Advisory Committee

Bob Catell is the Chairman of the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center (AERTC) at New York State University at Stony Brook. Mr. Catell was formerly the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Key Span Corporation and Key Span Energy Delivery, the former Brooklyn Union. Mr. Catell lives in Nassau County.

Matthew Cohen is the President and CEO of the Long Island Association (LIA). Prior to joining LIA in 2011, Mr. Cohen was the Executive Director of Government Relations for the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA). He currently resides in Suffolk County.

Leslie Davis is President of the Westbury/New Castle Branch of the NAACP. Ms. Davis also serves as Trustee for the First Baptist Cathedral Church of Westbury. Ms. Davis resides in Nassau County.

Pat Guidice is the Business Manager of IBEW Local 1049. Mr Guidice also serves on the board of Long Island United Way. He resides in Suffolk County.

Ralph Kreitzman is the Executive Director of the Nassau County Village Officials Association (NCVOA). He also serves as Vice Chairperson of the Water Authority of Great Neck North and a Director of the Town of North Hempstead Community Development Authority and its Business and Tourism Development Corporation. He previously served as the Mayor of the Village of Great Neck, President of the NCVOA and an Executive Board member of the NYS Conference of Mayors. Mr. Kreitzman resides in Nassau County.

Dr. Michael Menser is an Associate Professor of Philosophy and Urban Sustainability Studies at Brooklyn College/CUNY and the Associate Director for Public Engagement at the Science and Resilience Institute at Jamaica Bay. Dr. Menser resides in Nassau County.

Farrah Mozawalla is the CEO/Founder of the Asian American Institute for Research and Engagement and the former Director of Nassau County Asian American Affairs Department. Ms. Mozawalla previously worked for the Town of Hempstead as the Confidential Assistant to the Town Clerk. She resides in Nassau County.

Dolores Orr serves as the chair of Community Board #14 Queens. She is also a founding member of the Friends of Tribute Park, built to honor the Rockaway residents who died on September 11th. Ms. Orr resides in the Rockaways.

Mitch Pally is the former Chief Executive Officer of the Long Island Builders Institute. Previously Mr. Pally was the partner in charge of government relations for the Weber Law group, and he served as Vice-President for Governmental Affairs for the Long Island Association. Mr. Pally resides in Suffolk County.

Ed Romaine is Brookhaven Town’s 70th Supervisor, having been elected to that office during a special election in 2012. He has served as an elected official representing the residents of Brookhaven Town and Suffolk County since 1986, serving as a Suffolk County Legislator and Suffolk County Clerk. He resides in Suffolk County.

Kyle Strober is the Executive Director for the Association for A Better Long Island, an economic development advocacy organization. Strober previously served as Long Island Regional Director for U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer. He lives in Nassau County.

Tela Troge is the Shinecock Nation’s Director of Health and Community Services. She is also the Nation’s contract attorney. She resides in Suffolk County.

Lisa Tyson is the executive director of the Long Island Progressive Coalition. Ms. Tyson has won important victories around a policy agenda aimed at promoting sustainable development, revitalizing local communities, creating effective democracy, enhancing human dignity, and achieving economic, racial and social justice on Long Island. She resides in Nassau County.

Robert Vecchio is the Executive Director of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association. Mr. Vecchio spent 30 years in healthcare accounting in the substance rehabilitation industry. He is also the former President of the William Floyd School District Board of Education. He was named the first-ever “Champion for Change” award winner, an honor given by the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA). He resides in Suffolk County.

Dr. Edward Williams is the founder and CEO of the non-profit Regional Ready Rockaway in Queens. He first began his work over 25 years ago in the Rockaways to develop a sense of emergency preparedness within the community. Dr. Williams resides in the Rockaways.