Steven Rubenstein became ABNY’s Chairman on January 1, 2018. He is the President of RUBENSTEIN, the legendary New York City strategic communications agency founded by his father, Howard J. Rubenstein, in 1954.

Serving New York has been in Mr. Rubenstein’s DNA since his father co-founded ABNY with Lewis Rudin in the 1970s. Through his professional work as an advisor to a wide range of New York leaders, as well as his personal pursuits in support of City philanthropy and civic organizations, Mr. Rubenstein has been a committed champion for New York City.

At RUBENSTEIN, Steven oversees the day-to-day operations of the firm, drives innovation and growth across 13 practice groups, and sets the direction for RUBENSTEIN’S continued leadership within the strategic communications field. He has helped organizations in finance, real estate, media, culture, social service, entertainment, and sports tell their stories and expand their reach in New York, as well as nationally and globally.

Outside the firm, he serves on the boards of directors of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, Friends of the High Line, 92nd Street Y, the Jewish Community Relations Council, and Reboot, a national idea incubator that strives to make Jewish life meaningful to a new generation.

Prior to accepting the Chairmanship of ABNY and the ABNY Foundation, Mr. Rubenstein served on their Boards of Directors and as Vice-Chair.

Frances Resheske serves on the board of Onward Energy, a national independent power producer that owns and operates a 6.2 GW solar, wind and natural gas portfolio in 22 States. She previously served on the boards of the Con Edison Clean Energy Businesses and Con Edison Transmission through 2023.

For decades, she has been deeply committed to her non-profit work and currently is a board member of the Alfred E. Smith Foundation, vice chair of the Association for a Better New York (ABNY), and board secretary at the New York State League of Conservation Voters Education Fund. She recently joined the board of Our Energy Policy, a national convenor on energy issues.

Before retiring from Con Edison in 2022, Frances served as Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs, one of the nation’s largest investor-owned energy delivery companies. She led the enterprise-wide group including regulatory, government and community relations, and energy market policies. She oversaw communications, media relations, marketing and strategic philanthropy. She worked closely with four Chairman and CEOs.

Frances is Director Certified by the National Association of Corporate Directors and the Corporate Board Academy. She is a Northwestern University Kellogg Scholar and holds a Certificate of Professional Development from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Rockefeller Fellow. Frances is a summa cum laude graduate of St. John’s University with a degree in government and politics.

Alan van Capelle is a nationally recognized leader in the field of civil rights and social justice. He is the Executive Director of Friends of The High Line. Previously, as President and CEO of Educational Alliance, he led a network of community centers that bring together and partner with diverse communities in Lower Manhattan, offering individuals and families high-quality, multi-generational programs and services that enhance their well-being and socio-economic opportunities.

Mr. van Capelle began his career as an organizer and contract negotiator in the labor movement, eventually running the day-to-day political operations of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 32BJ. As CEO of Bend the Arc he catapulted the organization to the forefront of the national progressive landscape. Mr. van Capelle won major legislative victories for LGBTQ rights as Executive Director of the Empire State Pride Agenda, and was the leading architect of the campaign for marriage equality in New York. Prior to joining Educational Alliance, Mr. van Capelle served as Deputy Comptroller for the City of New York, advising the agency on all matters involving public policy, media, and community relations, and was a member of the New York City Banking Commission.

City & State ranked Mr. van Capelle #33 on its 2021 Nonprofit Power 100 list, which ranks figures who have spearheaded major accomplishments, dug into political and policy issues, connected with powerful elected officials, and provided for their communities across New York State. He was also recognized on the Crain’s New York Business 2021 Notable LGBTQ Leaders and Executives list. He has also been named to The National Leadership Council’s 40 Under 40 list, and the Jewish Daily Forward’s Forward 50, and was recognized by the New York Observer as one of New York’s top “power gays.”

