Board of Directors

Linda Warner is a jack of all trades. Linda’s primary career was as a stay-at-home parent to Kate (actor), Libet (management, The Shed) and William “Bear” (freelance production electrician). She’s been an avid community volunteer serving as President of Blue Ash Elementary PTA, Sycamore High School PTO, Theater Boosters, and Choir Boosters among others, And a mentor for nearly a decade.

Later in life, Linda was the first Development Director for the Health Improvement Collaborative of Greater Cincinnati where she organized the annual fund drive, published a community healthy-eating cookbook, and hosted an annual awards event with well-known speakers including Christopher Reeve, Patty Duke, Gov. Mike Huckabee, and Ben Vereen. Linda worked for Seminole County Public Schools in Florida as the Families in Transition Tutorial Coordinator providing support for homeless students under the Mckinney Vento Homeless Education Act, as a Language Support Tutor for special needs students, and as the school “nurse” at Woodlands Elementary School.

Linda holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wells College in Aurora, NY. She is Past President of Friends of Messalonskee Lake Association. She currently works part-time in a yarn shop, teaches knitting and creates custom knitwear under her Queen Bee Knits label. Linda lives in Belgrade with her husband and their Chocolate Lab, Monk.

Linda Warner, President
Development Committee, Chair

Drew Landry is an attorney with a practice concentrated in utility and energy matters. Drew is currently Deputy Public Advocate for the State of Maine which involves representing the interests of consumers in utility regulatory matters before the Maine Public Utilities Commission and in other forums in which the interests of Maine utility customers are affected. Drew is a graduate of Syracuse University and the University of Maine School of Law. In addition to his role on the Board, Drew serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Theater at Monmouth, the Hallowell Planning Board, and as Chair of the Hallowell Comprehensive Plan Committee.

Drew has previously served as President of the Penobscot County Bar Association, Chair of the Brewer Water District, and board member of Redeemer Lutheran Church, Bangor. Drew’s daughter is currently studying Art Education and the University of Maine. Drew is a resident of Hallowell.

Andrew "Drew" Landry, Vice President
Governance Committee, Chair

Tim is retired after 34 years of working in Maine state government. While working
for the state he served in several departments, most recently protecting Maine’s
groundwater through the regulation of underground petroleum storage tanks. Tim
serves on the Finance Committee at Christ Church on the Common, Gardiner, and
is President and Treasurer of Reprise Chorale Ensemble. He is a past President of
the McGrath Pond/Salmon Lake Association. Tim has a BS in Education from the
University of Maine where he trained as an elementary school science teacher.

An accomplished musician, Tim co-founded two small choral ensembles: The
Occasional Chorale (1985 – 2006), based in Waterville, and more recently, Reprise
Choral Ensemble (2018 – present), based in Waterville and Gardiner. He has
performed in a variety of musical theater organizations and sung in numerous
choral ensembles throughout Maine, including Vox Nova Chamber Choir in
Brunswick and the Oratorio Society at the University of Maine in Orono. Tim sang
under the direction of the late Sir David Willcocks and performed at Trinity Wall
Street and the Washington National Cathedral. He continues to sing at Christ
Church in Gardiner, the Colby Kennebec Choral Ensemble, and Reprise Choral
Ensemble. Tim also is an amateur artist dabbling in enamel on copper, watercolors,
and acrylic painting. He is a staunch supporter of arts education in all its forms.
He worked for many years in the picture-framing business owned by his family in
Camden. He is committed to the ideals put forth by the Maine Arts Academy and
to the Academy's success as a charter school in central Maine.

Timothy Rector, Treasurer
Finance Committee, Chair

Mitchell Clyde Thomas is a graduate of the University of Maine Farmington with a
BA, and the University of Maine Orono with a MPA. He is a singer, pianist, and songwriter and has been entertaining audiences in Maine and around New England for nearly 50 years, beginning as a young sidekick to his fiddle-playing grandfather. Since his youth, he has been sharing and leading music in some way or other in churches and community organizations/events. For 38 summers, Mitch was the director of the Music-Theatre camps for youth at Camp Mechuwana in Winthrop, and for many years, he directed children's choirs in his home church. On weekends, Mitch is the organist/pianist/choir director at a church in Scarborough.
For ten years, he was the Music Director for the New England Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Before the pandemic, he was very active in Lewiston-Auburn's Community Little Theatre, where he directed some of their shows and performed in scores of them over the past four decades. He was the Executive Director at L/A's Franco Center for Heritage and the Performing Arts in Lewiston for five years. Mitch is an adjunct professor (writing and critical thinking courses) at Central Maine Community College and teaches classes for SMCC and Maine Maritime Academy.

