Rocco
Basile
Rocco Basile is a second-generation real estate developer in New York City, having constructed over 150 buildings. He is the owner of Avo Construction, a construction development firm which focuses on high-end interior renovation and ground-up building construction for real estate developers in NYC. Rocco is a proud husband and father of two.
Rocco has served on the Board of Directors of Children of the City, a non-profit organization, for seven years, serving as chair for the last four years of his tenure. Based in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Children of the City has been responding to the critical needs of families coping with trauma, academic frustration, drug abuse, delinquency and despair since 1981.
Bobbi
Brown
Bobbi Brown is the Founder and former Chief Creative Officer of Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, which was acquired by The Estée Lauder Companies in 1995. Today, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics is a global color cosmetics, fragrance, and skincare brand with a presence in more than 73 countries and 68 freestanding stores. In 2017, Bobbi stepped down from Bobbi Brown Cosmetics and launched justBOBBI, a modern lifestyle platform for wellness, beauty, travel and everything in between. Driven by Bobbi Brown’s insatiable curiosity, justBOBBI aims to educate and inspire how you live your life through never-ending exploration and creative storytelling.
In addition to running her new founded company, Bobbi regularly shares her expertise on television, in magazines and newspapers, and online. A sought after lifestyle expert, Bobbi resonates with diverse audiences and has appeared on high profile shows including Good Morning America, The Today Show, Oprah, and The View. In 2008, Bobbi received an honorary doctorate from Montclair State University. In 2010, Bobbi was appointed by President Barack Obama to the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiation.
Lora
Cooperman
Lora Cooperman is an Executive Director at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley Lora spent 12 years at JPMorgan where she advised highly successful entrepreneurs, founders, and executives of public companies on all aspects of their personal balance sheets and wealth planning. She previously worked for CLSA, an Asian brokerage firm, and Keating & Co, a boutique consulting company.
Lora was born and raised in Surry, Maine and graduated from Bowdoin College in 2004 with a BA in Government and Legal Studies. During college Lora received numerous athletic honors some of which include being named a three-time NCAA All-American and Division III National Champion Finalist in women’s basketball. She was recently inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame and Bowdoin College Athletic Hall of Honor. She is an active supporter of philanthropic organizations that focus on educating children, protecting the environment, and empowering communities of women around the world. She resides in New York City with her husband and twin girls, Dylan and Harper.
Travis
Johnson
Travis Montez Johnson is a writer, poet, professor and juvenile rights attorney, representing children in the Family Court system of New York City. Born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee, Travis came to New York City in the late 90s to attend New York University where he pursued degrees in Journalism and Africana Studies. He graduated to NYU Law School in 2003 and is currently an attorney supervisor with the Legal Aid Society, Juvenile Rights Practice.
Lauren
Marrus
Lauren is currently the CEO of Dempsey & Carroll. Her prior experience includes work in marketing, investment banking and management consulting with ABC, The Bankers Trust Company and Booz, Allen & Hamilton, respectively. She has served as Vice Chair of Storefront Academy Harlem, a tuition-free school for pre-K to 8th grade students.
She holds an MBA from The Graduate School of Business at Harvard University as well as a Bachelor’s Degree with honors, Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa from Wellesley College. She lives in Manhattan with her husband and rescue pup.
Karen
Miner-Romanoff
Karen Miner-Romanoff is Assistant Dean for Academic Excellence at New York University’s School of Professional Studies and leads the Center for Academic Excellence and Support. She holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration, with an emphasis in criminology, and a Master’s in Public Policy and Administration. An attorney as well, she obtained her Juris Doctorate, with clerkships in the U.S. District Court and U.S. Court of Appeals, worked with a major law firm, and held a position as Special Assistant to the Ohio Attorney General Chief of Staff and Chief Counsel.
She has received numerous awards and grants in the fields of criminal justice, leadership and teaching and learning, including the 2015 Academy of Criminal Justice Science Outstanding Mentor Award and was selected to serve on the ACE Women’s Network Executive Board. She is a Fulbright Scholar having served in South Africa with the Human Science Research Council. She was recently honored for her research with the Franklin County human trafficking court as the 2017 Ohio Council of Criminal Justice Education Professional Practitioner. Her predominant research interests are juvenile transfer to adult court, deterrence as crime control, problem-solving courts and the intersection of the teaching and learning sciences.
Liz
Murray
There’s a whole lot to learn about Liz Murray but let’s simply start with this: she knows why stable relationships matter to at-risk kids because she was one herself. Her life was transformed for the better by mentors who refused to look the other way. Her conviction that these kind of relationships can change other kids’ lives, as they did her own, underpins everything we do at The Arthur Project.
Liz is an inspirational speaker who is notable for having been accepted by Harvard University despite being homeless in her high school years. She was born in the Bronx, New York to poor and drug-addicted parents, both of whom would later contract HIV. She became homeless just after turning 15, when her mother died of AIDS in 1996 and her father moved to a homeless shelter.
Despite her late high school start and lack of a stable home, Murray began attending an alternative high school, graduating in two years. She was awarded a New York Times scholarship for needy students and was accepted into Harvard University. A made-for-TV film about Murray’s life, Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story, was released in 2003. Liz’s bestselling memoir Breaking Night was published in 2010. Liz credits two key mentors in her youth as the needed support and foundation in transforming her life.
Jeff
Muti
Jeff describes himself as the “boring business guy” and Liz, “the soul” of The Arthur Project. Jeff has a keen understanding that for a not-for-profit organization to be successful, it needs to be run like a business and he has a wealth of expertise to help make that happen.
Jeff is Founder, CEO and CFO of Sigma Worldwide, an engineering-services company and manufacturer of accessory products for various industries. He brings significant business expertise to The Arthur Project, having served in senior management and financial leadership roles. Jeff has been actively involved in charitable activities and served on the Board of Storefront Academy, a tuition-free, private school in Harlem and the South Bronx educating underserved children.
His primary role with the Storefront Academy was to assist in fundraising efforts. Jeff attended Duke University for undergraduate studies, received his MBA from Harvard Business School. He and his wife, Antoinette, have two wonderful children: Isabella and Connor.
Steve
Schnall
Steve is founder, chief executive officer and chairman of Quontic Bank. A serial entrepreneur, Steve has a passion for business startups and focuses on serving the communities where his businesses reside. He has a proven track record of founding several successful private and public companies across a variety of industries, including community banking, mortgage finance, health and fitness, and early stage dot-com era ventures.
Steve is also an active real estate investor/developer and co-chairman of Fit Athletic Holdings. He is a founding director of, and primary contributor to, Urban Angels, a nonprofit that provides food to the homeless, serving more than 100,000 meals per year. He also serves on the advisory board of the New York League of Independent Bankers. He received a bachelor’s degree in accounting, cum laude, from the University of Florida.
David
Silverman
Mr. Silverman has lead a successful career in the alternative investment industry. Since 2005, he has been at Blue Harbour Group, a concentrated alternative equity investment manager. As a managing director, his responsibilities have included leading investments in a variety of industries and overseeing the firm wide effort to integrate Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations into investments and engagements. He is a member of the ICGN Board Governance Committee and the former Chair of the NYSSA’s Corporate Governance Committee. Earlier in his career, he worked at the Huff Alternative Fund at WR Huff Asset Management.
Mr. Silverman holds an AB from Princeton University and the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. At Princeton, he was a championship debater and has coached debate in a variety of capacities. He lives with his wife and two daughters in New York City.
