Networking Event at the Calumet Club

• Brendan Prast MD, MPH Lunder-Dineen Health Education Alliance of Maine
  

  Brendan Prast is a Family and Preventive Medicine physician at MaineHealth Primary Care in Sanford, Maine, and is appointed as clinical faculty at MaineHealth Institute for Research. He also serves as an Assistant Professor of Family Medicine for Tufts University School of Medicine and the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. He serves on the Advisory Committee of the Lunder Dineen Health Education Alliance of Maine Time to Ask Advisory Committee where he provides guidance as a subject matter expert on Alcohol Use Disorder.

  He graduated from the University of Rochester School of Medicine, and completed his family medicine residency and general preventive medicine fellowship at MaineHealth Maine Medical Center Portland. In addition, he completed a Masters of Public Health at the University of New England. His career interests include disease prevention, substance use disorders, immigrant healthcare, and population-based research. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Maine Academy of Family Physicians and is the immediate past president of the American Heart Association in Maine.
  

• Denise O'Connell, MSW, LCSW, CCM Lunder-Dineen Health Education Alliance of Maine
  

  Denise O’Connell, MSW, LCSW, CCM is the Associate Director of the Lunder-Dineen Health Education Alliance of Maine, a program of Massachusetts General Hospital and the Peter L Slavin, MD Academy for Applied Learning in Health Care. She is a licensed clinical social worker and a certified case manager. She has been a principal with the Lunder-Dineen program since 2011. Prior professional experiences include practicing across health care settings serving in both clinical and leadership capacities. At Lunder-Dineen, she has served as an on the ground presence for the organization, building relationships with stakeholders, developing stakeholder informed continuing professional development programs that respond to public health problems, while also coaching program site teams towards program implementation. She has presented nationally, regionally and locally and is a co-author of published scholarly articles on Lunder-Dineen programs. She is a Past President of the Maine Chapter, Society for Social Work Leadership in Health Care and two-time recipient of their Social Work Leader of the Year Award. She currently serves on the board of Unlimited Solutions, is a member of the Maine Nurse Action Coalition, a member of the two statewide Maine alcohol prevention workgroups. She is a past member of AgingME.

Registration Opens & Breakfast with Exhibitors

Educating the Whole Child

• Pender Makin, BA, MS Maine Department of Education
  

  Maine's Commissioner of Education, Pender Makin, has devoted herself to the mission of public education for nearly 30 years. She served as a middle school teacher before assuming the role as principal of The REAL School on Mackworth Island in Falmouth. At The REAL School – a regional, experiential learning school for students who have struggled in traditional school settings – Makin and her team supported high-risk students from 28 sending districts through innovative, project-based programming. Prior to accepting her appointment as Commissioner, Makin also served as the Assistant Superintendent of the Brunswick School Department.

  For several years, Makin served as a member of Maine's Juvenile Justice Advisory Group, and she co-founded Collaborative for Perpetual Innovation, a professional development, technical assistance, and consulting company for educators, school and district leaders, and counselors.

  She has provided educator trainings, workshops, and keynote addresses at multiple state and national conferences on topics such as restorative justice, cognitive neuroscience, dropout prevention, organizational culture, and leadership.

  Makin was named the 2013-2014 Maine Principal of the Year by the Maine Principal’s Association and was a recipient of the Milken Educator Award, a national distinction bestowed upon educators for exceptional educational talent, exemplary educational accomplishments,

  and an engaging and inspiring presence that motivates and impacts students. Makin and her students also won MTV's Local Heroes Award for their work on a violence-prevention public service video.

  Makin is charged with leading the state agency that administers both state education subsidy and state and federal grant programs; coordinates the authoring of the rules for Maine State education statutes passed by the Maine State Legislature; provides professional development, information, supports, and resources, as well as a system for educator credentialing; and leads many collaborative opportunities and partnerships in support of local schools and districts.

  Makin grew up in Saco, attended local schools, and graduated from Thornton Academy. She worked as a mate and deckhand on her father's deep-sea fishing charter boat every summer beginning at age eight. She earned her B.A. in English Literature and her M.S. in School Leadership from the University of Southern Maine.

