BOSTON, MA — Treasurer-elect Deb Goldberg named the following people to her transition committee today, highlighting their proven-experience, innovative leadership and commitment to public service.
“Each of these leaders brings a proven track record along with the creative leadership skills we need to implement our vision for the Treasurer’s office,” said Goldberg. “Together, we will work to protect taxpayer dollars, enhance transparency, as well as strengthen economic security, lead on wage equality and expand financial literacy.”
Roy E. Belson: Roy E. Belson is in his 20th year as Superintendent of the Medford Public Schools. He has been a teacher and administrator in public schools for 46 years. As superintendent, he has planned and overseen the physical reconstruction of Medford’s school buildings. He currently represents the Massachusetts Superintendents Association on the Early Education Policy Committee, the Special Education Coalition, and the the Legislative Committee. Belson is a recent recipient of the Steven Cahn Award from the Children’s Trust.
Elizabeth Cardona: A resident of Springfield, Elizabeth Cardona is a recent fellow with the Women’s Pipeline for Change, a program that supports women of color as they enter public life. Cardona previously served as the regional coordinator for Suzanne Bump’s campaign for State Auditor and held several positions in the Springfield public school district. As a founding board member and mentor for CHICA Project, a statewide Latina empowerment, mentoring and leadership initiative, as well as an advisory board member for the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts — Leadership Institute for Political and Public Impact (LIPPI), Cardona has been a champion of equality and social justice. She holds an MPA and a Certificate in Conflict Resolution from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University and a B.S. in American Studies with a concentration in Social Issues from Springfield College.
Dennis Collins: Dennis Collins is a business development director with Feeley & Driscoll, a regional CPA and business advisory firm in Boston. His previous experience includes personnel recruitment and corporate sales as well as serving as Director of State Relations at Boston University. A graduate of Saint Michael’s College in Vermont with a degree in business administration, Collins has served on charitable and non-profit boards. He is currently a member of the YMCA of Greater Boston’s Burbank branch Board of Advisors in Reading.
Katherine P. Craven: Katherine P. Craven, former First Deputy State Treasurer and founding Executive Director of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, is the Chief Administrative and Financial Officer for Babson College. Craven is actively involved in community service and is a recent recipient of the Woman of the Year for the Boston Irish Reporter and a 2014 recipient of the Chancellor’s Medal at UMass Dartmouth. She serves on the Board of Governors for the Harvard Club of Boston, the boards of the ARC of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, and the honorary board for the Massachusetts Down Syndrome Congress. Craven is also a 2014 Trailblazing Woman in Municipal Finance.
Catherine D’Amato: Catherine D’Amato is the CEO of the Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB), serving one in nine citizens of Massachusetts with food resources. The GBFB provides more than 80 percent of the food to 550 agencies in 190 cities and towns throughout the nine counties of eastern Massachusetts. D’Amato serves as the Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of the Boston Foundation and Co-Chair of the Equality Fund. She also serves on the Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
John Dunlap: John Dunlap is the Manager of Labor Relations at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He previously served as the Director of Labor Relations for the City of Boston, the Director of Human Resources for the Town of Brookline and the Director of Personnel for the Town of Arlington. In 2012 he received the Greater Boston Labor Guild’s Cushing-Gavin Award for a Management Representative. He resides in Jamaica Plain.
Reverend Jose Encarnacion: Reverend Jose Encarnacion is a graduate of Worcester State University and Clark University. He has been working in Worcester since 1992 and is a co-founder and currently the Chair of the Worcester Latino Ministers Alliance (WLMA). Encarnacion also serves as Co-Chair of Worcester Interfaith and as Co-Founder/Clergy Liaison for the Worcester Clergy and Police Community Partnership. In 2011 he was awarded the Seth Bernstein Community Leadership Award in the City of Worcester. He is a first-generation Puerto Rican born in Hartford, Connecticut and raised in Fajardo, Puerto Rico.
William T. Foley: William T. Foley is a former 30-year elected official in Springfield, having served on the School Committee and City Council. He was a four-time City Council President and a strong advocate for school construction projects. Foley also had a 25-year business career in the computer field and ended his career as a Deputy Regional Manager with the Massachusetts Lottery. He remains very active in politics and charitable activities.
