Executive Director​

Keegan’s passion for being a father can undoubtedly be traced back to the hundreds of hours he spent as a child watching Full House reruns. ​Prior to becoming a father, Keegan earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Human Development from Colby College in 2006. He has worked in nonprofit organizations ever since, with a focus on community building and social emotional skill development in adolescents.

​He moved to Vermont to serve as an AmeriCorps VISTA in 2009 and worked as an educator at Howard Center for nearly 10 years. After starting Dad Guild in late 2018, he worked as the Fatherhood Program Coordinator at the Janet S. Munt Family Room where he oversaw the development of the program there.

Keegan lives in Burlington with his partner, Stephanie, their two daughters, Coraline and Penny, and their four furry felines, Mouse, Luna, Pigeon and Cinder. In his spare time, he enjoys kayaking, watching Stephanie perform improv at the Vermont Comedy Club, and playing the ukulele...at a very mediocre skill level. Like, really mediocre.

Development Director

Marlon Fisher is a devoted father and a passionate advocate for parental support systems. As the primary caregiver for his first son, Marlon learned firsthand the joys and challenges of parenthood and discovered the importance of community for fathers. He became actively involved in various parenting groups, which inspired him to join forces with Keegan to found Dad Guild, dedicated to fostering connections among fathers, families, and children.

Professionally, Marlon has focused his career on assisting at-risk youth, working in residential, wilderness, and community settings. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Integrated Studies from Champlain College and served eight years as an All-Source Intelligence Analyst in the US Army. Currently, Marlon serves on the Spectrum Youth & Family Services board, where he contributes his expertise in supporting vulnerable young individuals.

Marlon enjoys making people laugh as a stand-up comic in his free time and is a regular host of The Moth StorySlam competition in Burlington, VT. His commitment to community engagement, personal growth, and storytelling reflects his passion for making a positive impact on others' lives.

Program Officer

Patrick is a local Burlingtonian who - after 17 years away - moved back to the area in August 2022. His time away consisted of 11 years in Washington, DC, working on Capitol Hill as well as at various think tanks and advocacy groups, followed by 6 years in Berlin, Germany, working as a cybersecurity consultant.

Both of Patrick’s children were born while living in Berlin. He and his kids are German-American dual citizens and speak German at home (Mom speaks English). As a result Patrick has a personal passion for the specific challenges and joys of raising kids in a bilingual household.

Patrick lives in Colchester, in a house filled with various mammals, including: Emily (wife), Ingela, aka “Oma” (mother), Cora (daughter), Merritt (son), Sydnie (dog), Sophie (dog), Felix (cat), Albert (cat). When he is not chasing after one of these mammals, Patrick enjoys swimming, skiing, and rooting for the German soccer team Hertha BSC Berlin.

Operations Manager

Sarah lives in Burlington’s New North End with her wife, two children, and cat. Previous to Dad Guild Sarah primarily has experience working with nonprofits in roles focusing on youth, admin, and management. She worked for The DREAM Program for 7 years as a Program Empowerment Director and Program Director and for 5 years at The Flynn as the Class & Camp Manager. Since becoming a parent herself, Sarah has grown a deep appreciation for the need for community support for families. She is excited to join Dad Guild in supporting fathers and masculine-identifying caregivers (and by extension the greater community) in the adventure of parenting!

Sarah enjoys dancing, particularly partner dancing, and outdoor adventures such as hiking, biking and camping. She also loves spending time with her family and finds great joy in seeing and hearing about the world through the eyes of her children. Sarah’s greatest ambition is to help leave the world a better place for the next generation.

Regional Expansion Coordinator

Dan is a teacher, community organizer, and father. He lives in Burlington with his partner and four-year-old son.

Dan has spent his life working with children and young people. He has taught in traditional and alternative schools, spending much of his career teaching middle school social studies. Dan has also worked at summer camps, coached middle and high school sports, and developed curriculum for teachers.

Dan holds a B.S. in Culture and Politics from Georgetown University and an M.Ed. from John Carroll University. He is currently pursuing an M.A. in Social Justice and Community Organizing from Prescott College. Dan also holds a Professional Educator License with an endorsement in Middle Grades Social Studies.

Dan cares deeply about environmental and social justice and is committed to dismantling patriarchy and achieving gender equity.

Dan enjoys playing sports, riding bikes, and hanging out on the bike path with his family.

Data and Program Evaluation Specialist

Grace is an artist, information scientist, and super-mommy of five living in Burlington. She has an undergraduate education in Computer Science, Psychology, and Studio Art and earned an M.S. in Complex Systems & Data Science from UVM in 2022. 