A lover of all things New York, Mr. van Capelle serves as treasurer of the Board for the Association of a Better New York (ABNY) and is a member of the City University of New York (CUNY) LGBTQ Council. He is also a trustee of the City University Construction Fund (CUCF), having been nominated for its Board by Governor Andrew Cuomo. He served on the transition committees for Governor Eliot Spitzer, then-Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, and Attorney General Letitia James, was appointed by Mayor Bill de Blasio to the Children’s Cabinet Advisory Committee, and is a former member of Manhattan’s Community Board 3. He was also selected as an elector of the 2008 New York Electoral College. Mr. van Capelle earned his MPA from the Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service at New York University, where he currently serves as an Adjunct Professor and teaches on organizational culture, and a Bachelor of Science from the City University of New York. Mr. van Capelle lives with his husband, Matthew Morningstar, on the Lower East Side where they are raising their two children, Ethan and Patrick.

Ms. Adams oversees global external relations for Tishman Speyer, including government and community affairs as well as communications and philanthropy. She works on an array of development and acquisitions projects globally. Prior to Tishman Speyer, Ms. Adams served as the executive director of the Association for a Better New York from 2002 until 2010. Ms. Adams earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, politics, and law from the State University of New York at Binghamton, and a Master of Public Administration degree in public finance and policy from the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University. She currently serves as Tishman Speyer’s representative on several influential boards, including the Executive Committees of the Real Estate Board of New York, the Grand Central Partnership, the Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance, and the Long Island City Partnership.

Vincent Alvarez was elected as the New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO’s first full-time President and first Latino President in 2011, and was re-elected in 2015 and 2019. He had previously served as Assistant Legislative Director of the NYS AFL-CIO, spearheading various worker-related policy initiatives throughout the state. From 2007-2009, Mr. Alvarez was Assistant to the Executive Director and then Chief of Staff of the NYCCLC.

A member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) since 1990, Mr. Alvarez began his career with IBEW Local 3 in Flushing, New York, serving on numerous political campaigns, grassroots initiatives, and negotiating committees.

During this time, he also coordinated hundreds of labor mobilization and campaign events on behalf of the NYCCLC’s affiliates and was the lead organizer and Marshal of the NYC Labor Day Parade, the nation’s oldest and largest worker parade.

Mr. Alvarez is a Class C Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York; Board Chair of the Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives at New York University; a Vice President of the Consortium for Worker Education; a Principal Officer of Climate Jobs NY; a Board Member of the Greater New York Councils, Boy Scouts of America; a Board Member of the New York Building Congress; and a Board Member of the Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition. He serves on the national AFL-CIO State Federation and Central Labor Council Advisory Board as well as on the Advisory Board of the CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies. He is also a member of Cornell University’s Worker Institute Advisory Council and the NYC Comptroller’s Advisory Council on Economic Growth through Diversity and Inclusion.

Mr. Alvarez is a graduate of the State University of New York at Oneonta, where he majored in business economics.

Gregg Bishop has made a name for himself investing in low to moderate-income communities, growing the capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME’s), implementing sectoral workforce strategies, and building resilient technology infrastructure for media companies. He is currently the Executive Director of the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation Social Justice Fund. Prior to joining the Fund, he served as Interim Executive Director of Coro New York, tasked with leading a civic leadership organization that believes meaningful change comes from collaboration: people in business and communities, schools and unions, government and nonprofits, working together to find creative solutions and strengthen our democracy.

Prior to this role, Bishop served as the Commissioner of the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS) where he was charged with running a dynamic City agency focused on equity of opportunity that leads to economic self-sufficiency and mobility for New York City’s diverse communities. During his tenure, he connected small businesses to over $200 million in capital, certified a record 9,000 Minority and Women business enterprises, connected over 100,000 New Yorkers to good-paying jobs, and invested over $10 million in capacity-building programs across the five boroughs. In addition, over 10,000 city residents were trained with new skills in the technology, healthcare, industrial and manufacturing, and hospitality sectors. He also developed and launched several initiatives aimed at structural barriers minorities face, including
Black Entrepreneurs NYC (BE NYC) and Women Entrepreneurs NYC (WE NYC).

