Board of Directors and Advisory Board Members
Officers
 Leila Salmon, Board Chair Emerita
Stephen Madarasz, President
Stephen Madarasz has been one of the most visible communications professionals in New York’s capital and beyond for more than 35
years. He has long been involved in public dialogue around behavioral health issues.A graduate of Boston College and with a Master’s degree in Political Communication from the University at Albany, Madarasz began his career as a broadcast journalist with WAMC - Northeast Public Radio and helped establish a news operation that has grown into a regional powerhouse, reaching listeners in five states.For more than 30 years - 22 of them as Director of Communications - he served as a public face for CSEA - New York’s Leading Union. In this capacity he supervised a statewide staff and was responsible for all internal and external communications, marketing, and media relations on behalf of 300,000 working people, doing every kind of work in every part of New York.In addition to serving as Board President for the Mental Health Foundation, Madarasz serves on the Board of Directors of the American Red Cross of Eastern NY, Capital Repertory Theatre and is past Board President of the NYS Labor-Religion Coalition.Madarasz teaches marketing communication and public speaking at the graduate and undergraduate level at the University at Albany and has taught at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the College of St. Rose.
“ My commitment to the Mental Health Foundation stems from advocating for thousands of mental health workers over decades. I witnessed first-hand the devastating effect of poor public policy choices, inadequate coordination of limited resources and system fragmentation on individuals, families and communities. We can do better and organizations like the Mental Health Foundation can help bring people and ideas together as a catalyst for change.”
Anna Maria Maritato, Vice President
Anna Maria Maritato is a Senior Director/Team Leader of New York State Government Relations for Pfizer Inc. She works to promote public policies that advance health, wellness, prevention, and access to treatment and cures for patients. In representing Pfizer’s World Headquarters in Manhattan and the company’s facility in Rockland County, which is a leading global site for vaccine and biologic research and manufacturing, she works to support biopharmaceutical innovation. Anna Maria has worked in the private sector for Pfizer for the last 20 years.
Prior to joining Pfizer, Anna Maria worked in the public sector for 10 years. From 1992-1996, she served as Deputy Budget Director for Health and Human Services for the New York State Assembly Ways and Means Committee where her role was a principal budget negotiator and health policy advisor for the New York State Assembly. She led a team of 5 analysts responsible for negotiating budgets and legislation pertaining to the following state agencies: Department of Health, Office of Mental Health, Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities, Office for the Aging, Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services, Commission on Quality of Care for the Mentally Disabled, Facilities Development Corporation, and the Council on Children and Families. Prior to being promoted to Deputy Director, she was the Assembly Ways and Means analyst for the Department of Health. Her areas of expertise include Medicaid and other health and human services programs.
Susan Mitnick, Secretary
Susan Mitnick is the Director of the Division of Workforce Transformation in the New York State Department of Health where she oversees the design, implementation and evaluation of workforce programs and activities related to the development of New York’s health care workforce. Prior to this, she focused on workforce issues at the Public Employees Federation and the New York State Nurses Association. Susan worked closely with the Office of Mental Health on workforce and patient advocacy concerns, including movement of patients and workers into the community.
Howard Carr, Treasurer
Howard Carr has been involved in the residential and commercial real estate brokerage, development, and management business for more than 50 years, throughout the Northeastern portion of the US.
Howard started in the real estate business in New York City in 1968 and located back home in Albany in 1971, following graduation from Long Island University. Howard has been a principal in three firms over this time, Schuyler Brokerage Corp., The Howard Companies, and The Howard Group.
Howard has been responsible for developing and leasing more than 4,000,000 square feet of retail and office space throughout the Northeast region, has served as President of the Albany County Board of Realtors, president of the Commercial and Industrial Real Estate Brokers, Inc., and Government Affairs chair for New York State for the International Council of Shopping Centers for 13 years, and continues to develop commercial and residential projects in the Northeast.
Howard has previously served as President of the Mental Health Foundation for 4 years and currently serves as the Treasurer of the Foundation.
“The plight of those affected by mental illness continues to be a road of obstacles and stigma. Recent events have shown that we know there are better ways to assist these individuals, and it is our duty as a society to find way in which to identify those in need, and bring them into an environment that will promote their healing and wellness.”
Board Members
Carol A. Allocco
For over 34 years, Carol has worked in the legislative and regulatory policy arena. For the past 25 years, Carol led Johnson & Johnson’s (J&J) Northeast and Mid-Atlantic state government affairs initiatives that advanced patient access to consumer, pharmaceutical and medical device products and health care system programs. Also, Carol managed numerous J&J nationwide government affairs initiatives supporting patient access to health care product and system innovations. In the non-profit sector, Carol served as chief lobbyist and health policy staff for the Community Health Care Association of New York State, Inc., advocating at the state and federal level for expansion of primary care services for low income, minority and migrant worker populations. Her state government experience includes various positions in the New York State Legislature, where she developed and negotiated environmental health, product life cycle sustainability, and waste management legislation. Carol‘s federal government affairs experience includes working in Washington, D.C. for Congress Watch and Election Data Services, Inc. where she focused on consumer, environmental protection and election law policies.
Over the years, Carol has held cross sector trade association leadership positions, including AdvaMed’s State Affairs Committee industry chair, PhRMA State Task Force chair and vice chair in various states, New York Health Products Council chair and MedTech New York’s Government Affairs Committee chair. For over 15 years, on behalf of J&J, Carol served on AdvaMed’s State Government Affairs Work Group.
