Meet the Board

Carmen Trafton, Executive Director

Carmen Prandini Trafton received her B.A. from Keene State in 1995 with a Major in Mass Communication and a Minor in Journalism. She attended The Grant Institute at Dartmouth College in 2005 and has helped countless artists, organizations, non-profits and schools diversify their revenue streams.

She previously served as Program Coordinator for The Samaritans; Grants Manager for MoCo Arts; Community Director for the NH March of Dimes; and Coordinator of Campus Activities and Community Service Programs at NH Technical Institute. She has vast experience in development, volunteers, donors, fundraising and community collaborations and partnerships.

She’s received many professional honors, including the March of Dimes Northern Region Staff Excellence Award; the Salvation Army Community Service Award; and the Campus Compact National Center for Community Colleges Service-Learning Collaboration Award for “Best Collaboration with a Social Agency”.

In 2013, Carmen received the Keene State College Presidents’ Community Partner Award for her work at The Samaritans. The award is given to a non-profit organization that has enhanced the quality of life in the community in meaningful and measurable ways and engaged in the development of sustained, reciprocal partnerships with a college or university.

She is responsible for management of the agency, serving as the spokesperson and representing the organization in the community. She also recruits, trains and supervises volunteers; coordinates and supports programs/services/events/fundraisers; supervises and mentors Keene State, Franklin Pierce and River Valley Community College interns; coordinates the crisis hotline; and provides community outreach and education.

She completed two years of national service as an AmeriCorps* VISTA and has lead many Alternative Spring Breaks. She served on the Board of Directors for the Cheshire Figure Skating Club (CFSC), the local affiliate of the U.S. Figure Skating Association and for the Keene State College Alumni Association. She’s a founding member of the North Central Neighborhood Association and worked diligently for many years to create a city park in the North/Central neighborhood. She coordinated the Benjamin Franklin Elementary School Playground Improvement Project, providing a beautiful playground with soccer goals, a crushed gravel walking path, raised-bed accessible gardens and natural landscaping, for families to enjoy year-round. Carmen was born and raised in Bennington, VT and lives in Keene, NH with her husband William and their daughter Hallie. She volunteers at Keene Middle School, MoCo Arts, CFSC and St. Bernard’s Church. She works out at Granite State Kettlebells and enjoys kettlebell competitions.