David Friedman: David S. Friedman serves as Senior Vice President/Special Counsel for the Boston Red Sox, where he is also a board member of the Red Sox Foundation, the official team charity. He previously served as First Assistant Attorney General of Massachusetts, working for Attorney General Martha Coakley, and Counsel and Chief Policy Advisor for Massachusetts Senate President Robert Travaglini. A graduate of Harvard College (’93) and Harvard Law School (’96), where he was President of the Harvard Law Review, Friedman worked as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens and has also worked in private practice at the Boston law firm of Hill & Barlow.
Diana Hwang: Diana Hwang is the Founder and Executive Director of the Asian-American Women’s Political Initiative (AAWPI), the only political leadership organization for Asian-American women in Massachusetts and the country. Hwang previously worked at the State House as the Executive Director of the Caucus of Women Legislators and as the Legislative Aide to late State Representative Debby Blumer. She is a Founding Commissioner on the Mayor’s Women’s Commission for the City of Boston. Hwang also currently serves as Co-Chair of the Board of Directors for the Boston Women’s Fund and on the Boards of the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts Boston and the Massachusetts Asian Pacific Islanders (MAP) for Health. Hwang was recently featured in Boston Magazinefor her work and has spoken at the Center for American Progress in Washington, D.C. and at a number of colleges, including Salem State University, Wellesley College and Dartmouth College, about the importance of civic engagement and her experience founding AAWPI. She is originally from Houston, Texas and graduated from Dartmouth College.
Brenda Jenkins: Brenda Jenkins, a former YMCA Health and Wellness Director, is currently Community Relations Director at the Central Community Branch of the YMCA of Central Massachusetts. Jenkins is also the Co-Founder/President of the non-profit center, Mosaic Cultural Complex, an organization that empowers and educates men of color across the United States.
Dennis Kanin: Dennis Kanin is the co-founder and principal of New Boston Ventures, a real estate development firm. Previously, he was a partner at the Boston law firm Foley Hoag, LLP and served as the chief of staff to former U.S. Senator Paul Tsongas. He was Campaign Manager for Tsongas’ Presidential, U.S. Senate, and House campaigns. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, Kanin serves on the MassDevelopment Board of Directors, is President of the Roxbury Latin School Board of Trustees and is former New England Chair and National Washington Affairs Chair of the Anti-Defamation League. Kanin served on Governor-Elect Patrick’s Transition Working Group on Housing and Community Development in 2006-2007.
James Kelley: James Kelley is an attorney and founder of Acucity Law LLC. He graduated from Boston College, cum laude, and received his J.D. from the Massachusetts School of Law. His diverse professional experience includes government policy and investigations, public procurement, construction and accounting.
Ellen Kennedy: Ellen Kennedy serves as President of Berkshire Community College. She is committed to college affordability, reduced college debt, and financial literacy for all residents of the Commonwealth. She has a particular interest in Gateway Cities. Involved in the Berkshires, Kennedy serves on a number of boards, including the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Berkshire Country Regional Employment Board, Berkshire Health Systems, Berkshire Compact for Education, Berkshire Visitors Bureau, Berkshire Priorities and the Berkshire Population Task Force. A native of Lynn, Kennedy lives in Williamstown with her husband, Mark Gold.
Paul W. Lee: Paul W. Lee is Of Counsel at Goodwin Procter LLP, where he is a corporate lawyer and advisor to emerging technology companies, banks, financial services companies, and other public companies. He is a past president of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association and a founder and the first President of the Asian American Lawyers Association of Massachusetts. Currently, he serves as Board President for the Asian Community Development Corporation, Board Chair of Asian Americans Advancing Justice/AAJC, a national Asian American Civil Rights organization, and as a Board member for The Boston Foundation.
Daniel Passacantilli: Daniel Passacantilli serves as Principal at Blue Front Telecom Group. BFTG is a Massachusetts based telecom consultancy firm specializing in telecom optimization and expense reduction. Passacantilli’s practice consist of cities, towns and state agencies in New England and New York State. Previously he held a management position at one of the country’s largest telecom service providers. He serves on the Agent Advisor Board of many national voice and data carriers, including Windstream Communications NASDAQ (WIN) and EarthLink Communications NASDAQ (ELNK). Passacantilli is also President of the Malden Catholic Alumni Association, where he graduated in 1990.
