these efforts. Her interests are driven by her professional background in community development that leverages schools. Prior to joining the faculty at UMaine, she spent five years as a research affiliate with the Center on Rural Education and Communities at the Pennsylvania State University and two years as the managing editor of the Journal of Research in Rural Education.