UNH Today

The University of New Hampshire was well-represented on the Union Leader’s annual 40 Under Forty award list this year, with current and former undergraduate and graduate students making up nearly one-third of the honorees recognized for making a difference in their communities and professions throughout the Granite State.

The 13 recipients from UNH and the rest of the awardees were honored at a March 8 ceremony at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord. The 2023 cohort was the 22nd to be recognized since the awards debuted in 2002 to celebrate professionals in the state who are under 40 years old.

The UNH contingent is a strong embodiment of the university’s Embrace New Hampshire strategic priority first introduced by President Jim Dean in 2019. Honorees with UNH ties include Leif Becker ’18JD, Justin Breton ’06, Megan Carrier ’11JD, Jennifer Fleming ’10G ’13G, Matthew Flynn ’17JD, Ted Lague ’11, Alison Milioto ’06 ’07G, Jason Moore ’14JD, Kristyn Nelson ’06, Cole Riel ’17, Brad Solomon ’09 ’13G, Courtney Gray Tanner ’14JD ’15G and Dan Villemaire ’07.

Becker, 29, graduated from UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law and is now owner of Becker Legal PLLC, where he is also a litigation attorney. He lives in Hooksett. Among his recent achievements, Becker was given the N.H. Bar Association Rising Star Award in 2021.

Breton, 39, is a police officer and mental health and wellness coordinator with the Manchester Police Department. He graduated from UNH with a degree in social work and was named the 2021 Manchester Police Officer of the Year.

Carrier, 36, graduated from UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law in 2011 and is currently an attorney at Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green. She was the 2022 Robert E. Kirby Award recipient from the New Hampshire Bar Association, an honor recognizing “an attorney 35 years old or younger who demonstrates the traits of civility, courtesy, perspective and excellent advocacy.”

Fleming, 37, is owner and medical director of The Alchemy Clinic, a medical aesthetic and wellness practice in Manchester. She earned her MSN degree as well as her APRN and FNP at UNH and is currently serving as vice president of the Aesthetic Medical Providers of New Hampshire (AMPNH).

Flynn, 31, earned his JD from UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law in 2017 and is currently an assistant county attorney in the Merrimack County Attorney’s Office. He has volunteered as the secretary for the CMAR Scholarship Fund, Inc., a nonprofit that provides scholarships to UNH Army ROTC Cadets.

Lague, 34, graduated from UNH with a degree in economics and is director of ESG and Sustainability at Merchants Fleet. Some of his recent work has focused on developing “a new supply chain diversity and sustainability policy that encourages the selection of competitive corporate support vendors that are locally based, small business, diversely owned and/or promote socially responsible business practices.”

Milioto, 39, earned both her undergrad degree in business administration (marketing option) and her MBA at UNH and is co-founder and co-owner of BlueLion LLC, an HR consulting company, where she also serves as a partner. She has been named Member of the Year by BNI New Hampshire, an organization for which she has also volunteered as director.

Moore, 33, earned a JD from UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law and is currently a prosecutor for the Merrimack Police Department. Among his proudest recent achievements was being appointed as the chair of the Juvenile Parole Board by New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu.

Nelson, 38, earned a communication degree at UNH and is owner, broker and Realtor at Nelson Real Estate NH. She was selected Agent of the Year for Hillsborough County and a Top 10 Agent in New Hampshire in 2022 by Rate My Agent, both honors awarded by public online reviews.

Riel, 27, earned a degree in communication arts from UNH at Manchester and is the small business and community development director for the Greater Manchester Chamber. He has served as a State Representative, a stint that included time on the House Education Committee from 2018-2020.

Solomon, 38, earned both his undergrad degree in business administration and an MBA at UNH and is chief executive officer for SC Digital, a digital marketing agency on the Seacoast. He received the Founder’s Award from Annie’s Angels Memorial Fund in 2022 and was named to the Seacoast NH 10 to Watch list in 2021.

Tanner, 33, earned a JD at UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law and a master’s in social work from UNH’s College of Health and Human Services. She is the director of government relations at Dartmouth Health and an adjunct professor of social work for the School of Business & Social Science at Colby-Sawyer College. Her volunteer work has included serving as board chair for Families Flourish Northeast and board member at-large for New Hampshire Humanities.

Villlemaire, 39, earned a finance degree at UNH and is president of C&M Precision Tech, a manufacturing solutions company based in Hudson, New Hampshire. He created C&M Cares, an opportunity “to give back to the local community by volunteering time and resources.”