Chet Riley: James “Chet” Riley currently serves as the as the Vice-President of the Massachusetts Association of Contributory Retirement Systems, an organization whose sole purpose is to preserve and strengthen the 105 public retirement systems of the Commonwealth. In addition, he serves as the Chairman of the Brookline Retirement Board and as the Co-Chairman of the Town of Brookline’s Public Employee’s Committee, a committee that negotiates health benefits for all of Brookline’s municipal employees. Riley is also a retired Brookline firefighter who served the Town of Brookline honorably for 32 years.
Pamela Carrington Scott: Pamela Carrington Scott is President and CEO of LVCC, Inc., a business consulting firm that has more than 30 years of sales and management in financial and investment management services with New York and Boston global investment firms. As Senior Vice President at State Street Corporation, she managed relationships with mutual funds, corporate, municipal and state public pension funds, led State Street Global Advisors’ Charitable Asset Management business and managed several state college savings plans. She is a former independent director of Danvers Bancorp and Beverly National Corporation and a former director of several local and national non-profit organizations. She currently serves as Chair of the Board of Trustees of Salem State University and Trustee of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Reverend Clyde Talley: Reverend Clyde D. Talley serves as Senior Pastor at Belmont A.M.E. Zion Church, the largest A.M.E Zion Church in Massachusetts. He is Director of ‘Yes We Care,” and Treasurer and Executive Officer at United Way of Central Massachusetts. Talley also serves on the statewide Board of Advisors for STAND for Children, the Executive Board of YOU Inc., and serves several other boards and organizations. He holds a Masters in Management from Cambridge College with certificates in Organizational Development and Diversity. He lives in Worcester and is married to his wife Yolanda. They have two sons, Donnell and Caleb.
Leverett Wing: Leverett Wing is a well-known community leader and mobilizer who currently sits on the Board of Overseers of WGBH-TV/Radio, Boston’s nationally known Public Broadcasting affiliate, and at the Joslin Diabetes Center, an internationally known hospital and research center. Wing is also a Trustee at Wheelock College in Boston and serves on the Board of Directors of Boston’s Higher Ground in Roxbury and of the National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAAP). He served on Governor Deval Patrick’s Core Transition Team in 2006 and has run a number of organizations, locally and nationally, focused on improving civic engagement and political participation in various communities of color.
Special Advisory Committee
Joe Bonfiglio: Joe Bonfiglio has served as Business Manager of the Massachusetts and Northern New England Laborers’ District Council since 2009, a progressive and growing union of nearly 20,000 construction workers and public service employees who are proud members of one of more than 30 affiliated locals. As business manager, he is responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions of employment of members, including wages and fringe benefits as well as working conditions dealing with training and safety. Bonfiglio also serves on the Executive Board of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO as well as on the Board of Directors at the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
David Morales: David Morales is the Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer at Steward Health Care System, Massachusetts’ third largest privately owned employer, New England’s largest integrated community health care provider and the foremost innovative health care company in Massachusetts. Prior to joining Steward, Morales was one of the key architects of Massachusetts’ Health Care Reform law (Chapter 58), and served as Commissioner of the Massachusetts Division of Health Care Finance and Policy, the state’s Medicaid rate-setting and health care policy office, now known as the Center for Health Information and Analysis. Prior to serving as Commissioner, Morales was Deputy Chief of Staff to Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick. Before joining the Governor’s office, he worked as a Senior Advisor to Massachusetts Senate President Robert E. Travaglini. In both roles he led landmark initiatives that included health care reform and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. He is also dedicated to civic leadership and is actively involved in the following organizations: the Bowdoin College Board of Trustees, the Massachusetts Business Roundtable Board of Directors, the Boston Chamber of Commerce, the Federation of American Hospitals, the United States Chamber of Commerce, the Puerto Rican Cuatro Project, and the Lynn Classical High School Board of Directors.
