People on the Move

The Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce announced that Maureen Sullivan has been named its Director of Marketing and communications, effective Dec. 1. Sullivan will be responsible for the strategic direction, development, management, and implementation of all aspects of marketing, public relations, social media, media relations, and communications efforts. She replaces Nancy Creed, who assumed the role of chamber president in August. Sullivan comes to the chamber with extensive marketing and communications experience, most recently as president of the Maureen Sullivan Media Group, an advertising and marketing firm focused on developing branding, marketing strategies, advertising, and event marketing. Prior to her founding her own business in 2013, she served as the marketing director for the Republican, where she directed corporate and internal communications, community engagement, loyalty programs, and sponsorships. Before being promoted in 1999 to marketing director, Sullivan served as the newspaper’s promotional manager, responsible for all internal communications, advertising sales, and event marketing. Sullivan is the founder of “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” a successful, award-winning event series for women. She produced and managed the series of events attended by more than 2,100 women, launched its profitable merchandise line, and launched its digital and print publication with a reach of 376,000. Sullivan also produced an award-winning television commercial and has been named one of the Top 10 Women in Business by the Women Business Owner’s Alliance. Before joining the Republican, Sullivan served in similar capacities with the Hartford Courant and the Transcript-Telegram in Holyoke. She is a board member of Unify Against Bullying, a nonprofit that raises money to fund anti-bullying projects in schools; a former member of the Holyoke Cultural Council appointed by Mayor Alex Morse; and a former board member with the Newspaper Assoc. of America and the Advertising Club of Western Massachusetts. She is a graduate of UMass with a degree in journalism and communications.

•••••

 

Andrew Steiner has been named Executive Director of JGS Lifecare’s Leavitt Family Jewish Home (JNH). He brings more than 20 years of diverse experience improving the quality of care and quality of life of seniors. He will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the Joint Commission-accredited, 200-bed, long-term-care nursing home located in Longmeadow. Before joining JGS Lifecare, Steiner served as president of Sycamore Health Care Consultants, LLC, a consulting firm specializing in senior housing and health care, policy and compliance, reimbursement programming, healthcare technology integration, operations and turnaround management, marketing, and real-estate investment. In addition, Steiner has served as the executive director of the 205-bed Abbott Terrace Health Center in Waterbury, Conn. In this role, he implemented and managed programs for residents with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, pulmonary rehabilitation, and cardiac care management. He also developed and implemented partnerships with regional hospital networks and delivered significant improvements in patient care and customer-service outcomes. Prior to this, Steiner served as director of Strategic Planning for National Health Care Associates in Wethersfield, Conn., coordinating business planning and strategies for more than 40 skilled-nursing facilities in six states with more than 4,000 beds under management. “Andrew clearly brings to JNH a wealth of administrative experience in clinical, long-term, and sub-acute settings, as well as a diverse programming background,” said Martin Baicker, president and CEO of JGS. “His wide-ranging skills and expertise will be a critical asset to JNH as we introduce the patient-centered ‘green house’ model of care in our nursing home over the next few years. We feel confident that, under his leadership, this new range of service will continue to grow our legacy of more than a century of proud caretaking, and fulfill our mission to provide quality eldercare services to the people of our community.” Steiner teaches health systems management at the University of Connecticut School of Business. He is also active on many local boards and organizations, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford and Hartford Hospital, and has served the Florida Health Care Assoc., the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation, and Dominican University. Steiner holds a master of public health degree in community health sciences and gerontology from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration, emphasis in marketing, from the Kogod School of Business Administration, American University, Washington, D.C. He is licensed as a nursing-home administrator in Connecticut and Massachusetts.

•••••

Western New England University President Anthony Caprio announced the appointment of two new faculty members in the University’s School of Law:

• Mark Worthington is serving as the Director of Elder Law and Estate Planning Program in his new position in the Western New England University School of Law. Worthington has been in private practice exclusively in special-needs law, elder law, and estate planning for the past 24 years. He has been a member of the LLM faculty as an adjunct since the program’s inception. He is widely recognized as a national leader the field of elder law, having lectured and written for the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. Worthington is a graduate of the University of Rochester, Northeastern University School of Law, and Boston University School of Law. As adjunct faculty, he has been teaching courses in Medicaid Planning and Planning with Grantor Trusts.

