Robin Duncan, Assistant Vice President of Community Relations
rduncan@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9591
Robin Duncan became Assistant Vice President of Community Relations at MWCC in January of 2008 and as such, she oversees the college’s community and civic engagement initiatives, including the Center for Democracy and Humanity. Over the past 12 years, she has developed and implemented a number of community and business related programs for Mount Wachusett Community College.
Prior to her current role, Robin served as Director of Budgets, Grants and Contract management and Assistant to the President for Special Projects. In that capacity, she monitored the compliance and fiscal controls for grants and contracts and developed the framework for the Community Scholars Program, as well as coordinated the Community College Leadership Academy between the 15 community colleges within Massachusetts. Upon receiving a HRSA federal grant to address the nursing shortage in the region, Robin served as Director of the Healthcare Pathway Program and was competitively selected to present at HRSA's Annual Conference. During her earlier years at MWCC, Robin served as Director of the Fitness and Wellness Center where she creatively converted an under-utilized, 60,000 square-foot state facility into a thriving and self-supporting, multi-functional center for the college and the community.
Robin holds an M.B.A. from Anna Maria College, a B.S. in Marketing Mangament from SUNY, and graduated from the UCLA/Johnson & Johnson HealthCare Executive Leadership Program. She has donated her time to a number of organizations and is currently an active board member of the Boys & Girls Club of North Central Massachusetts and the Fitchburg Cycling Club, serving on the Longsjo Committee. In addition, she serves as Chair of the Executive Board for the Wachusett Chamber of Commerce. Recently, Robin was recognized by the Girl Scouts of Central and Western Massachusetts as one of the region’s 2008 Women of Distinction.
Fagan Forhan, Co-Director of the Center for Democracy and Humanity
fforhan@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9595
With six years of experience working with the Massachusetts State Legislature as Chief of Staff for former State Rep. Brian Knuuttila, and nearly a decade working in public service in North Central Massachusetts, Fagan brings a unique perspective to the Center for Democracy and Humanity. She has worked closely with our elected officials at local, state and federal levels to bring a number of projects to fruition in the North Central region. In her capacity as Chief of Staff for the Representative, she served as a liaison to the State for local nonprofits and for constituents, bringing their budgetary priorities, concerns and ideas forth to the delegation and also mediated communications with state agencies. As a 1998 graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst with a degree in Psychology, Fagan has consistently and passionately been involved in many facets of community service, and has served on numerous boards and committees. She is responsible for the oversight and coordination of Community Scholars, United Way Youth Venture, the ‘What’s Next Speaker Series’, Citizenship Academy and the Democracy Café.
Jennifer Wiley-Cordone, Co-Director of the Center for Dcmocracy and Humanity
jwiley-cordone@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9144
Jennifer has been with the Center for Democracy and Humanity since January of 2007. As a little girl, Jen had a dream to one day become the Director of Capacity Building and oversee the Institute for Nonprofit Development, so she attended Central Connecticut State University where she received a BA in Psychology and an accidental minor in Philosophy. Jen continued her education with a Master’s Degree in Women’s Studies from The Ohio State University. Scanning the Help Wanted—Feminist Epistemologists section in vain, Jen decided to simultaneously pursue a Master’s Degree in Education, Policy & Leadership, also from OSU.
Prepared by teaching Intro to Feminist Politics to the Ohio State football team, Jen returned to New England to provide mandated training to police officers--as well as more voluntary training to teachers and community members--on identifying precursors to hate crimes. After two years of living out of a suitcase, her responsibilities at the Education Development Center shifted from working with the National Center for Hate Crime Prevention to the Office of Sponsored Programs, where she continued to provide training and curriculum development—this time focusing on research ethics, program development and research evaluation methods.
In addition to her checkered professional past, since 2001, Jennifer has facilitated participatory decision making and consensus process with large groups, primarily as a member of the Board of Directors for Sawyer Hill EcoVillage, a $24M resident designed affordable housing project in Berlin, MA. Jennifer takes her work very seriously--herself, not so much.
Christine Meleo, Program Coordinator of the Center for Democracy and Humanity
cmeleo@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9163
Elizabeth Ashmore, Outreach Coordinator of the Center for Democracy and Humanity
eashmore@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9458
Elizabeth was born in Atlantic City New Jersey into a family of 12 brothers and sisters. Helping and inspiring others has always been a passion for her. Elizabeth directs the Children's Musical Group at Centro de Cultura Espirita Amalia Domingo Soler, Inc. The Children's Musical Group conducts events at local nursing homes and holds fundraisers for local shelters.
Samantha Cesario, Community Scholars MACC AmeriCorps*VISTA
scesario@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9201
Katie Chace, Institute for Nonprofit Development MACC AmeriCorps *VISTA
kchace@mwcc.mass.edu
(978) 630-9589
Katie Chace is a recent graduate of Mount Wachusett Community College and served on the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education. While at MWCC she was a member of Phi Theta Kappa and Alpha Beta Gamma, and was the President of the Student Government Association. She worked on projects that include but are not limited to the SGA Annual Thanksgiving Food Drive, Habitat for Humanity, Ginny’s Walk/Run for Hunger and the Molly Bish Kid Expo. She has also participated in Conferences such as the Community College Student Leadership Association, National Association for Campus Activities, Fall Student Leadership Retreat, and Board of Higher Education Student Leadership Conference. Katie was also one of the recipients of the Dean’s Key Award at Commencement. Now she joins the MWCC Center for Democracy and Humanity staff as the Massachusetts Campus Compact AmeriCorps *VISTA where she will be working with Human Services internship students and the leadership of youth-serving non-profits to develop a community asset map of north central Massachusetts to help identify areas of need and overlap of services for disconnected youth.
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