Jim Pinkham: Jim Pinkham is a 32-year veteran of the utility industry and an active member of several labor organizations. For the past seven years, he has served as President of the Plymouth-Bristol Central Labor Council, representing labor in 26 communities throughout southeastern Massachusetts. In conjunction with this role, he also serves as Director of the Pilgrim Foundation, a non-profit organization with a $5 million endowment that provides funding for municipal and worthwhile projects for the City of Brockton. Pinkham is also a Vice President of the Executive Council of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO. For 15 years, he served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees for Local 369, where he has been an active member for more than three decades. Pinkham is a former member of the Board of Directors for the state’s Workforce Investment Board (WIB), where he served from 2006-2012. He serves on the Board of Registrars for the Town of Norwell, where he resides.
Robert Rizzi: Robert Rizzi is a member of Local 3 Bricklayers and Allied Crafts Workers. Previously, he served as President of the Archdiocese of Boston Labor Guild. He currently serves as President of the Quincy and South Shore Building Trades as well as the Norfolk County Central Labor Council. He is a Board Member of the Southfield Redevelopment Authority and Vice President of the AFL-CIO of Massachusetts.
Jerry Rubin: Jerry Rubin is President and CEO of the Jewish Vocational Service, one of the largest providers of adult education, training and employment services in New England, serving more than 20,000 clients annually. JVS, a long-time provider of financial literacy services as part of its economic success model, was recently selected to operate downtown Boston’s Financial Opportunity Center, in partnership with the City of Boston, the United Way, and the Local Initiative Support Corporation.
Ralph White: Ralph White, former President of Mass Retirees, works full time for the Retired State, County and Municipal Employees Association. He is a former state parole officer, an elected member of the State Retirement Board, a member of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Advisory Board, and serves as Legislative Chairman of the Massachusetts Association of Contributory Retirement Systems (MACRS). He is a Purple Heart Marine veteran of the Korean War and a former baseball coach at Walpole High School. White also serves as Commander of Walpole American Legion Post 104.
Last month, Goldberg named the following individuals to leadership roles on her transition team.
Committee Leadership
Benaree Wiley, Senior Advisor: Benaree Pratt Wiley is Principal of The Wiley Group, a firm specializing in strategy, talent management and leadership development and retention. She previously served as President and CEO of The Partnership, Inc., an organization dedicated to increasing the representation of African-Americans in positions of leadership, influence and decision-making in Greater Boston. A graduate of Howard University and Harvard Business School, Wiley is a Director of Howard University, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, The Efficacy Institute and Dress for Success Boston.
Fletcher Wiley, Senior Advisor: For more than two decades, Fletcher “Flash” Wiley has worked as a practicing attorney concentrating in the areas of corporate and commercial law, small business development, entertainment law and real estate. Wiley currently serves as of counsel at the Boston-based law firm Bingham McCutchen, LLP. He served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel at PRWT Services, Inc., a Philadelphia-based products and services company, and played a key role in building PRWT into one of the nation’s largest minority-owned businesses. A graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Law School, Wiley is extensively involved in civic and charitable activities and founded the Governor’s Commission on Minority Business Development.
Ruth Ellen Fitch, Co-Chair: Ruth Ellen Fitch is a successful leader of complex organizations. She served as President/CEO at The Dimock Center in Roxbury through 2013 and an Associate/Partner at Palmer & Dodge LLP for 20 years, where she specialized in public finance, and retired in 2003. Before attending Harvard Law School, Fitch served as the Director of the METCO program in the Brookline Public Schools. She currently serves as a director/trustee of several organizations and foundations.
Evelyn Murphy, Co-Chair: The Honorable Evelyn F. Murphy, former Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, is the Founder and President of The WAGE Project, Inc., a national organization dedicated to eliminating the gender wage gap. A Ph.D. economist, she is the author of Getting Even: Why Women Don’t Get Paid Like Men and What To Do About It. Murphy is also a Director of Citizens Energy Corporation and SBLI USA Life Insurance Company as well as a founding Director of the Commonwealth Institute.
Deb Goldberg served for six years on the Brookline Board of Selectmen, the last two as its chair. She is President of Adoptions With Love and on the Advisory Board at the Greater Boston Food Bank. Deb is also the Massachusetts Senate President’s appointee to the Treasurer’s Commonwealth Covenant Fund.
She is a graduate of Boston University, Boston College Law School, and Harvard Business School. She grew up in Brookline where she still lives with her husband, Michael Winter, and their son and daughter, Evan and Meredith.