Tom Bergeron

Founder, Editor, and Owner of ROI-NJ

An influential journalist in New Jersey for more than three decades, Tom Bergeron is the founder, editor and co-owner of ROI-NJ, a digital and print outlet covering the world of business and politics in New Jersey that he helped launch in the fall of 2017.

The 30-year veteran of journalism, who previously worked at The Star-Ledger, Yahoo! and NJBIZ, has established himself as one of the most well-known and trusted sources for business leaders, industry heads and government officials in the state by building a reputation of being fair and thorough in his reporting and presentation.

Tom lives in Morris Plains with his wife and their five children. When he is not writing and reporting, he is coaching youth sports teams – having led more than 100 teams in the past 20 years.

He is a graduate of the University of Virginia.

Gina Raimondo

United States Secretary of Commerce

Gina M. Raimondo serves as the 40th U.S. Secretary of Commerce and was sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris on March 3, 2021. As Secretary of Commerce, she is focused on a simple but vital mission — to spur good-paying jobs, empower entrepreneurs to innovate and grow, and help American workers and businesses compete.

Secretary Raimondo was formerly the 75th Governor of Rhode Island and its first woman governor. She grew up in Smithfield in a tight-knit Italian-American family, the youngest of Joseph and Josephine Raimondo's three children. Her family history and her childhood experiences shaped her core beliefs in hard work, opportunity for all, and the importance of financial security. After arriving from Italy at age 14, Secretary Raimondo’s grandfather learned English studying in the Providence Public Library and later lived with her family. Her mother was a homemaker, who dedicated her life to teaching her children about the importance of hard work and determination. Her father was a World War II Navy veteran from a family of butchers and became the first in his family to attend college thanks to the GI Bill. After working for 26 years in manufacturing, Joseph lost his job along with hundreds of others when the factory moved overseas, and the Raimondo family lost their sense of financial security.

As a teenager, Secretary Raimondo rode a public bus to LaSalle Academy in Providence, where she was valedictorian of her graduating class. She went on to graduate with honors from Harvard, where she was recognized as the top economics student in her class. She won a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University where she earned a doctorate and met her future husband Andy Moffit. She later graduated from Yale Law School. Secretary Raimondo clerked for US District Judge Kimba Wood and served as founding employee and senior vice president at Village Ventures. Wanting to start her own business and be close to family, she returned home to Rhode Island and founded Point Judith Capital, a venture capital firm. In November 2010, Secretary Raimondo was elected to serve as General Treasurer of Rhode Island, receiving the largest number of votes of any statewide candidate. When she took office as General Treasurer, she tackled the state's $7 billion unfunded pension liability. Secretary Raimondo was sworn into office as Governor in January 2015 and won a second term in 2018. She also served as chair of the Democratic Governors’ Association in 2019. During her time as Governor, Secretary Raimondo kick-started the state’s economy and made record investments in infrastructure, education, and job training. She focused tirelessly on creating economic opportunities and good-paying jobs for all Rhode Islanders. Early in her administration, she launched an innovative workforce development program that develops business-led partnerships to address unique workforce challenges.

Frank Pallone, Jr.

United States Congressman

Frank Pallone, Jr. was sworn in for his 17th full term in the U.S. House of Representatives on January 3, 2021. Pallone represents New Jersey's Sixth Congressional District, which includes most of Middlesex County as well as the Bayshore and oceanfront areas of Monmouth County.

Throughout his career, Pallone has fought to make health care more affordable and accessible, protect and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid, and make the country’s food system safer. Pallone has fought to protect New Jersey’s environment and ensure that all residents can enjoy the National Recreation Area at Sandy Hook. He has also championed issues that are important to the state's commercial and recreational fishing industries.

Pallone is the Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has one of the broadest jurisdictions of any congressional committee. He has served as Chairman since the beginning of the 116th Congress in 2019 and before that he served as the Committee’s Ranking Member in the 114th and 115th Congresses. The Committee’s jurisdiction includes issues pertaining to health care, energy, environment, commerce, food and drug safety, consumer protection, telecommunications, and the internet. Pallone has held a seat on the Committee since 1993.