She has worked with non-profits including the Janet S. Munt Family Room, the Vermont State Data Center, Vermont Student Assistance Corporation, and United Way of Greater Atlanta designing and managing database systems and web apps. She is excited to support Dad Guild in its fatherhood programming by providing expertise in data management & program evaluation.

Grace is part of the Vermont Comic Creators and has a Bacon-Erdös number of less than infinity—five degrees from Kevin Bacon through her role in “Busted: A Citizen’s Guide to Surviving Police Encounters” and six degrees from Paul Erdös through the publication “Welcome New Americans! Investigating the role of hyper-local online communities in integration of immigrants.”

Chittenden County Dad Fellow

Dave lives in Burlington’s New North End with his wife, kid, and cat. He already knew about Dad Guild before becoming a father so was excited to join the crew as soon as his kid was born in 2024. He and his partner met in Philadelphia and moved to Vermont to be closer to mountains and everything else Burlington has to offer, including a great place to start a family. In his free time, Dave plays guitar poorly, runs along the bike path by Lake Champlain, hikes (usually not in Crocs), skis, skates, and generally loves all things that happen outdoors in the winter. 

In his professional life, Dave is a primary care provider and sees firsthand the importance of having community for one’s overall well-being. As an avid reader, he has replaced Kurt Vonnegut with parenting books for the past year as he tries to sort out how to be a parent. At Dad Guild, Dave runs the monthly book club.

Chittenden County Dad Fellow

Corey lives in Colchester with his wife and son. He and his wife met during undergrad at University of Pittsburgh, spent time in Philadelphia, and eventually moved to Vermont in 2022. Upon hearing about Dad Guild, they decided to have a baby in 2024 so Corey could join. He eagerly jumped into the New Dad Cohort and now hosts the monthly playgroup at Fletcher Free Library.

Professionally, Corey is an estimator in construction management budgeting projects all over Vermont and getting them off the ground.

In his free time, Corey enjoys hiking, biking, camping, skiing, and all the other fun activities Vermont has to offer, ideally paired with a maple creemee. With a little one in tow, these adventures are currently a little less epic and closer to home, but perhaps more fun as seen through the eyes of his son. For now, you can probably find him on the Burlington bike path.

Upper Valley Dad Fellow

After reading about Dad Guild in Seven Days in 2019, Jared began haranguing Keegan ad nauseum about expanding programming outside of Chittenden County. Things finally started coming together in 2022 with the first Elizabeth’s Park “Takeover” event in Bradford, and thanks to a grant from Building Bright Futures, in 2025 Jared began organizing periodic events throughout Orange and northern Windsor counties.

Previously a sports and municipal journalist, Jared is wrapping up a Masters in Social Work degree in late 2025 and is passionate about helping individuals and families who face oppression and systemic challenges. He lives in Bradford with his wife, 8-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, and two pets. He has previously served on the Conservation Commission, Parks & Recreation Commission and Planning Commission in Bradford.

Franklin County Dad Fellow

Dave lives in St. Albans Town with his partner and child, along with their three cats and one dog. Originally from Cincinnati, he and his partner moved to Vermont to start a family and were immediately excited about the community and programming offered by the Dad Guild organization. 

Professionally, Dave is a software engineer currently working on a platform that supports communities and organizations serving the unhoused population in providing stable housing solutions. He values having the opportunity to do work that makes a direct difference for people, rather than focusing on the bottom line for private equity and investors.

Outside of work, Dave enjoys outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, and backpacking, and he's slowly getting back into biking and (eventually) skiing. He’s just as happy spending a night in, playing video games or overly complicated board games with family/friends. Dave has a long list of hobbies, including gardening, cooking, baking, woodworking, home brewing, playing guitar, and 3D modeling/printing, etc., all of which he hopes to pick up again someday.

Board President

As a new dad in 2017, Nicholas first discovered Dad Guild through connections he made at a support group for new fathers at Evolution Yoga facilitated by Keegan, Dad Guild's soon-to-be-founder. As an early Dad Guild supporter Nicholas attended preliminary organizational meetings and brainstorming sessions as well as some of the first Dad’s Nights Out. Soon after, he was given the amazing opportunity to become a founding member of the Dad Guild Board of Directors and, a few years later, Board President as Keegan transitioned to his role as Executive Director.