Bishop has a strong track record in the nonprofit and private sectors. He served as the Senior Manager of Workforce Development at NPower, where he was responsible for doubling the capacity of Technology Service Corps, a nationally recognized technology training program for young adults aged 18-25. Prior to NPower, he served as the Director of Web Operations at Oxygen Media, where he helped guide the media company’s web consolidation strategy. He has worked at several startups, including serving as Vice President of Technology Operations at TheStreet.com, where he helped build and maintain the company’s internal and external technology infrastructure. He also worked at VIBE Magazine where he helped establish the publication’s digital brand.

Born in Grenada and raised in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, Bishop received a master’s degree in Integrated Marketing and Management Communication from Florida State University and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a B.S. in Business Administration from Florida A&M University. He studied International Management and Marketing in Tokyo, Japan, and is a graduate of Harvard Kennedy School’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government the program, and Coro Leadership New York.

Bishop is an adjunct professor at Baruch College’s School of Public Affairs and serves on several boards including Red Hook Initiative, Junior Achievement of New York, Pursuit (formerly the Coalition for Queens (C4Q)), The Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, and The Association for a Better New York (ABNY). He also serves on the Hebrew Free Loan Society Microenterprise Committee, Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Local Advisory Committee, and is the Vice President of the Alpha Gamma Lambda chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Samantha Rudin Earls started working at Rudin Management Company in July of 2007. She sits on the executive committee of Rudin Management Company. She focuses on development, redevelopment, design, and marketing for the Rudin portfolio. She was involved in the development of 130 W. 12th Street and The Greenwich Lane in the West Village, in addition to Rudin’s latest project, Dock 72, a 675,000 SF office building focusing on the Technology sector at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

In 2016 Ms. Rudin Earls helped launch an Association for Better New York’s Working Women’s Network, called ABNY Women, which strives to connect and empower women from all sectors in New York. In February of 2017, Ms. Rudin Earls joined the Roundabout Theatre board. She is also on the board of the May & Samuel Rudin Family Foundation as well as other family foundations. In January 2021, Ms. Rudin Earls joined the board of ABNY.

Ms. Rudin Earls is a proud New Yorker and a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Ms. Rudin Earls is married to David Earls. They have a daughter Elle Rudin Earls.

William Floyd is the director of state public policy and public affairs for Google and is responsible for managing the company’s state and local engagements with key opinion formers and elected officials across the country. Focusing primarily on the states and communities where Google has a presence, Mr. Floyd creates and executes Google’s government and regulatory strategy on the local level, as well as lead its public affairs, local philanthropic, and community relations programs. Mr. Floyd oversee a staff of twelve (12) professionals, dispersed regionally, whose job is to represent Google’s policy objectives.

Jen Hensley is Head of Government Relations, Public Policy for Lyft, leading the government relations team in working with lawmakers, city officials, and other stakeholders on policy to support Lyft riders, drivers, and communities across the country.

Prior to joining Lyft, she was President of Link, overseeing all aspects of the Link program for the world’s largest and fastest free public Wi-Fi network. Previously, Ms. Hensley served as Executive Director of ABNY, the City’s preeminent civic advocacy organization, as Senior Adviser to the Chairman at Empire State Development Corporation, and Assistant Vice President at the Alliance for Downtown New York. Ms. Hensley has also held positions in finance at Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase.

A graduate of Barnard College, she holds an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business and an MPA from NYU’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. She serves on the board of Pursuit, a tech training organization, and lives with her family in Astoria, Queens.

Bob Lehrman serves as Special Counsel and Senior Advisor to several organizations in the banking, real estate, and not-for-profit fields. He is a Trustee of the Community Capital Trust (including the CCM Community Impact Bond Fund) and is Governance Committee Chairman.

Mr. Lehrman was formerly President/CEO of the Community Bankers Association of New York, and of the American Forest Foundation. Previously he served as a Con Edison senior executive and government lawyer. He also had been a Board Member of Community Capital Bank and Empire Blue Cross/Blue Shield.