During the 116th Congress, as the nation confronted the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis, Pallone played a pivotal role in ensuring Congress provided the tools and resources needed to bring an end to this terrible pandemic. He helped shepherd four bills through the House to combat the coronavirus that became law. They include the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, the Coronavirus Aid Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, and an omnibus appropriations and COVID-19 relief package. Thanks to these bills, New Jersey received billions of dollars to help keep New Jerseyans healthy during the pandemic and ensure hardworking families receive the support they need.

Pallone led the bipartisan effort to end surprise medical bills by holding patients harmless when they receive a surprise bill from an out-of-network health care provider. He also authored the new bipartisan law that will help stop the onslaught of annoying robocalls. He successfully pushed through historic legislation that was signed into law that will help combat climate change by phasing down the production and consumption of hydrofluorocarbons and mandating the repair of methane leaks. He also advanced the fight against climate change with a plan to achieve a 100% clean economy by 2050.

Pallone continued to build on his reputation as an advocate for New Jersey’s environment by securing offshore drilling bans to protect New Jersey’s coastline from disastrous oil spills and working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete multiple beach replenishment projects along beaches in Monmouth County in 2019 and 2020. He also continued to strengthen the federal Superfund program to clean up toxic waste sites.

During the 115th Congress, as Ranking Member, Pallone was one of the key leaders in the successful fight to prevent Republicans from repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA).  Pallone also led Democratic efforts to pass bipartisan legislation that expanded treatment for people fighting opioid use disorder and to reauthorize the Safe Drinking Water Act for the first time in 20 years.

In his first term as Ranking Member of the Energy and Commerce Committee during the 114th Congress, Pallone led Democrats in passing key health care and environmental bills that were signed into law by President Obama, including the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, and the 21st Century Cures Act.

Prior to serving as the Ranking Member of the full Energy and Commerce Committee, Pallone served as the top Democrat on the Subcommittee on Health from 2007 to 2014.  As Chairman of the Health Subcommittee during the 111th Congress, Pallone played a key role in authoring and passing the ACA. The landmark law extends health care coverage to millions of Americans, while driving down health care costs, and reigning in abusive tactics used by insurance companies to deny medical treatment.

Frank Pallone, Jr. was born in Long Branch, New Jersey where he grew up and still resides. The son of a policeman, Pallone attended local public schools and earned an academic scholarship to Middlebury College. After graduating from Middlebury in 1973, Pallone received his master's degree in international relations at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He earned his law degree from Rutgers University in 1978.

Pallone began his political career in Long Branch. He was elected to the Long Branch City Council in 1982. In 1983, he was elected to the state Senate, representing the Monmouth County coastline. He was re-elected in 1987.

On November 8, 1988, Pallone was elected to the House of Representatives from New Jersey's former Third District, encompassing parts of Monmouth and Ocean counties. After a new Congressional district map was adopted in 1992, Pallone was elected to represent the Sixth District that included large portions of Middlesex and Monmouth Counties in November of the same year.

Pallone’s Central Jersey district is an ethnically diverse area that includes New Brunswick, Asbury Park, and Perth Amboy. It is also home to a wide range of businesses and industry. Light and heavy manufacturing facilities provide jobs for thousands of area residents. Central Jersey is on the cutting edge of high technology research and development. The district is home to Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, and Monmouth University. Tourism along the coastal areas is vital to the regional economy.

Maria Szydlowski has more than 20 years of human resources experience and is currently the vice president of human resources at MTF Biologics. An HR subject matter expert, Maria’s expertise is in both operational and strategic HR initiatives, including workforce planning, benefits administration, predictive analytics, change management, and talent development. She has taught at both the undergraduate and graduate levels at The University of Scranton.

Maria has earned an MBA from Grand Canyon University, an MS in human resources administration from The University of Scranton, and a BS in human resources management from King’s College. She has achieved the Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and Society for Human Resources (SHRM) Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) certifications.

Domain Technology Partners
Michelle founded Domain with her husband Rashaad in 1997. Over the next 20 years, her role at the organization evolved from software systems design and integration to team development and management. She is currently the Vice President of BizRatings, a CSAT reputation tool, and is Board President of Womenspace, a domestic violence nonprofit. She is also a Board member for Grounds for Sculpture and the Chapin School.

She lives in Monroe Township, NJ, with her husband and three children.