Nicholas spends his days working as a Release Train Engineer for Cox Automotive/Dealer.com. He has a BA in English Literature from Dickinson College and a Master's in Library Science from St. John's University.
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Outside of work Nicholas is an ardent music-lover. For several years he was a radio DJ on WBTV-LP and now spends his non-parenting free time both attending shows at local venues and playing the drums.

Board Member

A year after the birth of his first child, Ben saw a friendly-looking bearded Dad at the library wearing a shirt emblazoned with the words "Dad Guild.” Attending some events and connecting with other dads, he realized how isolated and overwhelmed he'd been feeling as a first-time parent, in the Vermont winter, far from family, in a household with two working parents. He also realized how many people in his community were having the same experience and felt less isolated. He is honored to be a board member of Dad Guild as we continue building a community who support each other in becoming better fathers, partners, and community members.

Ben works as a software engineer at Mamava, and loves teaching and mentoring. He's volunteered with a few nonprofits, including Vermont Works for Women, Girl Develop It, People's Kitchen, and Salvation Farms. Ben currently lives in Winooski with his partner and their two sons, Zev and Milo. In the event of the ever elusive "free time," he can be found mountain biking or playing bass.

Board Member

Jay Diaz found Dad Guild through its good work and hosting video calls during the pandemic. As a father of two young kids (and a somewhat domesticated dog named Lucky), he knows from experience that it takes a village to raise a family. He cares deeply about the need for communities of fathers to care for their children and each other, through good times and hard times. He hopes his presence on the board can support the expansion of Dad Guild's already outstanding work.

For his day job, he's been a lawyer with the ACLU of Vermont since 2015, currently in the role of General Counsel. Previously, Jay was a staff attorney with the Disability Law Project of Vermont Legal Aid, representing low-income Vermonters with disabilities through direct representation and legislative advocacy.

He was also the 2012-2014 Poverty Law Fellow, defending the rights of Vermont’s students and youth. In addition to his work at ACLU of Vermont, Jay is Health Law and Policy Faculty with the Vermont-LEND program and the University of Vermont College of Medicine, and serves on the board of the Conservation Law Foundation. Jay is a 2012 graduate of Boston College Law School and received his undergraduate degree from New York University in 2006. He lives in Williston with his wife, two kids, and dog.

Board Member

Zelda is the Executive Director of the Institute for Climate and Peace, a Hawaii-based climate justice organization. In addition to her work with the Institute for Climate and Peace, Zelda works with organizations to develop peacebuilding initiatives throughout the Pacific Asia region and serves as a consultant for the Obama Foundation's Global Programs team. Her other area of interest is in politics, where she has been a part of local, state, and presidential campaign teams. She received a B.A. in Peace Studies from the University of Hawaiʻi, a graduate certificate in Asia Pacific Leadership from the East-West Center, and is an alumna of the AmeriCorps VISTA national service program. She is also an Edmund Hillary fellow. Zelda lives in Hawaiʻi with her family.

Board Member

Alex is an educator, author, and professional development facilitator. A nationally recognized expert on trauma in education, she's the author of the bestseller Equity-Centered Trauma-Informed Education and Becoming an Everyday Changemaker. Alex works with teachers around the country to make change for justice and healing at school. She’s been a longtime supporter of Dad Guild because of the belief that strong caregiver relationships are the best kind of trauma prevention.

In addition to her writing and consultation work, Alex teaches at Vermont State University and Antioch University. Previously, she taught at Centerpoint School along with Dad Guild founder Keegan, and at the Community College of Vermont. She has a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Education from the University of Vermont and Antioch University New England. 

Alex lives in Winooski with her husband Nate and their cat Charlie. Around town, you can find her catching a local theater performance, writing at Specs, or saying hi to every cat she sees.

Board Member

Hollis is a therapist in Burlington, where he lives with his wife, son, and cat. Hollis was a stay-at-home dad starting in 2018, and that was lonely work before he found Dad Guild. There wasn’t much support for dads back then, and “parenting” groups often assumed that dads were absent or uninterested. For a new dad whose son arrived through significant medical trauma, Dad Guild was a literal lifeline.

As soon as they could access childcare, Hollis switched gears, went to grad school, and became a therapist supporting dads and couples. His research focused on paternal perinatal mental health, and the clear takeaway was that we desperately need male social connections that affirm positive fatherhood identities… i.e., we need Dad Guild. His great joy is helping parents to thrive and feel good together.

Hollis studied computer science and music (Swarthmore) in college. He holds master’s degrees in instructional design (Walden) and counseling (NVU). For fun, he makes stuff out of wood, plays Scottish music, plays D&D, and tries to become a polymath.