DEAPA Board


President

Erika Pierce PA-C President
Erika Pierce PA-C President

  • Erika Pierce PA-C
  • President
  • Email: erikasnowman@hotmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Erika is a native of Maine. She was raised in St. Albans and now resides there with her husband Bill and their 3-year-old daughter, Julia. Erika attended PA School at Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale. Since becoming a PA in 2005 Erika has served on the DEAPA Board of Directors for six consecutive years. Erika currently serves on the Maine Medical Association’s Legislative Committee and takes an active role in DEAPA’s advocacy efforts on behalf of Maine PAs as chair of DEAPA’s Government Affairs Committee. Erika enjoys teaching both as a preceptor for UNE PA students and as an academic detailer for the Maine academic detailing pilot program called the Maine Independent Clinical Information Service. Erika works clinically with the Hospitalist Team at Redington Fairview General Hospital in Skowhegan. In her spare time Erika enjoys skiing, gardening, and spending time with family.


President-elect

Erika Pierce PA-C President-elect
Erika Pierce PA-C President-elect

  • Erika Pierce PA-C
  • President-elect
  • Email: erikasnowman@hotmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Erika is a native of Maine. She was raised in St. Albans and now resides there with her husband Bill and their 3-year-old daughter, Julia. Erika attended PA School at Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale. Since becoming a PA in 2005 Erika has served on the DEAPA Board of Directors for six consecutive years. Erika currently serves on the Maine Medical Association’s Legislative Committee and takes an active role in DEAPA’s advocacy efforts on behalf of Maine PAs as chair of DEAPA’s Government Affairs Committee. Erika enjoys teaching both as a preceptor for UNE PA students and as an academic detailer for the Maine academic detailing pilot program called the Maine Independent Clinical Information Service. Erika works clinically with the Hospitalist Team at Redington Fairview General Hospital in Skowhegan. In her spare time Erika enjoys skiing, gardening, and spending time with family.


Vice-President

Emily Kumagae PA-C Vice-President
Emily Kumagae PA-C Vice-President

  • Emily Kumagae PA-C
  • Vice-President
  • Email: emilykumagae@gmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Emily has recently received her Master’s degree from UNE and PA certification, which has been a long time goal. She felt privileged to be elected as a Student Director to the DEAPA Board of Directors in 2009 and has actively served since that time. She brings an unwavering energy and passion for the PA profession. Thankful for the significant contributions of both past and present leadership, she looks forward to serving as an advocate for Maine PAs. She holds undergraduate degrees in Dance, Multimedia Arts and Technologies, and Liberal Studies. An injury in college led her to develop a strong interest in trauma and medical science. She expanded her tracts of study to include Exercise and Health Science and Fitness Instruction with an emphasis in personal training. She has spent the last ten years working in physical therapy, with adults with developmental and physical disabilities, and in a multi-disciplinary alternative pain clinic. Recent transplants from Southern California, Emily and her husband Evan enjoy living Freeport and exploring all Maine's outdoor adventures.


Immediate Past President

Gregg Christensen PA-C Immediate Past President
Gregg Christensen PA-C Immediate Past President

  • Gregg Christensen PA-C
  • Immediate Past President
  • Email: gchristensen@emh.org
  • Bio:
  • This is Gregg's sixth year on the DEAPA Board, and he previously served as Past President. He has been representing Maine PAs on the BOLIM PA Advisory Committee for over five years and has served as a preceptor for PA students in family practice for over 23 years. He is an ex-USAF Corpsman who spent his military career in Aroostook County. He graduated from the Albany-Hudson Valley PA Program in 1979 and has been in Greenville since 1980 working in family medicine and the emergency room at the Charles A. Dean Memorial Hospital. He also worked in the ER at the Millinocket Regional Hospital from 1994 to 1999. Gregg lives in Greenville with his wife Chris and has two daughters; four step-children; two grandsons, Conor and Caden; and a granddaughter, Erin. He enjoys spending time at his log cabin hunting camp and enjoys riding his Harley-Davidson.


Treasurer

Christopher Ross PA-C Treasurer
Christopher Ross PA-C Treasurer

  • Christopher Ross PA-C
  • Treasurer
  • Email: crosspac@hotmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Chris has served on the DEAPA Board since moving to Maine six years ago. He served as Treasurer for three years, and has served in the HOD for three years. He graduated from the St. Francis College PA Program and worked in Emergency Medicine at Waterbury Hospital, Waterbury, Connecticut, prior to moving to Maine to work at the Maine Dartmouth Family Medicine Institute in Augusta. Chris also works as a volunteer fire fighter in Winthrop, where he lives with his wife Kristen and children, Abbie, Bennett and Camden. In his spare time, he enjoys running and just spending time with the family.


