Sharen I. Duke founded the Alliance, as AIDS Service Center of Lower Manhattan, in 1990 and has grown it from a three-person agency into one of New York City's premier multi-service community organizations. 

The Alliance is at the forefront of innovative, culturally competent HIV/AIDS services, ensuring that all New Yorkers have access to HIV testing, treatment and care. Leveraging 25 years of expertise, the Alliance expanded its services to address other chronic health conditions such as addiction, hepatitis, diabetes and obesity. This broadened focus means more New Yorkers can access the services and support they need to make lasting positive changes toward health, housing, recovery and self-sufficiency.

Sharen is a dedicated advocate on behalf of low-income New Yorkers through her active service on influential community planning entities, including Gov. Cuomo's Ending the Epidemic Task Force, the NYS Value-Based Payment HIV/AIDS Clinical Advisory Group (CAG), and the NYC HIV Health and Human Services Planning Council. She also serves on the Communities Advocating Emergency AIDS Resources (CAEAR) Coalition.

Charles King is one of the founders and the President/CEO of Housing Works, Inc. a community-based, not–for–profit organization that provides a full range of services including housing, health care, mental health, chemical dependency services, legal, advocacy, and job training and employment for homeless men, women, and children living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic conditions.

Charles served on the governing body of UNAIDS as a member of the NGO Delegation to the PCB and was Co-chair of the NYS End of AIDS Task Force. He also co-chairs the Ending the Epidemic Subcommittee of the NYS AIDS Advisory Council.

Charles holds both a Law Degree and a Master of Divinity from Yale University, and is an ordained Baptist Minister.

John Darin has more than 30 years of programmatic and administrative experience in social services. Since 1997, he has served as the President and CEO of NADAP,  growing it from a 16-staff serving 1,000 clients to 400 staff serving more than 35,000 clients annually. As NADAP’s President, John provides oversight and direction to a multi-service agency with an annual budget of $30 million dedicated to helping people with medical, behavioral health, employment, and social service needs become self-sufficient.

During his tenure, NADAP’s Managed Addiction Treatment Services program (MATS) produced 62% in Medicaid savings and greatly improved the outcomes for numerous chronically ill substance abusers; and the agency’s Health Home Care Management Program was designed to continue this good work. NADAP has experience and expertise working with criminal justice clients through services delivered both within criminal justice settings and as a community-based provider for those referred from criminal justice service agencies.   Some of these services include health care coordination and Medicaid enrollment through our Health Home Care Management and IPA Navigator programs.

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John holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration (BBA) from Bernard M. Baruch College.  He is also a Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor (CASAC) and an Internationally Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (ICADC). He is a registered lobbyist in NYC and NYS and a Notary Public. He was selected as a National Fellow Leader by Boston University’s Join Together National Fellow Leadership Program.

John served as a consultant to the U.S. Department of Justice and to the U.S. Department of Education and is currently the Vice-Chairman of The Coalition for Community Services. He also serves on the Beacon Health Providers Advisory Council and on the boards of The Coalition for Behavioral Health, Coordinated Behavioral Care, and Queens Coordinated Care Partners. He is also a Vistage International CEO member.  

Dr. Schiller has studied, worked, and conducted research in the Social Services and HIV field for over 34 years.  He has a BA in Psychology from St. Anselm College (Manchester, NH), two Masters Degrees in Psychology from Hunter College (New York) and Fielding Graduate University (Santa Barbara, CA) and a PhD in Clinical Psychology from the Fielding Graduate University.  After working as a case aide for those with severe mental illness (FEGS, NY, 1989), from 1990-1993 Dr. Schiller worked as one of the front line HIV case managers at St. Clare's Hospital, NY, during the early years of the epidemic.  This was followed by his tenure at the current place of employment, Argus Community (Bronx, NY) where he served as the Program Director (1993-2006), the Vice President of HIV Services (2003-2006), and the Deputy Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer (2006-present).  His clinical and research experience consists of an appointment at the Duchess County Dept. of Mental Hygiene (Poughkeepsie, NY, 2005-2006), qualitative data analysis for the Women's Ways of Knowing Diversity Project (Fielding Graduate Institute, 1995-1996), and an examination of patient and provider attachment styles and the impact upon treatment in a busy HIV outpatient case management clinic (Argus Community, Inc., 2008).  Dr. Schiller has also served as an Adjunct Faculty at Hunter College (New York, 1998-2001) and Lehman College (Bronx, NY). 

