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The Children's Alliance of New Hampshire is led by a dynamic, non-partisan, statewide board and a diverse, dedicated and experienced staff.

Executive Committee

Andrea Johnstone, Esq. serves as the Chair for our Board and is a shareholder at Bernstein Shur where she practices labor and employment law. She was named NH's leading labor and employment law attorney in a survey of the legal profession, and is listed in Best Lawyers of America and Chambers USA's America's Leading Lawyers for Business. She is co-author of Labor and Employment Law in NH and is chair of the Business and Industry Association of NH Human Resources Committee. She is a frequent speaker on state and federal employment law. She is a graduate of Wheaton College and Hofstra University College of Law.

Jim Doremus serves as Vice Chair of the board and is currently the Executive Director of the Concord YMCA and former Executive Director at White Birch Community Center. He previously worked for twenty-three years with The Friends Program of Concord, NH, of which the last twelve years he served as the organizations Executive Director. Jim has been the recipient of several awards recognizing leadership and management expertise. He has served on numerous nonprofit Boards in a variety of leadership roles.

Sheri L. Rockburn is the Treasurer of the board and and co-owns the accounting firm of Coppola and Rockburn, she teaches college level accounting for New Hampshire Technical Institute. She previously served as Comptroller for the State of New Hampshire. Sheri holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Southern New Hampshire University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, with a concentration in accounting, from the University of New Hampshire.

Virginia Sheehan, Esq. is board Secretary and an owner of the law firm of Flood, Sheehan and Tobin, PLLC. She works in the areas of estate planning, federal estate and gift taxation, and probate administration.

Board Members


Patricia Cantor is a professor of early childhood education and former chair of the Plymouth State University Education Department from 2000 - 2009. She teaches early childhood courses and is the Early Childhood Program coordinator.  Dr. Cantor joined the Plymouth State faculty in 1990 and served as director of the Child Development and Family Center for six years.   Dr. Cantor is actively involved in several state and national early childhood organizations including the NH Child Care Advisory Council and the National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators.  She is a graduate of Boston University (Ed.D), Plymouth State University (M.Ed.), and Harvard University (B.A.).  Dr. Cantor resides in Concord.

Kenneth Jue, a leader in the field of mental health, has been a member of the Keene community since 1978, when he became director of consultation and education at Monadnock Family Services.  Mr. Jue assumed the role of chief executive officer at MFS from 1998 - 2009.  He has served in many Keene-based organizations including Keene State College, Keene School Board, Monadnock United Way, Keene Elm City Rotary Club, Keene Housing Authority and the Keene Public Library.  Mr. Jue currently serves on the Board of the NH Center for Nonprofits and the NH Mental Health Council.  He is a graduate of Trinity College (BA) and Case-Western Reserve University (MS and MA) and an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Keene State College.  Mr. Jue resides in Keene.

James Milliken is District Representative for Modern Woodmen of America and currently President of James W. Milliken Associates, Inc. - a management consulting firm providing a full range of management and training to both profit and nonprofit organizations. Previously, Jim was President of Jobs for New Hampshire's Graduates, Inc. and also served as Director of Administrative Services for MCT Telecom. From 1975 - 1986, he was Executive Vice President of the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce. Jim has a long list of memberships, awards, and community service. He is a graduate of UNH, Whittemore School of Business.

Dr. John F. Modlin  is Professor of Pediatrics at Dartmouth Medical School, and Medical Director of the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth. He is a member of the Infectious Disease Section at DHMC in Lebanon, NH. He has authored and co-authored more than 200 papers in medical literature. He served as Vice Chair of Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group Executive Committee and as a Chair of the FDA Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee, and Chair of the CDC Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. He has been at Dartmouth since 1991.

Senator Kathleen Sgambati is a NH State Senator, serving Senate District 6. Prior to her election in 2006, she spent 26 years at DHHS, working directly for six Commissioners and with five Governors. During her tenure there she worked on welfare reform and specialized in children's and health issues, responsible for the design of the Children's Health Insurance Program, the Kid's Cabinet and family support programs. As the principal of Sgambati & Associates, a consulting practice, she continues to focus on these policy areas. She currently serves as vice chair of the Health & Human Services Committee, is a member of the Finance, Public and Municipal Affairs and the Energy, Environment and Economic Development Committee.


Staff

The Children's Alliance prides itself on having a staff that is richly diverse in its experience and unified in its passion for children

   

   

Ellen Fineberg
President
  EFineberg@ChildrenNH.org

 

With a combination of executive experience, advocacy skills, and a state-wide network of business, political and nonprofit leaders, Ellen brings to the Children’s Alliance the passion and the skills to advance the opportunities of New Hampshire’s children and their families. Most recently, Ellen served as Executive Director of the Women’s Business Center (WBC) in New Hampshire. Under her leadership, WBC expanded its reach to more areas of the state, increased programming to include women at all stages of business development, and stepped up its advocacy role in the media and with both state and national legislators. In addition to her work with WBC, Ellen has extensive experience in the arts, education, and with community organizations. In 2006, she received the Excellence in Public Service award from New Hampshire Business Review. That same year, she was also featured in New Hampshire Magazine’s Remarkable Women issue. Ellen holds a Bachelors degree from Kenyon College and Masters Degrees from George Washington University and Antioch New England.

Erika Argersinger
Public Policy Director
  EArgersinger@ChildrenNH.org

 

Erika has worked for more than 15 years to advance the interests of children at the local, state, and federal levels. She has advocated on behalf of immigrant and homeless populations, Head Start children and families, in addition to her focus on child care, afterschool and other family issues.  Most recently, Erika was the Policy Director for the Washington, DC based Afterschool Alliance where she worked with policy makers and their staff to impact federal legislation and coordinated advocacy activities among state and local advocates. Before championing afterschool programming, Erika worked to advance early education as the Associate Director of Government Affairs for the National Head Start Association in DC and as the Research and Policy Associate for Associated Early Care and Education, Inc. in Boston, among other programs. She has also worked on and managed political campaigns at the city and state level. Erika believes education, including early education and afterschool programs, is critical to breaking the cycle of poverty and this belief has guided her policy work. Erika received her undergraduate degree in political science from American University and her master’s degree in Applied Child Development and Public Policy from Tufts University.

 

Debbie Walsh
Director of Operations
(DWalsh@ChildrenNH.org)

 


 

As Director of Operations, Deb has worn many hats at the Alliance over the past seventeen years. She was hired by Terry Lochhead in 1993, assisted Ellen Shemitz and staff for nine years, and presently works with President Ellen Fineberg. Deb has varied administrative skills, including knowledge of different databases, web site editing programs, various Microsoft office programs.  Formerly, Deb served as Marketing Support Coordinator for the Aetna Employee Benefits Division in Concord for seven years where she worked for the General Manager and Employee Benefits Representatives.  Prior to this, she was a Medical Secretary for a Manchester-based neurologist for nine years. Deb earned her degree from Bryant University, Smithfield, RI. She presently sits on the board of Concord Commons. She lives in Concord and has two grown daughters.

Photography by Karen Cusano

 

   

 

 
 

 

NH CAN

The New Hampshire Child Advocacy Network is a statewide coalition of over 100 partner organizations improving the health and wellbeing of NH’s children and families through the annual Priorities for New Hampshire’s Children.

 
KIDS COUNT

KIDS COUNT is a national and state-by-state effort to document the condition of children and families and to highlight the most promising ways of helping kids grow up to be healthy, productive adults.

 


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