Rashaad Bajwa has served as chief executive officer of Integris, one of the largest managed IT service providers in the United States, since it was founded in 2021. Rashaad is an active leader in local cyber security trade and professional groups and a frequently referenced cybersecurity subject matter expert for trade organizations such as the International Information System Security Certification Consortium (ISC2), New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA), New Jersey Builders Association (NJBA), and others. His credentials include Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), one of the gold standards in information security accreditations. In addition to cyber security, Rashaad is actively involved in the community, including serving on the board of directors for multiple nonprofits and associations in New Jersey.

Prior to his role with Integris, Rashaad held positions at Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals and American Cyanamid Corporation (later sold to American Home Products then Pfizer/Wyeth).

Rashaad is a graduate of Rutgers University in New Brunswick and currently lives with his wife and three children in Monroe Township, NJ.

Driven by a vision to create an ecosystem of better efficiencies, Chris joined Wakefern Food Corp., a $16 billion supermarket cooperative in the northeast, in early 2017 leading the retail technology team. Soon thereafter he launched the Wakefern EDGE team, focused on shepherding innovation throughout the cooperative to navigate the disruption landscape.

Chris’ focused leadership propelled a modernization of retail technology, including a migration to user-friendly mobile retail applications, artificial intelligence (AI) for retail replenishment order recommendations, internet of things (IoT) for queue management and warehouse temperature monitoring, computer vision for out-of-stock detection, AI for anomaly detection, robotics, and a smart shopping cart.

With more than 20 years of experience, Chris’ work spans a range of industry verticals and includes launching and growing start-ups, such as OpenHire, Out Task, Curb, and Karhoo. He is also the former CIO for Red Apple/Gristedes.

Chris holds an engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from Rutgers University.

Referred to as a go-getter, strategic leader, and trusted advisor by colleagues, customers, and superiors alike, Libby Bajgerova has a track record of getting the job done. Arriving in the United States from Eastern Europe in the 1990s with just a suitcase, a few family members, and loads of ambition, she set out to accomplish the American dream. Beginning her career with modest means, she quickly ascended to high-level management, leading the charge to deliver top-tier customer experiences, industry-leading products, and high-impact services to dominate market share in the banking industry.

Unfazed by challenges, Libby pursued her academic education while working full time, applying self-taught principles to the workforce, including the importance of treating people well, building solid relationships, and ensuring trust-based services. Driven by a natural inclination to serve others and help businesses succeed, Libby has taken the lead in surpassing forecasted metrics continuously, year after year.

As vice president of market management at Columbia Bank, Libby quickly rose through the ranks into senior leadership, where she currently oversees 15 bank branches and a team of 85 staff members. In this capacity, she has led the charge to expand multiple programs, including a diversity, equity, and inclusion initiative to mentor, hire, and promote diverse candidates into leadership roles.

Energized by challenges and driven by an authentic desire to serve others and help launch and expand start-up, small, and large businesses through banking, Libby has delivered explosive growth and achieved 100% customer satisfaction rates across five target segments: commercial checking, new commercial checking, mortgage production, home equity production, and management referrals.

Partnering with senior management to drive change and generate solutions, Libby has maximized performance across all customer touchpoints, improved efficiency, and negotiated a solutions-focused roadmap for delivering customer-facing products. Respected by colleagues and superiors as a dynamic leader, she enjoys mentoring others and demonstrates success through her hands-on management style.

Libby resides in New Jersey, where she is very active in the community, volunteering for workforce development, business development, and executive women in leadership nonprofit organizations. When she is not busy attending community events and networking with colleagues to expand her robust client base, she enjoys traveling, playing golf, and spending time with her family.

Kathleen Coviello is the New Jersey Economic Development Authority’s (NJEDA’s) chief economic transformation officer. In this role, she oversees the Authority’s strategic sector, economic transformation products (corporate and real estate tax credit programs, clean energy products, innovation, and venture products) and the Product Operations departments. The Division provides value-added business engagement and products targeted at commercial businesses within the State’s strategic sectors. As a leader across these departments, she works to support high-quality job creation, catalyze private investment, and build a diverse innovation ecosystem in New Jersey.

