Meet Our Board of Directors

Gabriella Nawi, Chair

Gabriella is a Senior Vice President, Personal Insurance Distribution & Strategy at Travelers. She joined Travelers in 2008 as Head of Investor Relations. Prior to Travelers she was a Managing Director at Lazard Asset Management. Gabi has a bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. Gabi joined our board in January 2017.

Lawrence Friedman, Vice Chair

Senior Counsel, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP

Lawrence, now retired, was first an Associate and then a long-time partner at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, an international law firm.  He was a member of Cleary’s New York litigation group as an Associate from 1983 through 1990 and then as a Partner from 1991 through 2017.  He also served as the firm’s General Counsel from 2017 through 2023.  In his litigation practice, Larry represented domestic and foreign corporations, foreign governments and individuals, principally in complex commercial, intellectual property and other types of civil disputes before U.S. state and federal courts and international arbitration tribunals.  Before joining Cleary, Larry clerked for U.S. District Judge Charles P. Sifton in Brooklyn.  Larry is a graduate of Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service and Harvard Law School.  He joined our board in November 2023.

Robert Schiffer, Vice Chair

Robert is an Executive Vice President at SL Green Realty Corp., New York City’s largest commercial landlord. He co-manages a team of investment professionals and is responsible for the development of One Vanderbilt — SL Green’s 1.6 million square foot office tower. Rob holds a MS in Real Estate Development from Columbia University and a BA in Civil Engineering from Cornell University. Rob joined our board in January 2017.

Jane Koltsova, Treasurer

Jane is the Senior Director, Global Revenue Controller at PagerDuty. She is the former Senior Director of Revenue for Salesforce, where she led the US and Canada Revenue Recognition team. Prior to Salesforce, Jane worked in the financial audit business line at Ernst & Young. She received her B.S. in Accounting and M.Acc. from Case Western Reserve University. Jane joined our board in April 2020. 

Nancy E. Hart, Secretary

Nancy is a Partner in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. She focuses on complex business litigation and has significant experience representing clients in a wide range of state and federal court matters — at both the trial and appellate levels, as well as in domestic and international arbitrations. Nancy graduated magna cum laude from Boston College Law School and received her BA in English from Vassar College. Nancy joined our board October 2018.

Ellie Becker

Ellie is a licensed clinical social worker — focusing on children and their caregivers with issues including trauma and involvement with the child welfare system. Ellie served on the board of the Westchester Children’s Association and was President of the Foundation for the Public Schools of the Tarrytowns. She began her career as an attorney, specializing in real estate, economic development and representation of not-for-profits. Ellie joined our board in September 2017.

Laura Bruno

Laura is a Director on the Corporate Strategy team at BlackRock. She analyzes the asset management industry, client trends and competitors to help inform decision making across the firm’s businesses. Laura began her career at State Street, working in both the Boston and London offices before moving to New York in 2019. She had her first ever internship at Family Legal Care (known as LIFT at the time), and received her B.A. in Mathematics and Italian Studies from Wellesley College. Laura joined the board in March 2023.

Corey M. Chambliss

Corey is a public affairs leader at Meta with nearly 15 years of experience in strategic communications. He served in the administration of former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg from 2009 to 2014 and has advised some of the world’s most respected companies, cultural institutions and foundations. He is also co-founder of the nonprofit 5th Floor Theatre Company. Corey joined our board in September 2017.

Wendy H. Dessy

Wendy is the Director of Corporate Social Responsibility for Proskauer, where she oversees employment engagement and board service.  Prior to Proskauer, she served as Executive Director for NYC Cool Roofs and Manager of Public/Private Partnerships for the Mayor’s Office of Service and Volunteerism from 2010 to 2014. Wendy has held various positions within the Bloomberg administration and campaigns from 2005 to 2010. Wendy joined our board in June 2018.

Valerie Borden Farkas

Valerie is a Senior Counsel at Bloomberg L.P., serving as the Head of Legal for Europe, Middle East and Africa. Her team handles a wide range of matters for the EMEA region, including IP, licensing, financial technology, regulatory, antitrust, data privacy, HR and general corporate matters. Valerie is also the founder and emeritus chair of the Bloomberg Legal Department’s award-winning pro bono program. Valerie joined our board in September 2019.