Dr. Schiller's domestic and international presentations include: The Impact of the Interpersonal Dynamic on Case Management Services (Albany, NY, 2009), Continued Quality Improvement/Assurance in the Community Follow-Up Case Management Program (2004, Albany, NY), How far Have We Come? Celebrating Growth in the HIV Community Based Case Management Program (AI-NYSDOH, March, 2003, Albany, NY) and Essentials of COBRA Case Management (NYS DOH, Albany, NY, 1997).  His publications to date include: Examination of Six Patient Characteristics as Indicators of Ongoing Utilization of Case Management Services (St. Clare’s Hospital, Secondary Author for the VII International Conference on AIDS, Florence, Italy, 1991), HIV Infection, Sexual Orientation and Significant Risk Factors in an Urban Designated AIDS Center (Primary author; published Conference Abstract Volume, VIII International Conference on AIDS/III STD World Congress, Holland, 1992), and The Impact of Attachment Styles, Health Distress, and Proximity on Treatment Outcome in an HIV-Positive Cohort (Published Dissertation, 2008 and presented at the West-East Institute, University of Vienna, 2015).

Dr. Schiller has served as a member of the Bronx Montefiore Hospital Community Advisory Board (2003), a Co-Chair of the NYS Dept. of Health Statewide CORBA Case Management Technical Assistance Group (1996-1997), and a Board Member at Large for the Partnership for the Homeless in NYC (1991).  His excellence in the human service and case management fields has been recognized in 1997 in his receipt of the second annual Dr. Nicholas Rango Case Management Award from the NYS-DOH AIDS Institute, and an Achievement Award from Mario Biaggi, Member of Congress (1978).  He continues to be recognized by the AIDS Institute and asked to provide technical assistance to case management programs throughout NYC.  He maintains membership in the American Psychological Association, the New York State Psychological Association, and the International Association of Applied Psychologists.

Therese R. Rodriguez is the Chief Executive Officer of Apicha Community Health Center, formerly known as Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS. She has led the organization since 1997. Under Therese’s leadership, Apicha CHC transformed from an AIDS Service Organization to a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in 2015.

Therese currently serves on the Board of the National Minority AIDS Council and was appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo to the New York State End of AIDS Task Force, to develop recommendations for the blueprint to end the HIV epidemic by 2020. She is a member of the New York State Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS and represents Apicha CHC in the National LGBT Primary Care Alliance. Therese was also a member of the NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Commission for Runaway and Homeless LGBT Youth, which devised strategies to address the unique needs of LGBT youth before they run away.

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A long-time resident of Queens, Therese was born and raised in the Philippines. She earned her Bachelor of Arts and Business Administration degree from St. Theresa’s College in the Philippines.

Laura joined Harlem United Community AIDS Center in 2011 as the Vice President of Supportive Housing where she was responsible for overseeing the agency’s 600-unit portfolio of congregate and scatter site housing.  Later that year, she began to oversee Harlem United’s COBRA program and helped lead a successful transition to the Health Home care coordination model.  In 2014, she was promoted to Senior Vice President.  Currently a member of the Executive Team, Laura is responsible for strategic planning, program development and evaluation of a program portfolio worth close to $30 million made up of 30 government contracts plus $4 million in Medicaid funding.  She provides programmatic, administrative, and fiscal oversight to all Housing, Health Home, Food and Nutrition, Harm Reduction and Testing programming.  She also supervises the clinical team that support these programs. 

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As Senior Vice President, Laura shapes and implements a strategic vision for agency’s programming, ensuring programs are innovative and engaging, and aligned with agency’s core values.  She also identifies funding opportunities for growth and development, including new models and target populations. 

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Previously, Laura was the Director of Housing at the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene where she oversaw the Division of Mental Hygiene’s portfolio of supportive housing programs, as well as the development of new housing programs under the landmark NY/NY III Agreement.  Prior to DOHMH, she was a Policy Analyst with the Supportive Housing Network of New York. 

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Laura has a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the LBJ School at the University of Texas at Austin and a BA from Union College in Schenectady, New York.

As Brightpoint Health’s Chief Population Health Officer, Jessica is responsible for Health Home, Organizational Culture and Quality. In this recently created role, she provides strategic leadership in an era of health care delivery system reform which includes leveraging population health, quality management and care management. Jessica's portfolio also includes managing the assessment, development and improvement of the organizational culture so that it embodies the core values, embraces the Triple Aim, and continuously improves the delivery of WOW! Quality Service, as well as leading leads the Quality Management Programs that assist all clinical services and organizational departments. Since joining Brightpoint Health in 2012, she has developed metrics and indicators to assess the organization’s effectiveness and ultimately improve patient outcomes.

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Jessica has 15 years of experience working for mission-driven health care organizations serving populations challenged by health care disparities, as she does at Brightpoint Health. She began her career in public service volunteering for an AmeriCorps program where she designed a substance abuse prevention program for at-risk youth. From there, she joined NYC DOHMH subcontractor Public Health Solutions, where she managed federal, city and state HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention funding awarded to hospitals and non-profits throughout the five boroughs. In this position, Jessica evaluated HIV/AIDS programs in the areas of mental health, substance use, treatment adherence, prevention and treatment through organization-wide site visits. Following her role at Public Health Solutions, Jessica worked at Gay Men’s Health Crisis spearheading a quality improvement program where she created a process to track and report clinic metrics relevant to clients’ HIV/AIDS status. Immediately following her position at GMHC, Jessica joined a for-profit health care company that partnered with health departments across the country to manage their high-cost, high-risk Medicaid populations. Within this role, she designed, implemented and monitored quality improvement programs in high-volume case management and disease management programs aimed at improving clinical outcomes while decreasing unnecessary utilization of healthcare.

