SDMNY has an Advisory Council consisting of a wide variety of stakeholders, including persons with I/DD, family members, caregivers, service providers, special education professionals, regulators, disability scholars, legislators, lawyers, judges, and court personnel. We welcome the opportunity to learn from and involve experts, and experts by experience, in all aspects of our work.
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Andrew Drobenko
Decision-Maker
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Carrie Bateman
Chief of Staff, Division of Specialized Instruction and Student Support, New York City Department of Education
New York, NY -
Kimberly Berg
Program Planner, NYS Developmental Disabilities Planning Council
Albany, NY -
Naomi Brickel
Director of Community and Family Education, Westchester Institute for Human Development
Westchester, NY -
Victor Calise
Commissioner, New York City Mayor’s Office for Persons with Disabilities
New York, NY -
Tina Campanella
Principle Investigator, National Resource Center on Supported Decision-Making
Washington, DC -
Leslie Ann Caraballo
Parent Advocate; Citywide Council on Special Education; Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York Advocacy Council
New York, NY -
Bernard Carabello
Founder of the Self-Advocacy Association of New York State (SANYS); Institutional survivor, Willowbrook State School
New York, NY -
Louis Cavaliere
Executive Vice President, Developmental Disabilities Division, Services for the Underserved (S:US)
New York, NY -
Suzanne Chen
Parent; Outreach Coordinator, New York Deaf-Blind Collaborative
Queens, NY -
Natalie Chin
Assistant Professor of Law, CUNY School of Law; Co-Director, Disability and Aging Justice Clinic
Brooklyn, NY -
Rebekah Diller
Clinical Associate Professor of Law, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law; Co-director, Bet Tzedek Civil Litigation Clinic
New York, NY -
Chester Finn
Self-advocate; Vice President of Advocacy & Self-Advocacy, Community Empowerment Programs, Inc. (CEPI)
Albany, NY -
Stuart Flaum
Parent advocate; Special Needs Planning Adviser
Brooklyn, NY
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Bob Fleischner
Co-director, Supported Decision-Making Project, Center for Public Representation (CPR), (Retired)
Northampton, MA -
Lisa Friedman
NYS Bar Association, Sections on Trusts & Estates and Elder Law & Special Needs
New York, NY -
Heather Green
Transition Program Educator, Shenendehowa High School
Saratoga County, NY -
Hon. David Guy
Surrogate Judge, Broome County
Binghamton, NY -
Beth Haroules
New York Civil Liberties Union; Willowbrook class counsel
New York, NY -
John Hatton
East End Disabilities Associates, Inc.
Suffolk County, NY -
Robin Hickey
Parent
Albany, NY -
Gerald Johnson
Self-advocate, activist, author, and institutional survivor
New York, NY -
Michele Juda
Executive Director, Parent to Parent of NYS
Schenectady, NY -
Julian Kane
Student, SKILLs Program, Cooke Center Academy
Queens, NY -
Arlene Kanter
Bond Schoeneck & King Distinguished Professor of Law; Director of the Disability Law and Policy Program, Syracuse University College of Law
Syracuse, NY -
Hon. Peter Kelly
Surrogate Judge, Queens County
Queens, NY -
Regina Lehman
Associate Professor & Program Director, Occupational Therapy Assistant Program, LaGuardia Community College
Long Island City, NY -
Tirza Leibowitz
Associate Director for Legal Advocacy, Human Rights Initiative, Open Society Foundations
New York, NY
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Lori Lerner
Coordinator of Family Services, Developmental Disabilities Division, Serving the UnderServed (S:US)
New York, NY -
Carol Lieb Himes
Coordinator, Special Education, Early Intervention & ACCES-VR Mediation Programs, New York Peace Institute
Brooklyn, NY -
Hon. Margarita Lopez Torres
Surrogate Judge, Kings County
Brooklyn, NY -
Diana Mendez
Parent advocate; Parents for Inclusive Education (PIE); The ARISE Coalition; Advocates for Children
Queens, NY -
Marc Anthony Mendez
Student and Self-advocate
Queens, NY -
Michael Middleton
Klara & Larry Silverstein Dean of the School of Education, Hunter College
New York, NY -
Martha Mock
Associate Director, Institute for Innovative Transition, Warner School of Education & Human Development, University of Rochester
Rochester, NY -
Tara Moffett
Special Needs Attorney, Former Chair, NYS Bar Association Committee on Disability Rights
Albany, NY -
Arfa Mujahid
Parent advocate
Queens, NY -
Shain M. Neumeier
Self-advocate; PADD Staff Attorney Analyst
Albany, NY -
Hon. Juanita Bing Newton
Judge, NYS Court of Claims; Dean, NYS Judicial Institute
White Plains, NY -
Tara Anne Pleat
Co-editor, NYS Bar Association Elder Law & Special Needs Journal
Saratoga County, NY -
Katie Riordan
Division Head, SKILLs Program, Cooke School and Institute
New York, NY
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Trina Hazell
Decision-Maker
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Sheila Rothman
Professor Emerita, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University; Co-author, The Willowbrook Wars
New York, NY
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Leslie Salzman
Clinical Professor of Law, Cardozo School of Law; Co-director, Bet Tzedek Legal Services Clinic
New York, NY
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Diana Sanabria
Chief Clerk, Surrogate’s Court, New York County
New York, NY
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Lisa Severino
Self-advocate, Self-Advocacy Association of New York State (SANYS); Chairperson, Developmental Disabilities Planning Council Caucus
Queens, NY
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Sheila Ellen Shea
Director, Mental Hygiene Legal Services, Third Judicial Department
Albany, NY
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Hon. Jo Anne Simon
Assemblymember, NYS Assembly
Brooklyn, NY -
Gloria Smith
Parent advocate; Citywide Education Council for District 75, New York City Department of Education
Brooklyn, NY -
Marna Solarsh
Special Needs Attorney
Scarsdale, NY -
Jennifer Teisch
Project Coordinator, AHRC
New York, NY -
Barbara Wale
President & CEO, Arc of Monroe County
Rochester, NY -
Eric Yetter
Guardianship Coordinator, Achieve, Inc.
Binghamton, NY