He has been active in various civic and philanthropic groups, including ABNY and the ABNY Foundation (Founding Chair of the Audit/Finance Committee), Citizens Housing and Planning Council, Community Preservation Corporation, FEGS Health and Human Services (formerly President), New York Society of Association Executives (former Chair), and One Hundred Year Association/New York. He served for nearly twenty years as Chairman of the New York/National Housing Conference Annual Awards Luncheon.

Dr. Félix V. Matos Rodríguez has been Chancellor of The City University of New York (CUNY) since May 2019. He is the first educator of color, and first Latino, to serve as CUNY’s Chancellor. CUNY is the nation’s largest urban university, comprising 25 campuses with an enrollment of over 275,000 degree-seeking students, over 225,000 adult and continuing education students, and an operating budget of over $3.6 billion.

Previously, Dr. Matos Rodríguez served as president of CUNY’s Queens College and of CUNY’s Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College in the Bronx, making him one of a select few U.S. educators who have led both a baccalaureate and a community college. He also served previously as Puerto Rico’s Cabinet secretary of the Department of Family Services where he oversaw a $2.3 billion budget and formulated public policy and administered service delivery in  programs such as Child Support, Adoption, Foster Care, and Child and Elderly Protection.

Chancellor Matos Rodríguez sits on the boards of the Council on Foreign Relations, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, Phipps Houses, the United Way of New York City, TIAA Hispanic Advisory Council, Research Alliance for New York City Schools, and NYC Tech Talent Pipeline Academic Council. He has received the Albert J. Beveridge award of the American Historical Association and is an Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow.

Dr. Matos Rodríguez graduated from Yale University cum laude with a degree in Latin American Studies before obtaining a Ph.D. in history from Columbia University. He has taught at Yale, Northeastern University, Boston College, and CUNY’s Hunter College, where he also directed the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, one of the largest and most important Latino research centers in the United States.

Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he is married to Dr. Liliana M. Arabia, a dentist, and they have two sons.

Julio Peterson has been with The Shubert Organization since 2000. Mr. Peterson is responsible for the overall management of the organization’s corporate real estate including the disposition of transferable development rights, office, and retail leasing transactions, and the company’s outdoor signage business. He also oversaw the development of the Little Shubert Theatre on 42nd Street.

Mr. Peterson is additionally responsible for corporate/public relations and governmental affairs. In this regard, he works with City agencies on zoning issues and quality of life matters impacting the Theatre District. He is Shubert’s liaison with City and State government and works closely with The Broadway League, Times Square Alliance, the Broadway Association, the Association for a Better New York, and other civic organizations in New York City.

Prior to joining Shubert, Mr. Peterson was a Senior Consultant in KPMG’s Real Estate Consulting Division. He was also Director of the Neighborhood Builder’s Program at the New York City Partnership where he oversaw the development of over $300 million in multi-family homes in distressed neighborhoods throughout the City. Mr. Peterson was a Senior Project Manager in the Manhattan Commercial Real Estate Division of The New York City Economic Development Corporation where he was responsible for managing projects such as the 125th Street Pathmark Supercenter, the Columbia University Biotechnology Research Park, The Malcolm X Memorial at the Audubon Ballroom, and the Julia De Burgos Latino Cultural Center in East Harlem.

Mr. Peterson is a native New Yorker raised on the Upper West Side. He attended New York City public schools, Phillips Exeter Academy, Cornell University’s College of Architecture, Art & Planning, and the Harvard University Graduate School of Design where he was awarded the John L. Loeb Fellowship. He serves on the Boards of The Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Center, The Public Theater, Association for A Better New York (ABNY), The Broadway Association, City Parks Foundation, Camp Ramapo for Children, and is a member of the Hunter College Theatre Advisory Board and The Repertoire Español Advisory Board.

Bill Rudin joined the family real estate business in 1979, after graduating from New York University’s School of Business and Public Administration with a Bachelor of Science degree. Mr. Rudin’s grandfather, Samuel Rudin, founded Mr. Rudin Management Company in 1925. In December of 1993, Mr. Rudin was appointed President of the company.