Kathleen most recently served as the NJEDA’s executive vice president for technology, life sciences and entrepreneurship, where she was responsible for working closely with the State’s emerging technology and life science companies and investors and delivering Edison Innovation Fund products to this community.

Under Kathleen’s leadership, the NJEDA has delivered over $1 billion in direct investments, business incentives, tax credits, and venture fund investments through the Edison Innovation Fund. During her tenure, the New Jersey Chapter of Golden Seeds was created, the NJ Accelerate and the NJ Ignite programs were launched along with the State’s Angel Tax Credit Program, the New Jersey Founders & Funders program was born, and federal State Small Business Credit Initiatives funds were deployed into several regional venture funds.

Kathleen joined the NJEDA in 2005 as a single contributor and has continuously elevated her position within the organization. Prior to joining the NJEDA, Kathleen spent over 17 years in the banking industry, with the last eight focused on the NJ Technology Venture Lending Market. Her venture lending experience includes employment at Silicon Valley Bank, Comerica Bank, and Progress’ TechBanc.

Angelina Darrisaw is the founder and CEO of C-Suite Coach, a firm that offers expertly designed professional development and coaching programs for working professionals and small business leaders. C-Suite Coach has provided training programs for Major League Baseball, Zendesk, Oscar Health, Omnicom, SEO, THowardF, and many others.

C-Suite Coach, a WBENC, NMSDC, and NGLCC certified business, is a preferred supplier for Google for supplier diversity consulting and content design for racial equity programs. C-Suite Coach services Black and Latinx small businesses by supporting Google's efforts to bridge the digital divide through tactical digital skills training. As part of this work, the C-Suite Coach staff manages 20 coaches who have offered free coaching and resources to more than 100,000 U.S.-based Black and Latinx small businesses since 2018.

These efforts helped Angelina earn Forbes Next 1000, Black Enterprise's 40 Under 40 Award for Business, the Digital Diversity Network Innovation and Inclusion for social entrepreneurship, the Innovators & Disruptors Diversity & Inclusion Award presented by New York On Tech and NBC Universal, the Year Up Urban Empowerment Award, and the Walker's Legacy Power25 award.

Angelina has presented at Leading Women Defined, Black Enterprise's Women of Power Summit, Entrepreneur's Summit and 40 Under 40 Summit, EBONY Women Up, the 2016 Democratic National Convention, CultureCon, AdColor Futures, Hue Tech Summit, and many more. She has keynoted at TIAA, Edward Jones, Princeton University, Brown University, New York University, and others. She holds a BA in political science from Davidson College, an MA in management from Wake Forest University, and a certificate of coaching from New York University.

Luis De La Hoz is first vice president, regional director community lending NJ at Valley Bank and is responsible for helping local small and mid-sized businesses with their financial needs. He also works with businesses to develop strategies for growth, with particular emphasis in supporting organizations with Latino and minority leadership.

Throughout his career, Luis has worked with major community involvement organizations and other groups in various leadership roles. He is the chairman of the board of directors of New Jersey Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (NJ-SHCC), the largest Chamber of Commerce by membership in the state. He also serves on the board of directors of Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, New Jersey BNI Hawks Chapter, chairman of the Hispanic Small Business Council, Business Track Coordinator - Latinos in Social Media Conference, and board member of Middlesex County Workforce Development.

Prior to joining Valley, Luis was VP community business development BCB Bank, senior VP of lending with The Intersect Fund and a manager at MarMar, LLC, providing personal income tax firm servicing low- and moderate-income families in the community. He is an active media commentator and a top social-media influencer in the Hispanic community, resulting in recurring guest spots on Univision, NJTV, and several radio programs.

Luis earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from the Autonoma University of Manizales in Manizales, Colombia, and a certificate in management from the University of the Andes in Bogotá, Colombia. He also graduated from the Entrepreneur Pioneer Initiative from Rutgers University in December 2012.

Victor Salama joined Greater Newark Enterprises Corporation (GNEC) in June 2020 as the organization’s Executive Director. He has more than 27 years of experience in creating international partnerships in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors and has extensive experience as a nonprofit executive, entrepreneurship workshop instructor, and business owner.

