Our Team

Mary Ruth is co-founder of Stumptown Scholars along with her husband Michael. Education has always been a hot button for the Hannas. This scholarship was born from a belief that they should give back to the community that supported their retail establishment, Mattress Lot, which they opened in 2010.

Mary Ruth puts people first and is an entrepreneur at her core. Give her a new situation or a challenge, and she thrives at seeing the big picture and then tackling the details to make that a reality. In all her work, she brings creativity and a passion for community and people. She formed Dream Big Scholarship (now Stumptown Scholars) with Michael as her children reached college application age, when she witnessed the huge discrepancy in cost and access for so many students. That also led her to work with students at other high schools to coach them through the college application process. She serves as a CASA volunteer (Court Appointed Special Advocate) to give underserved children a voice.

Mary Ruth has always been interested in real estate. She has renovated multiple old houses in Portland, bringing them back to their formal glory. She attributes this love to growing up in an old home in North Carolina.

Mary Ruth enjoys biking, hiking, a hard Peloton workout, a good jigsaw puzzle, and daily NYT word games.

Michael and Mary Ruth raised two children in the Laurelhurst neighborhood. Both graduated from Grant High School.

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Michael and his wife Mary Ruth started awarding scholarships to Eastside Portland students in 2015. Their original scholarships were a way to thank the community that supported their local small business, Mattress Lot. With guidance and support from a passionate and caring group of former non-profit executives,

that scholarship program grew to become Stumptown Scholars.

The cornerstone of Michael’s professional life is the retail business he and his wife founded in 2010, Mattress Lot and Stumptown Mattress.

Using the extensive marketing and leadership skills they had developed from years in corporate media, the Hanna’s opted for a community focused shop specializing in locally sourced mattresses. Their focus on customer-service and the formation of their successful online store led them to a well-earned success story. For them, this meant they could do what they really wanted to – give to their community in a meaningful way.

Before founding Mattress Lot/Stumptown Mattress, Michael gained significant leadership and people management skills as a high-level sales manager for several regional media companies. Among other successes, he built out Portland’s first local Spanish language TV station.

His first career as a TV news reporter spanned 11 years. Michael is still occasionally recognized by Portlanders who remember him from his time at KATU TV (ABC). He earned numerous awards for his reporting including an Emmy and a variety of professional awards.

Michael and Mary Ruth raised two children in NE Portland. Both graduated from Grant High School. In addition to Stumptown Scholars, Michael is a volunteer CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) for Multnomah County and he’s a long-time Meals on Wheels driver. Michael enjoys surfing the cold Oregon Coast and he’s an avid triathlete, competing in multi-sport events in Oregon and nationally.

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Kaarin puts a lot of intention and focus into making sure that her values and passions align with how she lives her life. She is a voracious reader, and lover of the outdoors – on any given weekend you will find her hiking, biking or paddling the lake at her mountain cabin. Her proudest achievement is qualifying for the Boston Marathon.

Kaarin has always been a “connector” – connecting friends with each other (even a bit of successful match making!) and connecting people who have resources with the work being done on the ground. That led to her career in philanthropy, building personal relationships and connecting people and needs. She has deep roots in the non-profit sector, spending more than 25 years working as a fundraiser with organizations ranging from universities to grassroot organizations. Most recently, she was the Director of High Philanthropy at Mercy Corps where she managed a portfolio of high net-worth individuals. Currently, Kaarin is a Philanthropic Advisor, helping individuals manage their philanthropy in a way that gives them confidence that their resources are having the highest impact in alignment with their personal values. She holds a Master’s degree in Social Ethics from the University of Chicago and a B.A. from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. Kaarin is a native of the Pacific Northwest.

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Michelle is a catalyst for courage and integrity. In 2015, she gathered a group of like-minded friends and colleagues around a vision of what a revolution in higher education could look like. After years of volunteering with groups and nonprofits to organize for social impact, (SuperThank, TEDxMtHood, World Domination Summit)

Michelle took the leap and started her own college – Wayfinding Academy. Prior to founding a college from scratch, Michelle was a college professor teaching courses on Organizational Behavior and Leadership. She earned her Bachelor’s degrees in Business Administration and Psychology from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas and her Master’s and Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology from Claremont Graduate University.

When not ruffling the feathers of traditional higher education, Michelle is also the co-founder of Smith & Jones Innovation where she helps organizations find their heart & soul and cultivate the ability to articulate that in the world through high impact events and consulting. When not working, she can be found walking the Camino de Santiago (she has done it 8 times!) or relaxing at her tiny home in Portland, Oregon.

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Melissa McCoy began her career in education equity work in 2009 at El Programa Hispano Catolico. There she served in student support services, as an education specialist and finally, as the program manager of youth services. She was successful in nonprofit management and thrived.

She followed this 7-year tenure and came to Latino Network as a manager for school-based programs. She brought her business and management skills with her, and they added great value to this rapidly growing organization. But it was what she learned that she considers the greatest gift – what it means to manage and motivate people not drawn to work by their year-end bonuses, how to engage people, how to build consensus, and how to come together for real change. Next, she moved into Associate Director of Education and Wellness and currently serves as the Educational Access Programs Department Director. Since joining Latino Network, she is most proud of helping her department and agency become known as a trauma-informed agency. The work Latino Network does sparks real change for and in the community.

Being a Portland native and having attended Portland Public School K-12, she shares real life experience with the participants of LN, giving her a unique perspective. Today she brings her knowledge and expertise in culturally specific work and education to her current role. She focuses on untangling the knots that stand between our educational system and the fulfillment of seeing families meet their educational goals. Her areas of expertise include Trauma Sensitive Management, coaching, and the building of strong management teams to support the work of the department.

Melissa lives in Portland with her husband of 12 years. Fun fact, they actually met 20 years ago in Mexico City, Mexico, while he was studying architecture at the University of Oregon and she was traveling abroad for the summer. Together they have two children who keep them very busy with lots of activities! In her free time she enjoys cooking, gardening, traveling, and spending time with her friends and family.

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Our 2025 Scholarship Application Will Be Available in Late January

OUR TEAM

Mary Ruth Hanna

Michael Hanna

Kaarin Smith

Michelle Jones

Melissa McCoy