School Health is Public Health

• Nirav Shah, MD, JD, MPH
  

  Nirav D. Shah is an epidemiologist, economist, and attorney. He recently served as the Principal Deputy Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

  In 2015, he was appointed Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. In 2019, he became Director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. While in medical school, he worked at the Ministry of Health of Cambodia where he assisted with outbreak investigations and aided the country’s responses to SARS and avian influenza.

  Shah and his family are back in Maine full time and he is currently a visiting professor at Colby College.

Break & Exhibit Time

We Are All in This Together: Implementing the New AAP Bidirectional Consent Toolkit

• Alyssa Goodwin, MD Stellar Pediatrics
  

  Alyssa Goodwin, MD is a pediatrician, expert in school health, and pediatric mental health advocate. Before starting Stellar Pediatrics, Dr. Goodwin trained at Children’s National Medical Center and worked for two decades as a primary care pediatrician in Maine. During this time she developed a passion for child and adolescent mental health.

  Dr. Goodwin serves on the board of directors for the Maine American Academy of Pediatrics where she co-created and chairs the School Health Committee. This role has allowed Dr. Goodwin to combine her passion for school health and preventative wellness to better serve the needs of students across Maine. Dr. Goodwin serves as the Maine Learning Ambassador for the American Academy of Pediatrics’ rollout of the “Blueprint for Youth Suicide Prevention” and as a faculty member for the AAP and AFSP Suicide Prevention Clinical Echo. In these roles she collaborates with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and other community partners to support education and implementation of best practices for youth suicide prevention. In addition, Dr. Goodwin is a member of the board of directors and serves as the medical advisor to the Kita Center and volunteers at their flagship program, Camp Kita. Dr. Goodwin also co-authored the new AAP toolkit to support School Health Information Sharing in collaboration with AAP and National Association of School Nurses experts.

  When Dr. Goodwin is not seeing patients, educating or advocating, she is planning adventures with her village of strong women, coaching Girls on the Run, or training for her next marathon. Dr. Goodwin lives in Coastal Maine with her husband, teenage daughter and son, three cats and her rescue pups, Ally and Eloise.

• Shawn Lambert
  

  Shawn Lambert is a native of Biddeford, Maine. His career in education has included teaching English at high schools in Eastport, Waterville, and Lewiston, leading schools in Lewiston, Bethel, and Livermore Falls, and serving as superintendent director of a career and technical education region in South Paris. He has been Assistant Superintendent of the Brunswick School Department since 2019.

  Shawn holds degrees from Colby College, University of Maine, and University of Southern Maine. He has held several related positions including adjunct faculty with the University of New England, Editor of the Journal of Maine Education, and Chair of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges Committee on Career and Technical Institutions. He is committed to ensuring students and teachers have the access, tools, and direction they need to find personal and career success and fulfillment.

  Shawn resides in New Gloucester with his wife Nicole, an RN. They have four children.

• Jennifer Bowdish, RN
  

  Jennifer started her career as a cardiopulmonary and step-down nurse, where she worked for five years. She then became a school nurse, serving a large school of 1,200 students and staff. She's spent the last five years at Brunswick Junior High School as part of the Brunswick School Department’s health team. Her expertise lies in the connection between chronic illness and absenteeism, mental health, and pharmacology in the school setting. She has participated in panels at conferences on topics such as increasing immunization compliance, as well as integrating New Mainers into the school system while incorporating comprehensive health care. She is also an AHA CPR/First Aid instructor and teaches support staff how to care for students with chronic illnesses and complex medical conditions. Her focus is on providing effective case management for all students, treating students and families in the “whole child” model, and ensuring student well-being in the school environment. At this time, she is coordinating with her district to establish a school based health center.

  Jennifer also serves on the MASN board as the Education chair and Public Relations chair.

Appearance and Performance Enhancing Substances: The Real World and Risks for Youth

• Donald Hooton, Jr. Hooton Foundation
  

  Donald Hooton Jr. Speaker Profile Donald Hooton Jr. is one the most sought-after speakers in North America on the subject of Appearance and Performance Enhancing Substances use by youth. Donald serves as President for the Taylor Hooton Foundation which he helped his parents found in 2004, the year following the loss of his younger brother Taylor. Taylor died after using anabolic steroids.