Prior to joining GNEC, Victor was the executive director of First Friends of NJ & NY, a nonprofit organization based in Kearny, New Jersey that supports immigrants who are detained in four New Jersey jails and also upon their release. Victor was also president of the LIVY Group, a consulting firm dedicated to helping nonprofits grow through the creation and implementation of program replication strategies.

He spent three years at StrateSphere LLC, a firm devoted to public-private partnership creation as the Director of Business Development, and 15 years as vice president of business and international partnerships at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), an organization that provides entrepreneurship education programming to youth-serving institutions.

Prior to his career at NFTE, Victor ran his own food distribution company and worked for various United Nations agencies in the area of international entrepreneurship development and technology. He has extensive experience working directly with entrepreneurs, universities, economic development agencies, and government ministries.

Victor has a JD from Washington College of Law, The American University (Washington, D.C.); an MA from the School of International Service, The American University; and a BA from Franklin and Marshall College (Lancaster, PA).

Dreena Whitfield is the founder and chief executive officer of WhitPR — the integrated strategic communications agency committed to shaping and amplifying the narratives that drive measurable brand success. Possessing over a decade of expertise in the communications space, Dreena cemented herself as a trusted advisor specializing in public relations, social media, crisis communications, and experiential marketing strategy.

Throughout her diverse career, Dreena has served at the helm of leading communication efforts for leaders in the nonprofit, corporate, and political sectors, as well as small businesses, both domestically and internationally, with a commitment to making a social impact. Dreena’s experience and ability to curate integrated communication strategies have facilitated growing brand recognition and opportunities for her diverse client roster, past and present.

To date, Dreena has been recognized as one of the PR Week 2021 40 under 40 class, a 2021 Top Women in PR by PR News, Ebony Magazine’s “Top 10 Black Women in Politics'' and Huffington Post’s “Top 25 Millennial Publicists.”

Vaughn Crowe is a managing partner at Newark Venture Partners. Prior to joining Newark Venture Partners, Vaughn served as managing director at Wesray Social Investments, the investment arm of Ray Chambers’ family office. While at Wesray Social, Vaughn led direct and LP investments and served on a three-person investment committee, where he worked with companies at every stage, including seed, series A, growth, and buyout. In addition to his investment responsibilities, Vaughn served as executive chairman of a portfolio company which, under his leadership, experienced the most profitable year in the company’s 55-year history.

Vaughn was born and raised in Newark, NJ. He attended Weequahic High School and then attended Colgate University where he earned a BA in political science with a minor in African American studies. Vaughn currently serves as vice chair of Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, a RWJ Barnabas Hospital; and New Jersey State Investment Council, the governing structure for the state’s more than $80 billion pension assets. In addition, he serves as chairman of Princess House Inc., a consumer products company and sits on the board of Blue Note Restaurant Group.

John Pulomena is the County Administrator of Middlesex County, New Jersey. He has held this position for the past 12 years. Mr. Pulomena spearheads the management of overall operations at the County Government, which includes six departments: Business Innovations, Education & Opportunity; Community Services; Finance; Infrastructure Management; Transportation; and Public Safety & Health. Prior to becoming the County Administrator, he served as a Freeholder for 10 years in Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders now named the Board of County Commissioners. Additionally, he was the Council President for the Borough of South Plainfield for 9 years, as well as the Chair of the Middlesex County Planning Board for 5 years.

With a deep passion for technology, John Pulomena led a technological transformation at the County, introducing new technology platforms and business applications to modernize the way the County conducts business. To that, he is credited for bolstering the County’s fiscal health, helping to garner AAA bond ratings from S&P Global Ratings and Moody’s Investor Service – one of his greatest achievements. Finally, Mr. Pulomena is the visionary behind the brand journey that the County has embarked on over five years ago and continues to lead the region’s movement to make Middlesex County the best place to live, work, and play for generations.

Before joining County government, Mr. Pulomena worked in the private sector for 22 years with a distinguished career at AT&T. His experience there was dynamic, spanning many areas such as software development, marketing & sales, government affairs, and financial planning supporting businesses and customers – holding titles from Director of Customer Network Operations to Chief Financial Officer of Network Services.

John Pulomena is a graduate of the City University of New York with a B.S. degree in Computer Science and a minor in Mathematics. Throughout the years he has received numerous accolades, most recently and notably, the Paige D. L’Hommedieu Outstanding Citizenship Award (2007); Prodigal Foundation Distinguished Community Service Award (2005); and Albert Hudanish Leadership Award (2003).