Secretary

Angela Chase PA-C Secretary
Angela Chase PA-C Secretary

  • Angela Chase PA-C
  • Secretary
  • Email: achase3@une.edu
  • Bio:
  • Angela is an alumnus of the University of New England’s PA program. She had served as a Student Director on the DEAPA Board of Directors for two years, and has been active on the board since. Her interest in the PA profession began in high school. Trained originally as an EMT, she had been working in Emergency Medicine for five years before certifying as a PA. She received her undergraduate degree in Medical Biology from UNE. As a PA student at UNE she was selected to work with Alzheimer’s patients in a unique geriatric clinic in Arizona. She traveled to Sekondi, Ghana with the Ghana Health Mission, a multidisciplinary team providing community care and health outreach. She looks forward to doing more medical outreach work in third world countries. Originally from Midcoast Maine, she is delighted to work in her home state. Angela enjoys kayaking/canoeing and hiking with her dog.


House of Delegates

Susan Kepes PA-C House of Delegates
Susan Kepes PA-C House of Delegates

  • Susan Kepes PA-C
  • House of Delegates
  • Email: grisen@aol.com
  • Bio:
  • Susan has held all DEAPA offices since she began service on the Board in 1986, but her favorite role is as a DEAPA representative to the AAPA House of Delegates, a position she has continuously held since 1987. Her HOD service has included involvement on three reference committees, the Nominating Committee, the Credentialing Committee, and the mentoring program. At the 2008 Conference, she was presented with the House Outstanding Service Award in appreciation of her service to the Academy. A 1983 graduate of the PA Program of Wake Forest University, she came to Maine in 1985 as one of the first PAs at the Mercy Hospital ER in Portland. For 15 years, she practiced primary care pediatrics and served as a preceptor to PA students from the University of New England. Three years ago she decided it was time for a new challenge and joined an ENT practice in Portland. She lives in Portland with her husband (and fellow PA, Alan Hull, and their daughter Linnéa. When she is not in the garden or spying on birds, Susan likes to read and listen to music.


Shawn McGlew PA-C House of Delegates
Shawn McGlew PA-C House of Delegates

  • Shawn McGlew PA-C
  • House of Delegates
  • Email: shawnerpa@urgentcareofmaine.com
  • Bio:
  • Shawn has served on the DEAPA board continuously for the past 11 years. He served as president for several years, Liaison to the Board of Licensure in Medicine and has been a delegate to the House of Delegates during that same time period. He was awarded the Robert J. Lapham Outstanding Service Award in 2002. Shawn graduated from the Northeastern University PA program in 1993 and worked ever since in the ER at MaineGeneral Medical Center until just 2 years ago. In January 2008, Shawn incorporated as UrgentCare of Maine, P.A., and started ExpressCare, a walk-in urgent care facility in Waterville. Shawn and his wife Kerri (a former Vice President of DEAPA) have regularly lobbied Congress on PA issues since 2000. They live in China with their three children and hope to find time to do some boating this summer.


Kirsten Thomsen PA House of Delegates
Kirsten Thomsen PA House of Delegates

  • Kirsten Thomsen PA
  • House of Delegates
  • Email: kthomsen7@gmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Kirsten moved to Maine in June 2010. She is on faculty and is Clinical Coordinator and Faculty Advisor to the student PA Society at the University of New England Westbrook College Physician Assistant Program. She graduated from Northeastern University PA Program in 1988, then worked in Albuquerque, New Mexico in family medicine until 1994 when she joined faculty at The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, in the Dept. of Family and Community Medicine. She developed and was the first program director of the UNM Physician Assistant Program for the School of Medicine. While in New Mexico, she served on the NM Board of Medicine PA Advisory Committee for 5 years, 2 as chair, prior to moving to Washington DC where she was on faculty at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Science PA Program until moving to Maine. She has served as director at large on the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) Board of Directors, on committees with the American Academy of Physician Assistants, AAPA House of Delegates representing NM and DC PA academies, president and director at large of NMAPA, and vice president twice of DCAPA. She testified before the legislature on behalf of PA legislative issues in both NM and DC. She worked with the homeless population in both NM and DC and looks forward to engaging with the diverse populations in Maine. She lives in Portland with her husband, Jim, and cat, Ace. Kirsten enjoys reading, hiking, health policy issues and getting to know people.


Director-At-Large

Laura Corbett PA-C Director-At-Large
Laura Corbett PA-C Director-At-Large

  • Laura Corbett PA-C
  • Director-At-Large
  • Email: lauradcorbett@gmail.com
  • Bio:
  • This is Laura’s fifth term on the Board. She graduated from Hahnemann University PA Program in 1985 and received her MPAS from the University of Utah in Evidence Based Medicine in July 2006. She has spent the majority of her clinical time in the VA health care system and has contributed to the VAPAA (Veterans Administration Physician Assistant Association) for many years. She has worked in Physical Rehabilitation, Women¹s Health, and Urgent Care. She enjoyed her position as Faculty/Clinical Coordinator with the University of New England PA Program from 2004-August 2007, and served as UNE PA Program Liaison to the DEAPA Board of Directors for nearly three years. She presently works at Togus VA Hospital in Emergency Medicine. Laura lives in Belgrade with her three children and Tim, her husband of 25+ years. Laura is passionate about her family, her faith, running, biking, gardening and *serving as a medical missionary in Haiti over the past few years.


