Migrant Clinicians Network is pleased to welcome three new members to our Board of Directors, broadening the set of skills that our esteemed board brings to their work and ensuring we push forward our important mission in the years to come. This month, we also send a grateful farewell to our board chair who has completed his board service. 

“It’s always exciting to bring new voices, perspectives, and expertise into our leadership,” said Kim M. Nolte, MPH, Chief Executive Officer for MCN. “A strong, engaged board is essential to guide our work and advance our mission to ensure that mobility is never an impediment to health and well-being. Their leadership is foundational to the growth and long-term sustainability of MCN.”

Matthew Dillon serves as a co-CEO at the Organic Trade Association and co-Executive Director of The Organic Center. Raised in an agricultural family and community in Nebraska, Dillon has held diverse roles in the organic sector, working from seed to shelf. He was inadvertently crop dusted while weeding soybean fields with a machete as a youth, grew ill and was hospitalized, which led him to a lifelong pursuit to mitigate risk for those who grow our food.  

Dillon farmed vegetables, flowers, and seed crops in California in the 1990s before becoming executive director of a nonprofit seed company. In 2003, Dillon founded the nonprofit Organic Seed Alliance before going on to consult and work for numerous farming and food companies including a ten-year stint at Clif Bar with his final role as VP of Impact and Government Relations. Working on farmworker advocacy and issues at Clif Bar he learned of Migrant Clinicians Network and began advocating for their mission in corporate circles. 

When not engaging in agricultural advocacy, Dillon grows vegetables and raises chickens with his wife Rosetta Maranos in Omaha.  

Modjulie Moore, MD is a family medicine physician in the Department of Family Medicine at University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.  She completed her residency training at Greater Lawrence Family Medicine Residency in Lawrence, Massachusetts.  Her medical training was focused on providing culturally responsive care for the Latine community.  Following her residency training, she worked as a board-certified family physician ensuring comprehensive care to all patients within a federally qualified health center in rural eastern North Carolina.  She was able to work collaboratively with community outreach workers in helping to provide needed care to the farmworker community.  Leveraging her experience in rural medicine, Dr. Moore transitioned to her current role at UNC Department of Family Medicine.

Within her role at UNC she supports a collaboration with NC DHHS Office of Rural Health where she serves as the medical director for the statewide NC Farmworker Health Program (NCFHP).  Her role as medical director of NCFHP allows her to incorporate valuable lessons learned from the strength of building strong and sustainable partnerships to promote quality health care and access to migrant and seasonal workers and their families across the state. She currently serves as a teacher and mentor to the residents and medical students.  She is a champion of language access learning and brings to her patients and learners a perspective that highlights the importance of communication and providing a culturally engaging response to address community needs.  Within her role on faculty at UNC, she provides care for patients at the Orange County Health Department, the UNC Family Medicine Center, and directs the UNC Mobile Clinic during the NC growing season in collaboration with NC Farmworkers’ Project.  She enjoys spending time with her three children and with her husband who also stays busy as a Family Physician in North Carolina. 

René Vargas Martínez, JD is the Vice President for Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands at Inclusiv, the leading national network of credit unions dedicated to community development and financial inclusion. In this role, he oversees the design and implementation of regional initiatives, serving as the primary liaison between Inclusiv’s national programs and 95 credit unions and cooperativas across Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. He leads efforts to adapt programs to local needs, ensuring language accessibility and compliance with regional regulatory frameworks. 

Vargas Martínez holds a bachelor’s degree in history and a Juris Doctor from the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus. He was admitted to the practice of law in Puerto Rico in 2014. Recently, he spearheaded the Puerto Rico CDFI Initiative, which has opened doors for local cooperativas and credit unions to secure public and private funding, including grants from the US Department of the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI). He also led the national expansion of Juntos Avanzamos, an Inclusiv designation recognizing credit unions committed to serving Latino and immigrant communities through affordable, culturally responsive financial services.

With extensive experience in representation and advocacy, Vargas Martínez previously served as student representative to the Board of Trustees, Academic Senator, and President of the General Student Council at the University of Puerto Rico. He later held the roles of Student Ombudsman and Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at UPR’s Río Piedras campus, where he mediated conflicts and managed student services across the university system. Additionally, he brings over eight years of frontline experience in credit union customer service and lending.

He resides in Lajas, Puerto Rico, with his wife and their rescue dog, Lady. Outside of work, he enjoys walking, hiking, and traveling.

We also bid a heartfelt farewell to our Board Chair, Giorgio Franyuti, MD, who concludes six years of dedicated service on our board, including his final year as chair. We are deeply grateful for the time, expertise, and leadership he has shared with MCN and look forward to engaging with Dr. Franyuti in new and meaningful ways in the future.