Our Team

Lynne Borden, PhD

Dr. Lynne Borden is the associate dean for research and engagement for the University of Minnesota Extension. As the principal investigator of the CYFAR Professional Development and Technical Assistance (PDTA) Center, she provides overall leadership to all aspects of the team.

Daniel Perkins, PhD

Daniel F. Perkins, PhD, is a professor of family and youth resiliency and policy at Penn State University and the principal scientist of the Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness at Penn State, a university-wide applied research center. Since 1993, Dr. Perkins has provided leadership to CYFAR grants. Dr. Perkins has designed and evaluated strengths-based family and youth development programs in 4-H and Cooperative Extension and has led complex projects for over 25 years. His work involves teaching, research, and outreach through the Penn State Cooperative Extension Service. His scholarship integrates research and practice in three focus areas: (a) healthy family development (increasing resiliency through evidence and strengths-based educational programming); (b) implementation science (involving mixed method hybrid evaluations of preventions and interventions, implementation outcomes, and community-based delivery models, especially in military connected contexts); and (c) community collaboration (promoting strategies for mobilizing communities in support of children, youth, and families). He has authored more than 120 peer-reviewed journal articles and is a recent recipient of the W.K.K. Kellogg Community Engagement Award for the northeast region. He is passionate about the applied mission of the land-grant university.

Sarah Louise Butler

Sarah serves as the grant program associate for the CYFAR PDTA Center at the University of Minnesota. In this role, Sarah provides administrative support, program management, and web content management.

Phillip Ealy

Phillip L. Ealy serves as the coaching coordinator for the CYFAR PDTA Center. Phillip earned a BS in communications from West Virginia State University and a master’s degree in organization development and change from Pennsylvania State University (Penn State). He is currently a PhD student at Penn State where his research focus is developing and promoting underrepresented populations to executive level leadership. Phillip is a retired Army Officer with an extensive background in leadership, mentoring, teaching, and coaching.

Mark Otto

Mark Otto serves as a co-PI for the CYFAR grant and as the Director of Strategic Partnerships at the University of Minnesota Extension. Previously, Mark served as a project director for CYFAR, providing guidance and oversight on CYFAR team projects. 

Samantha Grant

Samantha Grant is the Center for Research and Outreach (REACH) Lab research project director. Samantha brings a solid youth development background as she previously served as the evaluation director for the University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development. As part of her work, she has designed and implemented evaluations for youth workers and with youth in the Minnesota 4-H program.

Denae Harmon

Denae is the Center for Research and Outreach (REACH) Lab evaluation specialist. She previously worked as a K-12 accreditation lead for international schools. As part of her accreditation work, Denae developed remote readiness protocols and coached school leaders. She is currently a PhD student at the University of Minnesota where her research focus is how education evaluation processes can promote meaningful stakeholder engagement and enhanced accessibility.

Kerri Ashurst, PhD

Dr. Kerri Ashurst is a senior Extension specialist for family and relationship development in Family and Consumer Sciences Extension at the University of Kentucky. She has worked with a variety of grants focusing on outreach and support to families and has worked with CYFAR for over 23 years. Kerri's focus is building capacity for reaching underserved or at-risk children, youth, families, and communities. Her primary areas of interest include families who are coping with major crises, positive youth and young adult development, couple communication and relationship building, and stress management. Kerri holds a BA in psychology, an MS in marriage and family therapy, and a PhD in family sciences from the University of Kentucky.

Misty Blue-Terry, PhD

Dr. Misty Blue-Terry is the 4-H specialist for matters of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) in the Cooperative Extension program at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. Her educational background is in industrial and systems engineering and human factors engineering. She has partnered with campus professors, community-based organizations, and other leaders to provide STEM related programming in robotics, basic engineering and design principals, the scientific method, and GIS/GPS applications. She is also the founder of the Innovation Station, the 4-H mobile makerspace, and STEM lab. Misty has served as a content expert for a CYFAR Sustainable Community Project grant and has goals to help broaden the reach of 4-H and STEM in underrepresented communities and to support girls in science programs.

Candi Dierenfield, PhD

Dr. Candi Dierenfield bleeds green! Her experience with 4-H began in 1983 when she joined the Worden Riverdales 4-H club in Montana. She took sewing and made a skirt and a knit top. She loved everything about 4-H, except for record book time! Her first fashion review won best of class for construction, and there was no stopping her from there! 4-H gave her the confidence and life skills to get her first modeling job, start a sewing business at age 15, attend numerous national 4-H events, and pursue a degree in fashion design. While living in Alaska, she began working with 4-H, and she has been working with the CYFAR grant program in a variety of capacities since 2004. Candi became a foster-parent, fostering over 20 youth. This led to becoming part of the Access, Equity, and Belonging Champions for Youth in Foster Care national committee. Candi received a bachelor’s degree from Woodbury University. She attended Montana State University - Billings to earn a degree in information systems and communication, and she earned a PhD in education from Northcentral University. Candi is the 4-H state specialized agent, volunteer management and development at the University of Florida.

Autumn Guin, PhD

Dr. Autumn Guin supports program implementation, evaluation, and sustainability for CYFAR Sustainable Community Projects across the country as a coach and evaluation consultant for the CYFAR PDTA Center. She also serves as an adjunct assistant professor in the youth, family, and community sciences graduate program and as the program design and evaluation specialist for North Carolina 4-H’s Healthy Living and STEM Programs. In addition, Dr. Guin codirects multiple grant programs in these roles and provides leadership in the development, implementation, oversight, evaluation, and sustainability of research-based and evidence-informed programs for youth, families, and communities. Dr. Guin holds a BS in psychology, an MS in community psychology, and a PhD in educational research and policy analysis specializing in educational evaluation and educator professional development. In addition, she is a board certified coach with 24 years of qualitative and quantitative research and evaluation experience.

Pamela Payne, PhD

Dr. Pamela B. Payne is an assistant professor of human development and family studies as well as Cooperative Extension at the University of Nevada, Reno. Pam has worked with CYFAR programs previously working to pilot what is now the Common Measures process for CYFAR grant recipients. Pam is interested in positive relationship development, specifically romantic relationships, parenting, and youth outcomes. She has also worked with developing extension programs and courses for military families. Dr. Payne holds a BA and PhD from the University of Arizona and an MA from Pepperdine University.