  Since joining the organization, he has traveled across America speaking directly to several hundred thousand people. During his multi-media presentations, he uses the story of his brother’s personal tragedy to focus attention on this serious topic. Don then puts a spotlight Appearance and Performance Enhancing Substances by raising awareness about the widespread use of dietary supplements, energy drinks, anabolic steroids and HGH by our nation’s youth. He explores the scope of the problem as well as many of its root causes – athletics as well as social and body image reasons. He then examines the drugs that are being sold to our kids. Where do they come from and how easy is it for our kids to acquire them? And just how dangerous are these drugs? Finally, what can we do to stop this growing epidemic?

  Here is a sampling of the audiences that Donald has addressed:

  • He regularly speaks to tens of thousands of youth from all walks of life across America.
  • Students (athletes and non-athletes) in their school auditorium, gym or at sports camps Donald has delivered programs for kids in every Major League Ballpark in the US with the sponsorship of Major League Baseball
  • Doctors, Law Enforcement Officers, Parents, Coaches Trainings, and Educational Programs for our nations Athletic Trainers
  • Donald addresses “adult influencers” on a regular basis o Groups of superintendents and/or principals
  • State Athletic Associations
  • Parents Groups o Donald has appeared many national and international television and radio programs in addition to national print media.

  For example:

  • CBS 60 Minutes
  • ESPN (various programs)
  • Sports Illustrated
  • CBC – Canadian Television
  • Local Television Interviews Nationwide
  • CNN Business Week
• Michele LaBotz, MD
  

  Dr. LaBotz trained in pediatrics and sports medicine and recently retired from clinical practice at InterMed in Portland, Maine. She now serves as a consultant for Maine Health’s “Let’s Go“ program; is a member of the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital Scholarship Academy; Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Tufts University School of Medicine; and is the medical director for the University of New England Athletic Training Program. Her current areas of interest include physical literacy development and physical activity in children and adolescents, sports nutrition and injury prevention.

  She serves on the Health and Safety Advisory Council for the National Council on Youth Sports, the Board of Directors for the Maine Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, and is a content expert for United States Anti-Doping Agency’s True Sport educational program.

  Dr. LaBotz attended the University of Michigan and the University of California at Irvine. She received her MD degree from Dartmouth Medical School, her pediatric residency at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and Maine Medical Center and completed her sports medicine fellowship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She served as team physician and co-founded the sports medicine fellowship at the University of Hawai’i before returning to Maine.

  She lives on Cousins Island with her husband (a retired golf professional), and their dog Pinkie, and engages in a variety of outdoor activities throughout the year.

Lunch

It Won't Happen Here

• Marc Minkler, EMS-C Maine EMS for Children
  

  Marc Minkler is an EMS clinician and has been a paramedic for over 35 years. He is the current Maine State EMS for Children Program Manager and a Paramedic instructor. He is the immediate past chair of the United States Pediatric Emergency Care Council, is the co-lead for the Maine State Perinatal Quality Collaborative, and a member of the Maine Child Death & Serious Injury Review Panel, and the Maine Maternal, Fetal and Infant Mortality Review Panel. He has been the Training Officer and citywide EMS supervisor for Portland Fire Department, faculty at Southern Maine and Eastern Maine Community Colleges, Chief of EMS for a large private ambulance service, and a paramedic in the Metro Washington DC area. He presents frequently to state and national forums and conferences.

• Ashley Moody, MSN, FNP-C, EMT-P
  

  Ashley Moody has an extensive background in healthcare and public service. She is a licensed registered nurse, family nurse practitioner (FNP), and firefighter/paramedic. She received a degree in paramedicine from Southern Maine Community College, a Nursing degree from the University of Maine, and a Master's degree in Nursing from Walden University. She has spent many days, nights, weekends, and holidays, caring for Mainers as an emergency room nurse, school nurse, and a career firefighter/paramedic.