Carol received a Bachelor’s degree in political science with a business minor from Susquehanna University and a Master’s degree in political science from the Maxwell School of Public Affairs and Citizenship at Syracuse University.
John Colley
A Union College grad and active alum, John Colley majored in both psychology and economics. In order to pursue Graduate School and the American Institute of banking programs, he worked as a Mental Health Therapist in a local community hospital...doing ER evaluations, answering the crisis line on the night shift, and was involved in group and individual counseling and patient treatment plans (both inpatient and outpatient) over 6 years.Colley was involved in the Capital District Psychiatric Center since its inception which was a very rewarding experience, Colley assisted County MH Commissioners and secured grant monies for community programs/education. He helped draw people like Rollo May ("I'm ok, you're Ok") to local venues and quickly aligned (in later years] with MaryLou Whitney's and Matilda Cuomo's philosophy: "It's "OK" to talk about Iit" .In his current career position, Colley works as an investment advisor and money manager based in Saratoga Springs still respecting the psychological (manic-depressive) side of our markets. Colley enjoys the opportunity to work with wonderful people in achieving their investment goals.
 Matilda Raffa CuomoAs First Lady of New York State (1983-1995) she diligently worked as a volunteer with state and elected officials and community leaders, to establish programs to prevent child abuse, strengthen families, promote adoptions for foster care children and prevent school drop out. She has been a respected and distinguished advocate on behalf of women, children and families. Mrs. Cuomo has been described as the most active First Lady in New York State’s history.In 1987, to prevent school drop out, Mrs. Cuomo established the New York State Mentoring Program, the nation’s first state-wide school-based- one-to-one mentoring program. In 1995, she established Mentoring USA, to continue support for the New York State Mentoring Programs. Mentoring USA has expanded to five states and Mentoring USA Italia established in Italy provides mentors for over 600 children.
Mark T. O'Rourke
Attorney admitted in good standing to the U.S. Supreme Court, Federal Practice (Eastern & Southern Districts of New York) and the Bar of the State of New York. Thirteen years of experience working in many facets of state government in the Eastern U.S. Region in the public, private and non-profit sectors, including the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and life science fields. Proven track record in achieving strategic organizational policy objectives. Expertise in: legislative and grassroots advocacy • state budget and fiscal decision making • Medicaid • Medicare • Affordable Care Act • state governance and public health policy. Affiliated with key state, regional and national business, health and legislative organizations. Considerable experience with multiple, successful NYC Council and NYS Senate campaigns and national political conventions.
Michael Prevost
Advisory Board
David Brill, MD
Dr. Brill is best known in Northern Arizona as Manager of Primary Care services for the Northern Arizona Veterans Administration, and pioneer of its Telehealth program, from 2010 until last year. The Northern Arizona VA serves 25,000 veterans spread out across 60,000 square miles. Dr. Brill, with his staff of 200, made great strides in improving both the quality of healthcare and every veteran’s ability to access it, whether at home or at VA clinics across Northern Arizona. He strove to increase efficiencies, reduce public spending, and introduce new technologies to improve productivity and service.
Previously, Dr. Brill also had an extensive business career. As Corporate Medical Director for Michelin North America, he managed clinical and wellness programs for 27,000 employees and 84,000 dependents and retirees. Again, he achieved success by combining quality care with cost efficiencies and new technologies.
As an entrepreneur, Dr. Brill understands the challenging environment small owners face. He founded three small businesses of his own, in hazardous chemical management, hospital clinical services, and diagnostic biotechnology. Each offered valuable lessons in funding, profitability, cost management, government regulation, and what it takes to achieve success.
Loren Ellis
Loren founded Art for Healing NYC Int'l charity in May 2000 in Hell's Kitchen-Manhattan, to help the community have more access to the arts on a more personal meet the artist style. It has been proven involvement in the arts, whether you go to a museum, listen to music, dance, or draw, involvement in the arts is healing. We offer involvement in the arts via arts workshops, our 911 NYC arts book multimedia events, and via performances and exhibitions. I founded AfH as a sort of umbrella to protect and assist visual and performance artists to share their talent on a one to one with those who show interest.
Mark Olfson, MD, MPH
Mark Olfson, MD, MPH currently directs several studies on the delivery of mental health services in community settings with an emphasis on the pharmacoepidemiology of psychotic and mood disorders. His research interests focus on national patterns and trends in the utilization of mental health services and quality of care. Dr. Olfson serves as Co-Director of the AHRQ Center for Education and Research on Mental Health Therapeutics and the Scientific Director of Columbia University TeenScreen.
JoAnne Sirey, Ph.D
Dr. Jo Anne Sirey received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from City University of New York and completed a post-doctoral Fellowship at Weill Cornell Medical College. Dr. Sirey is a Professor of Clinical Psychology in Psychiatry, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, Attending Psychologist and Clinical Director of the Geriatric Outpatient clinic of the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
A Clinical Psychologist by training, she is interested in addressing the psychological barriers and stigma that deter adults from utilizing mental health care. Dr. Sirey has grants from the The National Institute of Mental Health to conduct an intervention to increase use of mental health services among depressed community dwelling elders (R01 MH 079265) and a project to improve adherence among elders in primary care settings (R01 MH087557). Dr. Sirey received the Woman of the Future award from the New York Women's Agenda, the Essel Investigator Award from the NARSAD Foundation and the New Investigator Award during the 40th Annual New Clinical Drug Evaluation Unit Meeting (NCDEU) sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health. In addition to her research Dr. Sirey is on the Board of Directors of the Mental Health Foundation and is a reviewer for SAMHSA's National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP).
|
