Regional Workforce Development Summit

Jason Bram is a Research Officer in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Regional Analysis Function. His research and analysis focuses on the U.S. economy, with a primary emphasis on the Federal Reserve’s Second District, which includes New York State, northern New Jersey, and southwestern Connecticut, as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He produces the regional Beige Book reports, and uses monthly business surveys to monitor and analyze current and emerging economic trends and issues of concern. Recent research has focused on housing markets and composite indexes of regional economic activity. Earlier research focused on analyzing the impact of the 9/11 terrorist attack on the New York City economy. He has also published studies on some key sectors of the local economy, conducted ongoing research on commuting patterns, and researched the role of consumer confidence in the U.S. economy.

Dr. Belinda S. Miles has served as president of Westchester Community College, a State University of New York (SUNY) institution serving more than 26,000 students in one of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas, since 2015. Deeply committed to student success and completion, Dr. Miles has worked with faculty and staff to achieve a 42% increase in the college’s three-year graduation rate and the largest graduating classes in its 72-year history.

Her leadership contributed to Westchester Community College being selected as a member of the Achieving the Dream network of community colleges committed to improved student outcomes and as one of two institutions selected nationally for a $1,000,000 award to support replication of the City University of New York’s Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) which doubled CUNY’s three-year graduation rate. Westchester Community College is SUNY’s first federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution.

Locally, Dr. Miles is a member of the Board of Directors for the Business Council of Westchester, the Westchester-Putnam Workforce Investment Board, and the Westchester Medical Center Healthcare Transformation Workforce Committee. Her national leadership includes board or advisory roles at the American Association of Community Colleges, COMBASE, Higher Education Resource Services (HERS), American Association of Colleges & Universities Presidents’ Trust, and the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).

Among Dr. Miles’ numerous awards are 2017 914INC Magazine Women in Business; 2016 NAACP Education “Still Standing for Justice;” and 2016 United Way of Westchester/Putnam “Spirit of Caring.” Dr. Miles is a highly regarded regional and national presenter on a range of topics including community colleges as a disruptive innovation in academia that fosters an equitable and inclusive democracy.

Prior to joining Westchester Community College, Dr. Miles served as provost and executive vice president of Access, Learning, and Success at Cuyahoga Community College with oversight of four campuses and multiple extension sites serving 60,000 students in the Greater Cleveland, Ohio area. Her other roles at Cuyahoga included president of the Eastern Campus, dean of Academic Affairs, and assistant dean of Liberal Arts. Other previous positions include faculty and administrator roles at LaGuardia Community College, Nassau Community College, and Columbia University.

Originally from Queens, New York, Dr. Miles attended public schools including York College City University of New York (CUNY), earning a B.A. in Political Science. She attained a M.A. in Educational Psychology and an Ed.D. in Higher Education Organization and Leadership Development from Columbia University Teachers College.

Joseph M. Carbone is the president and CEO of The WorkPlace Inc., a Bridgeport-headquartered not-for-profit workforce development agency. In the 22 years since taking the reins at The WorkPlace, Carbone and his organization have played a dramatic role in helping countless individuals expand their educational and occupational credentials in order to become active participants in the workforce.

Diane Woolley is the Chief Human Resources Officer at White Plains Hospital. In this capacity, Ms. Woolley is responsible for all employee relations, labor relations, recruitment, benefits, education and organizational development at White Plains Hospital.

Ms. Woolley joined the Hospital in 2015 with more than 20 years of experience in Human Resources. After beginning her career at United Technologies, she spent eight years at Waterbury Hospital in Connecticut, first as Administrative Director of Human Resources and then as Vice President of Human Resources. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from Post University, as well as a Master of Science in Human Resource Management and a Master of Business Administration, both from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at Hartford.

Melinda Mack is the Executive Director of the New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals (NYATEP), a nationally recognized, leading non-profit membership association in the field of workforce development. As a steadfast advocate and expert in system’s change; she champions the investment in and expansion of promising and evidence-based practices to improve outcomes for New Yorkers; the use of data to drive decision-making; and for eliminating silos that deter from high quality services.  Her expertise has been requested by Congressional committees and the New York State Legislature, and she has presented before the Board of Governors at the Federal Reserve Bank. Ms. Mack is a co-lead of the Invest in Skills NY initiative and campaign that successfully engaged the State in 2018 to invest more than $175 million in job training and workforce development.  In her previous roles, Ms. Mack was the founding Director for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation program, Graduate NYC! and served as the acting Executive Director for the New York City Workforce Board under the Bloomberg Administration.  Before working in New York City, Ms. Mack worked in Upstate New York in local government working in both municipal finance and economic development in Buffalo and Albany.

Ms. Mack has received a baccalaureate degree in Urban and Public Policy from SUNY Buffalo, a master’s degree in Public Administration, and a master’s degree in Regional Planning with a specialization in housing from SUNY Albany.  She also is a graduate of the Columbia Business School’s Senior Leaders in Non-Profit Executive program, Harvard’s Education Redesign lab, the New York City Workforce Leaders Academy, and Leadership Buffalo.   Ms. Mack proudly serves on the National Skills Coalition Board, NYS Economic Development Council and Albany Can Code.  She was recognized by City and State Magazine as 40 Under 40 Rising Stars in politics in New York State in 2018.