Climate Change and Kids: Health Impacts, Communication Strategies, and Getting Kids Outside

• Erin Flynn, MD
  

  Erin Flynn, MD, FAAP is a primary care pediatrician in Augusta, Maine. She completed her pediatric residency at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, where she was also a chief resident. At CHOP, she completed training in the Advanced Skill in Health Policy and contributed to policy research at the CHOP PolicyLab. She holds a certificate in Climate Change and Health from the Yale School of Public Health and serves as co-chair of the Maine Chapter of the American of Pediatrics Environmental Health and Climate Change Committee. When not caring for kids in clinic or thinking about policy strategies to improve children's health, Erin loves cooking, running, hiking, and exploring Maine with her son, daughter, husband, and intrepid pup.

• Sarah Harlow, MA, PS-C
  

  Sarah Harlow, MA, PS-C has worked in the field of prevention since 2014 in a variety of capacities. She served as the outreach coordinator for a Drug Free Communities coalition in Central Maine, and as the Community Coordinator for a Child Abuse and Neglect prevention council. Sarah joined the New England PTTC, housed at ADEPT Educational Institute of Maine, Inc. in 2020 as the Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator, and in June of 2024 became the Co-Director. Sarah earned a BA in Social Science and a BS in Public Administration from the University of Maine at Augusta. In 2022 she earned a Masters degree in Peace and Reconciliation studies at the University of Maine, and she became a certified prevention specialist in her home state of Maine. Sarah has been lucky to work creatively to serve the prevention workforce through product creation, including collaborating on the Graphic Medicines In the Air (vaping prevention) and Against the Odds (problem gambling prevention), leading the Research and Design (RAD) Fellowship Program, co-chairing a national Prevention Stakeholder’s workgroup on marketing and communications, sitting on the NAADAC Prevention Committee, and Chairing a national Community Coalitions and Collaborations workgroup. She loves facilitating national trainings on special subjects like Climate Change and Prevention, AI & Ethical Decision making, and Prevention Onboarding and Orientation. Sarah loves thinking and talking about prevention and all it's connections to the world around us.

• Teddy Lyman
  

  Teddy Lyman is the Climate Educator Specialist at the Maine Department of Education. He works on a climate change education program for educator professional development and curriculum development, as well as designing and collaborating on the future of climate change education in Maine. Before working for the Department of Education, Teddy was a science teacher for Middle and High School as well as a Dean of Students at an independent school in Colorado. He has worked in outdoor and experiential education throughout the country. Teddy earned his BA in Environmental Studies and Visual Arts at Bowdoin College. He loves the outdoors and lives in Rockland with his wife, Ellie, and dog, Roo.

Break and Exhibit Viewing

Concussion Management in Schools

• Nicholas Oyler, BSN, RN, NCSN
  

  Nick Oyler is a School Nurse Regional Liaison with the Maine Department of Education, with over 12 years of experience in school health. A Nationally Certified School Nurse, he has served students at the elementary, middle, and high school levels, and previously served as Coordinator of Student Health Services for a large school division in Central Virginia. Nick is committed to empowering students and families to take an active role in their health, while equipping school nurses and staff with the training, tools, and resources needed to keep students safe, healthy, and ready to learn.

• Brittany Russell, BSN, RN, NCSN
  

  Brittany (Layman) Russell, RN, BSN, NCSN is the Director of Health, Wellness and Safety for Regional School Unit 22. She has been a nurse for 20 years and this is her 11th school year with RSU 22. Our children need a safe, caring and stable environment to grow and thrive. A child's needs are consistently met while they attend school where they receive education, nutrition and healthcare. School nurses are instrumental in providing the very best health services to students and staff!

  Brittany is certified in school nursing (NCSN), is a school safety specialist through the Maine Department of Education, holds a certification in infrastructure safety and security through FEMA, and has her post baccalaureate certificate in School Safety, Security and Emergency Management through Northern University.

  When she is not promoting wellbeing initiatives in RSU 22 she is the board chair of the Maine School Garden Network. In her free time she loves to coach track and field, hike really long distances and play competitive volleyball across New England. She lives in Hampden with her husband Matt and 2 children, Cami 18 and AJ 15.