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Jessica has a Bachelor of Arts in Public and Community Service from Providence College and a Masters of Public Administration in Health Policy and Analysis from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service. She also has a Certification in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ). 

Nadine Akinyemi is the Executive Director of Bridging Access To Care (BAC), a multi-service community-based health care organization. Founded as the Brooklyn AIDS Task Force in 1986, BAC now provides mental health, substance use, housing, health education, healthcare navigation, and other social support services to individuals and families from all parts of the city.

Nadine has over 20 years of experience working in the social service and health care field, with a focus on HIV/AIDS patient care, program development, as well as research in both hospital and community-based settings. She joined BAC in 1998 and has developed in-depth knowledge about the mission and the work of the organization. Before she was appointed Executive Director, Nadine held several positions, including Treatment Adherence Coordinator, Acting Director of Support Services, Director of Clinical Services, and Deputy Executive Director.  Nadine is a published author and a Clinical Associate at the New York Technical College School of Nursing. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Brooklyn College and a Master’s degree in Health Administration (MHA) from the University of Phoenix. Nadine currently serves as Vice President of the Board of Directors of EngageWell IPA.  

Yaberci Perez-Cubillan is a hands-on, driven leader with a solid track record in the behavioral health industry, possessing a rich mix of technical, financial, and operations experience. As Chief Program Officer, Yaberci oversees Acacia Network’s Primary Care and Behavioral Health program portfolios, in addition to Special Projects & Initiatives, as well as the operational functioning of Acacia Network’s programs and operational initiatives, in coordination with the Director of Operations. She also provides guidance and support in the strategic development of various goals, including integration of the programs and healthcare systems to meet high standards and best practices.

In her prior role, Yaberci served as Acacia’s Senior Vice President for Behavioral Health and Primary Care Integrated Services, in charge of overseeing operations for Acacia Network’s Behavioral and Primary Care Portfolios, including Health Homes, which comprise 39 programs in total. Acacia Network’s behavioral health portfolio employs over 500 individuals and provides services to a unique patient population of 5,700 individuals and families. This diverse portfolio includes a combined total of twenty-two outpatient and residential programs licensed by the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) and six programs licensed by the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH), in addition to a significant number of federal and local grants ranging from the provision of integrated care to work performed at Ryker’s Island.

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Yaberci has been on the cutting edge of service delivery, and successfully led one of a few programs to become a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC). CCBHC is an outgrowth of the Federal Mental Health Excellence Act, establishing the highest standards for integrated behavioral health treatment, the foundation to the movement into value-based payment in the behavioral health field. She has become a topic expert and has participated in various panels with the National Council for Behavioral Health to highlight innovative approaches to care and the use of the CCBHC model to treat co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.

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Yaberci is a recipient of the 2016 Leadership Award by the Latino Social Work Coalition, a 2020 recipient of Entre Nosotras Leadership Award, as well as a 2020 SAPHIRE Leadership Award, NASW. She is a Hunter College School of Social Work graduate and is a trained Clinical Social Worker (LCSW-R). She completed a Post-Master’s Certificate Program in Executive Leadership at New York University, Silver School of Social Work.

Yaberci is also an Adjunct Professor at Adelphi University, and serves as a Board Member at the National Council for Behavioral Health, As-One Behavioral Health Care Collaborative, ASAP C-3 Board, NYS Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare, the Coalition for Behavioral Health, Treatment Communities of America and iHealth.

Matthew Lesieur, MA joined iHealth as Executive Director in November of 2018.  He was Director of Public Policy at VillageCare, a large multi-service non-profit health care provider that offers services to the frail elderly and person living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic, complex conditions.  In that role, he was responsible for working to establish, direct and implement local, state national public policies that impact on the lives of persons living with multiple chronic health conditions. He is active in a variety of committees and workgroups, including the Brooklyn Health Home’s (BHH) Governance, Community Care Management Partners (CCMP) Governance, and Queens Coordinated Care Partners Governance Committee.

Matthew Lesieur is currently a Mayoral appointee to the New York HIV Health and Human Services Planning Council, which is responsible for setting priorities and determining how $100 million in federal Ryan White Part A funds awarded to the New York EMA is spent.  He was unanimously elected community co-chair of the Planning Council, a term that goes until 2018, and then re-elected as chair for a second three-year term that ends in 2020.

Past work has included: former Vice President of Public Policy at the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA), Director of Public Policy for the New York AIDS Coalition, an HIV/AIDS advocacy group representing 150+ community based AIDS service providers throughout New York State, the HOPWA Administrator for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, where he and a small team managed the City’s $60 million HOPWA program. 

Mr. Lesieur has a Masters of olitical Science from the University at Albany and undergraduate degrees in Political Science and Economics at the University at Albany.