Monique Baptiste joined JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPMC) in early 2019 as Vice President of Global Philanthropy. As part of this work, Monique supports JPMC’s $350 million global investment in education and workforce training systems to promote economic opportunity and reduce inequities in labor market outcomes from groups that have historically faced significant barriers to accessing opportunity. This includes leading JPMC’s nationwide investment in community colleges and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and working collaboratively with human resources to build new employee learning partnerships to respond to the future of work and promote diverse hiring pipelines such as JPMC’s second chance hiring opportunities for individuals with criminal backgrounds.

With a background in urban policy and economics, Monique has worked in the field of workforce development for over a decade. Prior to joining JPMorgan Chase, Monique served as Vice President of Programs at the Newark Alliance and Director of the Greater Newark Workforce Funders Collaborative, where she was responsible for connecting private philanthropy to innovative workforce development initiatives targeting low-income workers. In 2008, Monique ran one of the largest workforce readiness and training organizations in New Jersey, serving more than 500 low-income residents annually from throughout northern New Jersey, including a nationally affiliated YouthBuild program serving opportunity youth.

Monique’s service to urban communities also extends deeply into economic development. In 2004, Monique served as the Deputy Director of the Community Economic Development Division of La Casa De Don Pedro — a comprehensive nonprofit in Newark, NJ, and has also served as a consultant to a number of local governments and public school districts to assist with securing resources to complete both human services and infrastructure projects to improve quality of life for communities. Monique is a graduate of Rutgers University, where she studied economics and political science as an undergraduate and master’s level public policy at the Edward J. Bloustein School.

Sara is a Director on EY’s Americas Assurance Talent team and focuses on employee engagement, the employee experience, performance management processes, and various compliance, quality, and regulatory matters. Sara has spent the majority of her career at EY in the talent space with experience in recruiting, DEI, employee relations, performance management, and employee engagement. Sara’s most recent focus has been on the development and implementation of strategic quality controls related to our performance management processes. Sara also worked to develop a framework and led the implementation and deployment for the Assurance practice’s EY Way of Working, a post-pandemic framework for a hybrid return to work empowering our people to maintain in-person connections while also working flexibly. Sara also sits on EY’s Wellbeing Council, a group focused on the deployment and implementation of various wellbeing initiatives for our workforce.

Aaron Price is the CEO of TechUnited representing over 500,000 innovators and some of the largest tech companies in the country. Previously, Aaron was the CEO of Propelify, since acquired by the NJ Tech Council (NJTC) and now known as TechUnited, one of the largest entrepreneurial communities in the country. TechUnited provides the tools, resources, and community to propel ideas into action and to strengthen the collective technology ecosystem at all stages of growth.

Aaron has served as the tech community expert for the White House under the Obama Administration, NJ Economic Development Authority, Fast Company, Entrepreneur Magazine, and The Wall Street Journal to name a few.

He is also the founder of Propelify, built to empower innovators. The Propelify Innovation Festival unites 10,000 innovators with talks, exhibitors, drones, virtual reality, investors, music, and more. Aaron is the founder of the NJ Tech Meetup, New Jersey’s largest technology and entrepreneurial community.

As Sr. Vice President of Hardware Solutions and Services, Kapil is responsible for leading SHI's overall hardware, advanced solutions, and managed workplace services strategies and execution. He also manages the custom hardware configuration work performed at our Knox and Ridge integration centers.

A technology and business strategy veteran with deep experience in building distribution networks, sales strategies, and solution ecosystems that meet customer needs, Kapil came to SHI from Nokia, where he served in multiple roles across P&L ownership, strategic growth planning, customer delivery, and business transformation. After studying economics and engineering at Duke University, Kapil received his Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School.

Tara Dowdell is the founder and president of TDG Speakers, a boutique speakers bureau, and Tara Dowdell Group, a social good PR and marketing agency. In addition to her businesses, Tara is a respected television commentator. She has appeared on MSNBC, CNN, and PIX11 News providing analysis on a range of political and business topics.