Gordon Murphy PA-C Director-At-Large
Gordon Murphy PA-C Director-At-Large

  • Gordon Murphy PA-C
  • Director-At-Large
  • Email: gmurphy1@mail.une.edu
  • Bio:
  • Gordon recently graduated from the University of New England PA Program. He has a BA in History from the University of New Hampshire and worked for 12 years as a sales associates for a database software development and consulting firms such as NCR Teradata and the Peppers & Rogers Group. He has also been an EMT/Firefighter for Cumberland and Yarmouth for a number of years, which is what spurred his interest in practicing medicine. He is currently employed at Maine Medical Center Emergency Department. He and his wife Megan have three children and enjoy skiing, boating, and baseball.


Kirsten Thomsen PA Director-At-Large
Kirsten Thomsen PA Director-At-Large

  • Kirsten Thomsen PA
  • Director-At-Large
  • Email: kthomsen7@gmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Kirsten moved to Maine in June 2010. She is on faculty and is Clinical Coordinator and Faculty Advisor to the student PA Society at the University of New England Westbrook College Physician Assistant Program. She graduated from Northeastern University PA Program in 1988, then worked in Albuquerque, New Mexico in family medicine until 1994 when she joined faculty at The University of New Mexico School of Medicine, in the Dept. of Family and Community Medicine. She developed and was the first program director of the UNM Physician Assistant Program for the School of Medicine. While in New Mexico, she served on the NM Board of Medicine PA Advisory Committee for 5 years, 2 as chair, prior to moving to Washington DC where she was on faculty at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Science PA Program until moving to Maine. She has served as director at large on the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) Board of Directors, on committees with the American Academy of Physician Assistants, AAPA House of Delegates representing NM and DC PA academies, president and director at large of NMAPA, and vice president twice of DCAPA. She testified before the legislature on behalf of PA legislative issues in both NM and DC. She worked with the homeless population in both NM and DC and looks forward to engaging with the diverse populations in Maine. She lives in Portland with her husband, Jim, and cat, Ace. Kirsten enjoys reading, hiking, health policy issues and getting to know people.


Student Director Class of 2012

Amy Patrick PA-S Student Director Class of 2012
Amy Patrick PA-S Student Director Class of 2012



Beth Pritchard PA-S Student Director Class of 2012
Beth Pritchard PA-S Student Director Class of 2012



Student Director Class of 2013

Caitlin Mahoney PA-S Student Director Class of 2013
Caitlin Mahoney PA-S Student Director Class of 2013

  • Caitlin Mahoney PA-S
  • Student Director Class of 2013
  • Email: caitlinmahoney86@gmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Caitlin is a Maine native, growing up in Millinocket. She spent much of her childhood at her parents’ campground near Baxter State Park enjoying nature and the beauty of Maine. She graduated from Stearns High School in 2004, and the next year left the state for college education. She attended Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology with a minor in Biology. In January of 2009, she returned to Maine to work at Acadia Hospital in Bangor. She enjoyed her time there but realized the limitations of a Bachelor’s degree, and decided to pursue higher education as a PA. She was accepted as a member of the UNE PA Class of 2013, and now serves as a DEAPA Student Representative. In her free time she enjoys yoga, walking, cooking, and jewelry making.


Cheryl Deane PA-S Student Director Class of 2013
Cheryl Deane PA-S Student Director Class of 2013

  • Cheryl Deane PA-S
  • Student Director Class of 2013
  • Email: cherylrdeane@gmail.com
  • Bio:
  • Cheryl was thrilled to move to Maine in 2007 after spending two exciting years living on a small island off the coast of Sweden. Originally a native of upstate NY, she has a Bachelor's of Science in Natural Resources, and has volunteered countless hours banding migratory songbirds. She has worked as a paralegal in a non-profit legal aid office, a cheesemaker, a ski lift operator, and most recently as a medical assistant in an allergy practice in southern Maine. Cheryl considers it a privilege to represent the Class of 2013 on the DEAPA Board and really looks forward to helping educate her classmates on state and nationwide issues related to PA practice. Since starting PA school this past June, "free time" is a distant memory, but her family reminds her that she used to love reading, knitting, skiing and kayaking. She lives in Portland with her husband, Joshua Henry, and two adorable Australian cattle dogs.