Chair, Members & Staff
Chair
Hon. Karen K. Peters, former Presiding Justice of the New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division, Third Department
Commission Members (as of 1/4/2019)
Hon. Michele Pirro Bailey, Family Court Judge, Onondaga County
Deborah Benson, Executive Director, NYS Council on Children and Families
Steven Blatt, MD, Professor of Pediatrics, Upstate Medical University
Angela Burton, Esq., Director of Quality Enhancement for Parent Representation, NYS Office of Indigent Legal Services
Zeinab Chahine, Managing Director, Strategic Consulting, Casey Family Programs
Michele Cortese, Esq., Executive Director, Center for Family Representation, Inc.
Hon. Kathie E. Davidson, Supervising Judge, Ninth Judicial District
Hon. Monica Drinane, Retired Supervising Judge, New York City Family Court, Bronx County
MaryEllen Elia, Commissioner, New York State Education Department; President of the University of the State of New York
Karen Freedman, Esq., Executive Director, Lawyers for Children
Judy Gerber, Esq., Chief Attorney, Attorneys for Children Unit, The Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo, Inc
Lisa Gitelson, Esq., Associate Executive Director, Council of Family and Child Caring Agencies
Michael C. Green, Esq., Executive Deputy Commissioner, NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services
Hon. Michael F. Griffith, Supervising Judge, Family Courts, Eighth Judicial District
David Hansell, Commissioner, New York City Administration for Children’s Services
Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee, Chair, Children and Families Committee, NYS Assembly
Hon. Anne-Marie Jolly, Deputy Administrative Judge, NYC Family Court
Mary F. Kelly, Esq., Kelly and Knaplund
Hon. Howard Levine, Former Associate Judge, NYS Court of Appeals; Senior Counsel, Whiteman, Osterman & Hanna, LLP
Hon. Karen Lupuloff, Supervising Judge, New York City Family Court, New York County
Hon. Edwina Mendelson, Deputy Chief Administrative Judge for Justice Initiatives
Hon. Sondra Miller, Retired Associate Judge, Appellate Division, Second Department; Chief Counsel, McCarthy Fingar
Hon. Jane Pearl, Acting Justice, Supreme Court; Family Court Judge, New York County
Sheila Poole, Acting Commissioner, NYS Office of Children and Family Services
Hon. Diane T. Renwick. Associate Justice, New York State Supreme Court Appellate Division, First Department
Ronald Richter, Chief Executive Officer, Jewish Child Care Association
Hon. Jeanette Ruiz, Administrative Judge, New York City Family Court
Hon. Helene Sacco, Supervising Judge, New York City Family Court, Richmond County
Andrew Schepard, Esq., Sidney and Walter Siben Distinguished Professor of Family Law and Director of Hofstra University Center for Children, Families, and the Law, Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University
Hon. Leslie Stein, Associate Judge of the Court of Appeals
Hon. Madeline Singas, District Attorney, Nassau County
Jane Spinak, J.D., Professor, Columbia Law School
Hon. Carol Stokinger, Supervising Judge, New York City Family Court, Queens County
Ann Marie T. Sullivan, M.D., Commissioner, NYS Office of Mental Health
Hon. Margaret Walsh, Family Court Judge, Albany County
Harriet Weinberger, Esq., Director, Attorney for the Child Program, Appellate Division Second Department
Hon. Amanda White, Supervising Judge, New York City Family Court, Kings County
Howard Zucker, MD Commissioner, NYS Department of Health
Commission Staff
Executive Director
Kristen Anne Conklin, Esq.
Deputy Director
Brooke Van Genderen, LMSW