Danielle Schmidt
Executive Director
Danielle Schmidt, a long-time volunter for our CAC, moved from Board President to Executive Director in January 2022. Over the course of her 20 years of working in the social services field, Danielle has worked as a case manager at Totin Family Services and at Butler County Health System with Family Services and Maternal Services. In the latter role, she conducted psycho-social assessments and led a teen parenting program. She worked at Bethany Christian Services as a Foster Care Worker, and most recently at the Butler County Housing and Redevelopment Authority as the Assistant Director of Grant Management and Resident Services. Danielle is also a certified doula. Danielle is looking forward to supporting the CAC’s continued growth. In working with the Board of Directors and staff to ensure the CAC's programming and services best serve families, she sees her role as one of stewardship. She is eager to be in the community raising awareness about child sexual abuse, child abuse prevention, human trafficking, and the critical work of the CAC and its multidisciplinary partners. Danielle is passionate about not only mitigating the impact of abuse for children, but working diligently to empower community members to support one another. Danielle is the proud mother of three children, three dogs, and a hive of bees. She and her husband, Rob, enjoy skiing, kayaking, and myriad outdoor activities together.
OUR TEAM
Ashley Rummel
Forensic Interviewer/Coordinator
​Ashley graduated from Penn State Behrend in 2001 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology, stemming from a strong desire to work with children that began blossoming when she was in 7th grade.  Although she didn’t know then the exact path she’d take, her passion to help children and families became her guiding star. At her first post-college job as a Therapeutic Staff Support (TSS), Ashley designed and implemented treatment and behavioral plans for children. Beginning in 2004, she worked at Family Pathways as first a Permanency Facilitator then in the placement department, certifying foster/kinship homes and monitoring child placements. In 2010, Ashley became a supervisor of the Placement and Legacy Departments, programs that worked with biological parents to try to maintain their children in their home or work toward reunification. In 2018, Ashley was hired at Children’s Advocacy Center of Butler County as a Forensic Interviewer. She is currently trained in the Child-First, National Children’s Advocacy Center (NCAC), and Cornerhouse modalities of interviewing and has specialty training in Interviewing Individuals with Disabilities, Interviewing Child Sex Trafficking Victims, Interviewing Young Children, and Court Preparation and Testimony. Her ultimate objective is to learn enough under the tutelage of Sue Counts to become Lead Facilitator and as skilled at her role as her highly-respected mentor. With her dedication, experience, and drive, she is well on her way to this goal. Ashley and her husband, Josh, adore their two boys, Issac and Camdyn, and their dog Breckin. They can be found most days at the hockey rink.
Jo Ellen Bowman
Forensic Interviewer
Maddy Kuharic
Family Advocate
Maddy graduated from Slippery Rock University in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Social Work. Maddy knew from a very young age that working with children was the path that she was going to take. While completing her bachelor’s degree, Maddy interned at the Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) and quickly learned that advocating for children and families was her passion. Following her internship, Maddy worked at Victim Outreach Intervention Center (VOICe) as a Systems Advocate in the legal system but her primary role at VOICe was the Victim Advocate at the CAC due to the partnership between the two agencies. In 2024, Maddy took on the new role as the Family Advocate at the Children’s Advocacy Center. She will be assisting children and families by guiding them through the forensic interview process and advocating for their needs. She will also provide the families with various resources and continuous follow-up to ensure they have all the tools and support that they deserve. Going from intern to a staff member, Maddy is so incredibly grateful and excited to continue learning from the amazing team at the CAC. Maddy and her husband, Kelley, have three fur babies, Sadie, Maeve, & Ozzy! In the summer, they love spending time at their camp on the river with their families and friends. When Maddy is not at the CAC, she can always be found with her nose in a book!