• Henry Boroff has been a visiting professor and jurist in residence at Western New England University School of Law since July 2016, and previously an adjunct professor at the law school since 1996. From 1993 until his retirement in 2016, he served as a U.S. bankruptcy judge for the District of Massachusetts, handling cases throughout Massachusetts, as well as in New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Boroff was chief judge of the Massachusetts Bankruptcy Court from 2006 until 2010, and served from 1996 through 2016 an appellate judge on the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the First Circuit. He is a graduate of Boston University and Boston University Law School, and teaches courses in Bankruptcy and Secured Transactions.

•••••

Anne Stout has recently been appointed Director, Business Development, for Webber & Grinnell Insurance. In this role, she will build market position by locating, developing, defining, and acquiring new clients. Having previously worked at Toole Insurance and Pitney Bowes Inc., Stout has more than 20 years of success in marketing and consistently strives to maximize the reach, efficiency, and business impact of strategic relationships. In keeping with the agency’s mission, she is committed to the community. She has held roles as vice president, Membership for Berkshire Business and Professional Women and served on the United Way resource development committee.

•••••

The Dowd Insurance Agencies announced that David Griffin Sr. was selected as Treasurer for the new Pope Francis High School board of directors. Pope Francis High School is a faith-based, college-preparatory school serving grades 9-12, formed through the merger of Cathedral and Holyoke Catholic high schools, and currently operating out of the former Holyoke Catholic building. A new, state-of-the-art facility is under construction on Wendover Road in Springfield and is slated to open for the 2018-19 academic year. “I have strong ties with both legacy schools — I’m an alumnus of Holyoke Catholic, and three of my children were educated at Cathedral,” Griffin said. “Participating on the new Pope Francis High School board is one way I can help ensure that Catholic secondary education remains a viable option here in the Pioneer Valley.” Griffin is a principal and the executive vice president and treasurer of the Dowd Insurance Agencies. He has more than 35 years of experience in the insurance industry. He is a licensed insurance advisor as well as a certified insurance counselor. Griffin is also very active in the community. He has served as president of the West Springfield Chamber of Commerce, West Springfield Rotary, Holyoke St. Patrick’s Parade Committee, Springfield Country Club, Hampden County Insurance Agents, and chair of Mont Marie Health Care Center.

•••••

Richard Sawicki Jr. has been elected President of the 1,700-member Realtor Assoc. of Pioneer Valley. The election took place at the association’s annual membership meeting held earlier this month at the Delaney House in Holyoke. Sawicki is office manager and real estate sales agent with Sawicki Real Estate in Amherst. As president, he will oversee the association’s activities and
operations, including meetings of the board of directors, and act as a
liaison to the association’s various committees. He is the official spokesperson of the association on issues related to the real-estate industry and the local housing market. The other 2017 officers and directors are Edward Alford, President-elect; Kelly Bowman, Treasurer; Susan Drumm, Secretary; and Lou Mayo, Immediate Past President. The directors include Elias Acuna, Suzi Buzzee, Shawn Bowman, Peter Davies, Janise Fitzpatrick, Ray Hoess-Brooks, Susan Rheaume, and Russell Sabadosa.

•••••

Stacey Price has been hired as director of development and marketing at Dakin Humane Society, according to Executive Director Carmine DiCenso. Price will oversee development and marketing efforts for the organization, which has two adoption centers in Leverett and Springfield, as well as a community spay/neuter clinic at the latter location. She will focus on donor and community relations and pursue strategic partnerships that will enable Dakin to continue to innovate while serving the needs of animals and the people who care for them in Western Mass. and beyond. Price was formerly the interim executive director and development director at Gifford Cat Shelter in Brighton, where she served as a funding strategist. Prior to that, she was the capital campaign manager for the EcoTarium in Worcester, and animal welfare director at Kitsap Humane Society in Silverdale, Wash. Price is a member of the Society of Animal Welfare Administrators and was part of the Spay Worcester Task Force. She received a Who’s Who 40 Under 40 award in 2010 from Kitsap County, Wash., and earned an MBA from Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y.