Mr. Rudin worked closely with his family – his father Lewis, uncle Jack, and his cousins and sister alongside the dedicated professionals at Rudin Management Company to manage the Rudin portfolio. The portfolio includes 17 office buildings comprising more than 10 million square feet of Class-A space and 20 luxury apartment buildings. Mr. Rudin has been intimately involved with every major development the Rudin family built since 1979, including 560 Lexington Avenue, 40 East 52nd Street, 1675 Broadway, 3 Times Square, and 32 Avenue of the Americas. Mr. Rudin puts his own personal mark on the family business, giving new life to existing properties through conversion to technology-smart buildings and helping lead the turnaround of Lower Manhattan.

In carrying on the Rudin family tradition of hands-on personal management, Mr. Rudin not only embraced his family responsibilities, but like his grandfather, father, and uncle is actively involved in New York City’s political, civic, and philanthropic life.Mr. Rudin serves on the board of the Association for a Better New York (ABNY), an organization co-founded by his father over 50 years ago. ABNY is a coalition of business, labor, and political leaders created in the 1970s to help make New York City a better place to live, work, and visit.

Mr. Rudin serves as Chairman of The Battery Conservancy and former Chairman of The Real Estate Board of New York; he is also the former Chairman of The Real Estate Roundtable. He is a Board Member of the following organizations: The Partnership for New York City, The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York University, The New York Center for Autism, The Alliance for Downtown New York, and The Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation.

Mr. Rudin is also a member of The Economic Club of New York, The Council on Foreign Relations, and The New York City Marathon Committee.

In addition to lecturing at various educational institutions and real estate industry functions, Mr. Rudin has appeared on many televised shows to discuss real estate and issues that impact New York City.

Mr. Rudin resides in Manhattan with his wife Ophelia, his grown children, Samantha and Michael, and their respective spouses, David and Sabrina. He is a grandfather of two.

Jeffrey Stewart is the founder and Managing Director of Walnut Hill Advisors and also serves as Senior Advisor to the Chairman & CEO of Loews Hotels & Co., Jonathan Tisch. Mr. Stewart’s career spans more than twenty-five years working at the intersection of business, politics, media, and civic engagement, where he has served as trusted advisor of CEOs, entrepreneurs, and founders of businesses and nonprofits. He oversees all business development and strategic direction for Walnut Hill Advisors.

Mr. Stewart joined Loews Hotels & Co. in 1999 and has held a variety of executive positions including, Chief of staff to the Chairman & CEO, Senior Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs, and Director of Development. In these roles, he has been an integral part of the strategic development, planning and execution of a wide variety of projects for the company as well as outside ventures and investments specific to the Chairman. During his tenure, Mr. Stewart managed the 125 million-dollar conversion of the landmark PSFS building into the Loews Philadelphia hotel and served on the Loews Hotels Senior Brand Strategy Committee and the Executive Leadership Team.

For more than twenty years, Mr. Stewart has played an active role in the travel and tourism industry where he served as an officer of the Travel Business Roundtable and was instrumental in the creation of its successor organization, the United States Travel Association. He has testified before the United States Congress, has been quoted in leading publications, and appeared on television in the United States and abroad on the importance of travel and tourism. Travel agent magazine recognized him as a “Rising Star” in the industry. Mr. Stewart is on the Board of Directors of NYC & Company, the Board of Advisors of the NYU Tisch Center of Hospitality, and is the Vice Chair of the annual NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference. He has also been involved in various civic activities where has taken on several leadership roles.

Jeffrey S. Wilpon is a Partner of Sterling Equities and the former Chief Operating Officer of the New York Mets, overseeing the team’s day-to-day baseball and business operations. He is also Partner of Sterling Project Development. Mr. Wilpon serves on the board of MLB Business and Media, as well as other nonprofit organizations. He also serves on the board of the New York Mets Foundation and received a Presidential Appointment in 2007 from President George W. Bush to the Board of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.