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Maria Alejandro, Director of Senior Services, joined Union Settlement Association in 2002. Her previous experiences include serving as the Director of Sunnyside Senior Center, Inwood Senior Center and Corsi Senior Center. She brings advanced degrees from Columbia’s Institute of Not-For-Profit Management and City University of New York’s Master’s Program in Adult & Community Education. An acknowledged expert on the Hispanic elderly, Ms. Alejandro often speaks on the subject at conferences and workshops.

 

Stephanie Davis-Irby, Director of Early Childhood Services, holds Master’s degrees in Elementary Education and Administration & Supervision from City College of New York. She received her BA from Lehman College in secondary education. Prior to joining Union Settlement in 2003, Ms. Irby was the Childcare Director at the Brooklyn Bureau of Community Service. She brings extensive experience in leading staff development, including staff training in asthma awareness, and capacity-building efforts.

 

Laura Johnson, Associate Executive Director, has been with Union Settlement for more than 30 years. She was promoted to Associate Executive Director in 2001. Previously, she served as the Deputy Director of Operations and Finance, Director of Finance and Senior Bookkeeper. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Herbert H. Lehman College of the City University of New York. 

 

Charmaine Massiah, Director of College Readiness/Assistant Director of Youth Services, brings a Master of Science in Education from Hunter College and a bachelor’s degree from New York University. She has more than 17 years of experience in the not-for-profit world, including as a rehabilitation counselor, tutor and vocational counselor, as Director of Community Service for seven years at Presbyterian Social Services and as Director of Programming at Bedford Central Church.

 

Shabana K. Master, Human Resources Manager, joined Union Settlement in 2009. Previously she headed the human resources departments at the Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter and the Henry Street Settlement. Shabana brings a Bachelor's Degree from James Madison University and a Master's Degree in Public Administration from New York University, as well as ten years experience in the human resources field. 

 

Deochand Narain, Chief Financial Officer, has an MBA in Finance from Buruch College and a Bachelors degree in economics from Patrice Lumumba University. Prior to joining Union Settlement Association, he was the Chief Financial Officer at Heritage Health and Housing from 2007 through 2009, where he also served as Interim Chief Executive Officer for fifteen months. He was Vice President of Finance and Administration for New York Therapeutic Communities from 2001 through 2007. He also worked at the World Bank as a liaison between Caribbean ministries of finances and bank staff members and later as a World Bank consultant in his native Guyana. 
 

Melissa Nieves, Director of Adult Education, has been with Union Settlement since 2006. Prior to joining Union Settlement, she served as Director of the Harlem Center for Education’s Educational Opportunity Center and as Director of ESL, Literacy & Computer Services at University Settlement. She has a BA from Long Island University and is fluent in Spanish, French and Italian and brings 18 years of teaching, counseling and adult education experience.

 

David Nocenti, Executive Director, became the Executive Director of Union Settlement in January 2009. He has served as a top advisor to three Governors, including as Counsel to Governor David Paterson and former Governor Eliot Spitzer from January 2007 through June 2008, as well as Assistant Counsel and First Assistant Counsel to former Governor Mario Cuomo from 1990 to 1994. He also served as Counsel to the New York Attorney General and the Queens Borough President and as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn. He received his law degree from Columbia University Law School and his undergraduate degree from Princeton University.

José Martin Garcia Orduña, Manhattan HIV Care Network Coordinator, successfully led the East Harlem HIV Care Network for more than five years before becoming the Coordinator of the Manhattan Network in 2008. A successful fundraiser, he has brought in funds from government and business resources, while expanding the Network’s reach to Central Harlem and Washington Heights through annual AIDS Profile Conferences. He brings 15 years of experience in the field of HIV/AIDS care, awareness and prevention.

 

Cheryl Patterson-Artis, Union Settlement Home Care Services Director, has been with the agency for 15 years, serving as the Director of Patient Care Services before her promotion to Director in 2004. She brings a bachelor’s degree in social work, a master’s in theology and more than 22 years of experience helping clients.

 

Steven Portericker, Director of Youth Services, has been with Union Settlement for more than seven years and brings a BS in Multidisciplinary Studies (Biology, Sociology and Women’s Studies) from SUNY-Stonybrook as well as a background in case management and dropout prevention. He served as Assistant Director of Youth Services before his promotion to Director in May of 2007.

 

Karen Smith, LCSW-R, Director of Mental Health Services, was Clinical Director of the Johnson Counseling Center before her promotion to Director in 2001. She also served as Coordinator of HIV Mental Health Services. A licensed clinical social worker, she brings extensive postgraduate clinical training and a wealth of clinical, administrative and supervisory experience in case management, mental health, substance abuse and HIV/AIDS.

 

Sara Stuart, Director of Development and Communication, joined Union Settlement in 2009. She was Director of Development and Communication at Citizens Union, a century old good government watchdog organization, and at Center for Community Alternatives, a social service agency serving people involved in the criminal justice system. From 1985 to 2002, she headed Communication for Change, where she led participatory communication projects in Asia, Africa and the Middle East focused on community development, health education and human rights.

Khalid West, Director of Technology, has led technology services at Union Settlement for more than eight years and has extensive expertise in computer languages, operating systems, applications and hardware. He studied Computer Information Systems at the University of Massachusetts and previously worked as a Creative Technology Consultant for Elektra Records and a Director of Technology for Universal Music Group.

 

Audia Williams, Union Settlement Federal Credit Union Manager/CEO, brings bachelor’s degrees in accounting and management and a masters of science in accounting and financial management from the University of Maryland. Prior to joining the credit union in 2006, Ms. Williams served as the Vice President of Finance at a $287 million Pennsylvania credit union.