Workshop Detail

Mr. Matt Lytle (Panelist)

Program Administrator, Stark County Fatherhood Coalition

Matt is a graduate from Kent State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Justice Studies. He has been employed with Stark County for the past 22 years working at the Multi-County Juvenile Attention System, Stark County Family Court, and Stark County Job & Family Services where he is currently the Program Administrator for the Stark County Fatherhood Coalition. He enjoys playing golf, yardwork, and restoring furniture in his spare time. Matt has been married to his wife Jennifer for 15 years and they have a 14 year old daughter named Hannah.

Ms. Ann Durkin (Moderator)

Deputy Director, Child Support Enforcement Agency Stark County Job and Family Services

Ann Durkin, MBA has been in the Child Support Program since 2014 and currently serves as the Deputy Director of the Child Support Enforcement Agency at Stark County Job and Family Services. Ann has been with the agency since 2002, and previously worked in the Children Services and Support Services/Administration areas of Stark County JFS.

Ann received a Bachelor’s degree in English and a Master’s of Business Administration degree from Kent State University. Ann is a member of the Stark County Fatherhood Coalition and serves on the communications committee for the National Child Support Enforcement Association.

Mr. John Petit (Panelist)

Managing Attorney, Community Legal Aid

John M. Petit is Managing Attorney for Community Legal Aid’s Neighborhood Law Project which supports community economic development, group representation, non-profits, entrepreneurship, and racial justice initiatives. John also manages Legal Aid’s Parenting Project which promotes non-custodial parental involvement focusing on marginalized populations.

During his time at Legal Aid, John has served in a variety of management roles, such as overseeing the housing and consumer team, re-entry programs, and the family law team. He also supervised the Helpline attorney staff. John has served as a mentor and trainer for several continuing legal education topics for staff & pro bono volunteers as well as a trainer for the Committee on Regional Training. Before serving in this role, John spent two years with the Jesuits in Cleveland and Detroit, combining spirituality and practice by serving at homeless shelter legal clinics and a law-on-wheels outreach program in urban communities.

John has a background in both public and private practice, focusing on civil and criminal litigation as well as on supervision of attorneys and staff within child support agencies. John received his law degree from Case Western Reserve in 1994 and graduated from the University of Akron in 1990. He is licensed to practice law in the States of Ohio and Michigan and in the United States Federal Courts for both Northern and Southern Ohio.

Mr. Gary Plauger (Panelist)

Parent Engagement Supervisor, Early Childhood Resource Center, Canton, OH

Gary has more than 35 years of experience working with fathers. For the past nine years, he has worked with fathers through the Early Childhood Resource Center and partnered with Stark County’s Right Path for Fathers effort. Gary has built capacity across northeast Ohio by training numerous trainers to deliver a wide range of parenting education courses.

He’s also been instrumental in bringing responsible fatherhood programs to both Summit and Columbiana counties. Gary has been married for 39 years; he’s the proud father of Mallory and Chelsea and the proud grandfather of Mia and Paxton. He’s also been a member of the Canton Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame since 2005.