Dale Goldstein

Dale is Of Counsel in Greenberg Traurig, LLP’s New York office. Dale handles complex trial litigation matters, with a focus on products liability, securities litigation, and general commercial litigation. She also represents a wide variety of clients in connection with investigations by the SEC, FINRA, and Attorney Generals’ offices nationwide. Dale is dedicated to pro bono litigation work, and has helped obtain vital special education services and schooling for children with disabilities for nearly a decade.  Dale joined our board in January 2023.

Ria Harracksingh

Ria is a Senior Pricing Manager at Squarespace. She leads internal go-to-market for pricing launches across non-ads products. Ria is originally from Trinidad and holds a BS in Chemical Engineering and MBA from Yale University. Prior to Squarespace, she worked in Business Planning and Operations at Meta, Mergers & Acquisitions at PepsiCo, and in Client Success and Business Development at Rapid Ratings — a fintech startup. Ria joined our board in September 2021.

Sonia Inamdar

Sonia is a Director in Americas Tax at Barclays, where she serves as tax counsel and manages international tax planning initiatives in response to US and global tax reform efforts. She formerly served as a Benefits Attorney at the Alliance for Children’s Rights in Los Angeles, CA, where she advocated on behalf of foster care children and their caregivers for financial support and other social service issues. Sonia began her career in the Tax department of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. Sonia holds a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and her BA from Harvard College.

Anna Klein

Anna is Vice President, Global Corporate Affairs at The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC). She also serves as a senior advisor to Executive Chairman William P. Lauder. Anna serves on a number of industry groups and sits on the Communications and Crisis committees for the Personal Care Products Council and the Steering Committee for the 30% Club — a business sector effort seeking to achieve 30% female representation on U.S. corporate Boards of Directors. Anna joined our board in 2018.

Nonny Onyekweli

Nonny is a Trial Attorney at the US Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division. She formerly served as the Director of Criminal Justice at the National Urban League, where she developed racial, social, and criminal justice reform-related campaigns. She also served as a litigation attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and an immigration public defender at the Legal Aid Society. Nonny holds a JD from New York University School of Law and a BS from the University of Maryland. Nonny joined our board in January 2022.

Michael W. Restey Jr.

Counsel, Complex Litigation and Trials, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Michael is a Counsel in the Complex Litigation and Trial group at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.  He represents a broad range of clients in a variety of disputes involving claims for securities fraud, breach of contract, and breach of fiduciary duty, both at the trial court level and on appeal, as well as in domestic and international arbitrations.  He also has an active pro bono practice focused primarily on asylum work. Michael joined our board in February 2024.

William C. Silverman

William is a Partner at Proskauer Rose LLP where he is head of the firm’s pro bono program. Before entering private practice, he served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York and as a law clerk to the Honorable Louis L. Stanton, U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York. Bill received his BA from Brown University and his JD from New York University. Bill joined our board in January 2011.

Emilia Sima

Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, Practising Law Institute

Emilia serves as the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at Practising Law Institute, a nonprofit learning organization for the legal community. She holds an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business and a Bachelor’s in Accounting from Brooklyn College. She is also a licensed Certified Public Accountant in New York. With a strong background in financial leadership, Emilia is experienced in overseeing complex financial operations, ensuring regulatory compliance, and driving strategic growth in nonprofit and corporate environments.

Susan Warren

Susan is a long-standing community volunteer and mentor at various organizations. In her professional capacity, she worked in corporate advertising and marketing. Helping under-served families thrive is especially meaningful to her as her daughter Lisa did an Externship at the Administration for Children Services (ACS) and was intent on making a difference in the lives of children and families. Lisa passed away from Hodgkins Lymphoma and was unable to fulfill her dream. Continuing this mission is a legacy to Lisa. Susan joined our board in April 2018.

Lisa Zeiderman

Lisa is Managing Partner at Miller Zeiderman LLP. A Matrimonial Attorney, CFL and Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, she regularly handles complex financial and custody divorce matters for high-net-worth individuals. Lisa received her law degree from Fordham University. Among her other committee and board work, Lisa serves on the Executive Board of Savvy Ladies, Inc., an organization that provides free education and resources to help women achieve their financial independence. Lisa joined our board in September 2020.