Mitch’s daughter, Hayden, is a 5th-grade teacher in the Lewiston Public Schools, and his son, Elias, is a student of Broadcast Journalism at the University of Minnesota.

Mitchell Clyde Thomas
Development Committee, Chair

April Hughes

April Hughes is a program manager at Healthy Communities of the Capital Area (HCCA), primarily overseeing HCCA’s tobacco prevention, substance use prevention, and healthy eating/active living grants. April has a Master of Public Health (MPH) from Purdue University Global, is actively working on her Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) from Walden University, and is a certified prevention specialist (PS-C). In addition to her work at HCCA, she is also a member of the Maine Prevention Certification Board, a peer-led nonprofit organization, serving and representing prevention professionals under the sponsorship of AdCare Educational Institute of Maine. The certification board sets, monitors, and enforces standards for Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug (ATOD) prevention professionals to ensure the public’s protection and enhance the profession. Personally, April has always been passionate about the arts and hopes to bring more arts-based prevention strategies and initiatives into the field of prevention in Maine.

April resides in South China, Maine, with her husband and three children. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, reading, gardening, and trying out new restaurants.

Board of Directors, Member

Rachel White

Dr. Rachel White is an Assistant Professor and Sustainable Agriculture and Livestock Educator with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. In this position, she works closely with producers on farm and livestock management practices. She provides educational programs statewide on small ruminant, poultry, and equine topics. Rachel graduated with her Ph.D in Ecology and Environmental Sciences from the University of Maine, working and teaching within the One Health paradigm of human-animal-environmental health. Passionate about learning at all levels, Rachel is especially interested in bridging the gap between the arts and sciences. She brings a strong background in both science and education, having previously served as a science teacher at Maine Arts Academy during its first three years. During that time, she provided hands-on education within the natural environment and started the MEAA Outing Club. She currently serves on the Academic Excellence Committee and is committed to supporting MEAA in any way she can. Previous board services include the Humane Society of Waterville Area, Friends of Messalonskee, and Sebasticook Regional Land Trust.

In her spare time, Rachel and her husband run a small farm with pastured poultry, goats, and Norwegian Fjord horses. Fiber arts, water colors, and acrylic paintings are some of her favorite hobbies.

Academic Excellence Committee, Chair

Jonas Maines

Board of Directors, Memeber

Jonas Maines is an advocate, actor, and director living in Augusta. He grew up in Orono, Maine and received a B.A. in Visual and Performing Arts (Theatre) from the University of Maine at Farmington in 2019. As a student, he was an active member of the arts: Jonas performed frequently in both mainstage and student-led productions, was a company member of the college’s improv comedy troupe, and served as President of UMF’s chapter of Alpha Psi Omega, the National Theatre Honor Society. After graduating, Jonas served as an Assistant Artistic Director at Hyde Park Theatre in Austin, TX, before moving to Chicago, where he continued to work as an actor on both stage and screen.

Since returning to his home state in 2023, Jonas has appeared regularly in local productions, and strives to make time for the arts wherever possible. During the day, he works for the Department of Administrative and Financial Services for the State of Maine.

Jonas has been an active advocate for Transgender youth since his childhood. His twin sister, Nicole Maines, was the prosecutor in the landmark case Doe v. RSU 26, the first case in the nation in which a state court ruled in favor of a transgender student in a bathroom discrimination case. His family’s story is told in the best-selling Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of the American Family, by Amy Ellis Nutt. Jonas believes strongly in the intersectionality between the experiences of LGBTQIA+ youth and pursuit of the arts; the cultivation and preservation of a supportive, enthusiastically-celebrating environment is critical to both academic and artistic success. Jonas has spoken at schools all across Maine, engaging students in open dialogue about the importance of inclusivity and active allyship.

When Jonas isn’t performing or working, he enjoys writing and spending quiet time with his loved ones.