Tara’s proven expertise and engaging style have also made her a sought-after speaker. She has addressed several major conferences including NYU Stern School of Business, Women in Business Conference; Southern Women in Public Service Leadership Conference; Center for American Women and Politics “Ready to Run” Conference; Colorado Black Women for Political Action 39th Annual Luncheon; and more.

Prior to starting her businesses, Tara held senior roles in the public sector. Notably, she was the first Black American and youngest person to serve as director of appointments in the Office of the New Jersey Governor. In this position, she led the office responsible for gubernatorial appointments to over 550 statewide boards and commissions.

Tara’s accomplishments have not gone unnoticed. She’s an alumna of the American Swiss Foundation Young Leaders Conference in Switzerland. She also had the distinction of competing on NBC’s hit show, The Apprentice.

Tara is the vice chair of the Board of Trustees of WBGO, a public media and jazz radio station and on the board of New Jersey Policy Perspective, a nonpartisan think tank.

She is a graduate of the University of Virginia where she earned a bachelor’s degree in government.

Justyna Krygowska is the vice president of the Tara Dowdell Group. In this position, she is responsible for client strategy, team management, and art direction for design services. A creative, values-driven communications strategist and graphic designer, Justyna has spent the last decade in the nonprofit sector. For five years, she served as the communications director of The Andrew Goodman Foundation, a national organization focused on protecting student voting rights. Prior to this role, she was communications manager of Rising Tide Capital, where she helped transform underserved communities through entrepreneurship. In her spare time, Justyna volunteers for the Passaic County SPCA and is a mentor for The Pesce Family Mentoring Institute at William Paterson University.

Justyna holds a bachelor's degree in integrated design with a concentration in communications design and design and management from Parsons School of Design, and a master's degree in arts and letters and a certificate in conflict resolution from Drew University. She lives in Highland Lakes, NJ with her husband and Mack, her dog.

Middlesex County Commissioner Director Ronald G. Rios is Director of the Board of County Commissioners. County Commissioner Director Rios' accomplishments reflect a lifelong dedication to improving the quality of life for all people through effective, efficient and dedicated government.

A longtime Middlesex County resident, County Commissioner Director Rios graduated from Woodbridge High School, class of 1970. In 2000, he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Labor Safety and Health from National Labor College in Silver Springs, Md.

County Commissioner Director Rios has over 30 years’ experience working for Conrail Corporation. During that time, he held many offices for the Oak Island Local 6965 Transportation Communications International Union AFL-CIO, including serving as President for 10 years (1993-2003). Director Rios also has served as a certified HAZMAT instructor and training consultant. From his time at Conrail to his current role as County Commissioner Director, he has been a staunch advocate for safety and health in the workplace.

Before his tenure on the Board, County Commissioner Director Rios was elected four times (1981, 2000-2008) to the Borough of Carteret Council, serving as Council President from 2003 to 2008. During his time on Borough Council, he proposed the creation of the Carteret Veterans Affairs Committee and introduced other initiatives to honor local veterans. Director Rios also served as a member of the Governor’s Ethnic Advisory Commission and the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.

In his capacity as a Middlesex County Commissioner, Director Rios has served as Chairman of the Public Health and Education Committee (2008-2010) and Chairman of the Law and Public Safety Committee (2011). Director Rios was appointed County Commissioner Director in March 2013 and was most recently re-elected in 2020.

Among his chief accomplishments as County Commissioner Director are:

• Establishing the Veterans Housing Assistance Program, through which more than 400 veterans and their families have been helped. As a result of this and other veteran programs, in 2016, Middlesex County was certified by three federal agencies as achieving “functional zero” for veterans’ homelessness. Functional zero means that Middlesex County has the infrastructure and systems in place to ensure that any veteran experiencing homelessness will be able to get the support they need to quickly obtain a permanent home.
• Spearheading the 2015 creation of the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund, which allocates $10 million each year to expand arts and cultural venues and programming to all 25 municipalities. Projects funded by this initiative include the Avenel Performing Arts Center, and the forthcoming New Brunswick Performing Arts Center and The Arts Institute of Middlesex County.
• Maintaining the County’s fiscal responsibility by drawing down debt, which has been reduced by $237 million since 2014, as well as increasing the County’s retained surplus to over $74 million. This has enabled the County to maintain a AAA bond rating for 18 consecutive years.