OFFICERS
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PRESIDENT Christine Boccia Christine Boccia is the daughter of James C. Donaldson Jr., founder of JD Consulting LLC dba Traditional Industries. She stepped in to run the Union Drywall company after James Jr. passed away in 2007. She is instrumental in developing the team that has attributed to the success of the WBE-certified Union drywall company. Within the first four years the company’s annual revenues doubled and have since quadrupled, from the company she was left to manage. She believes, “The success or JD Traditional, is truly a team effort along with strong leadership!” Read More In 2009, Boccia was elected as the first woman to the Board of Directors with the Association of Wall-Ceiling and Carpentry Industries, in its then 97-year history. She continued to participate in many other Associations, such as the Subcontractors Trade Association where she was honored as “Subcontractor of the Year” in 2016. In 2018, Christine became the first women on the STA’s board of directors to hold a titled board position of Treasurer and is currently STA’s First Vice President. She also sits on the Board of Governors and the Executive Board, for the BTEA and is Vice Chair of the BTEA’s MWBE Committee. She has also held a board position with the SCA’s Diversity Board since its inception. Boccia and JD Traditional has received many awards, such as Women Builders Council Championship Award in 2009. Anchin & Anchin’s, Fastest Growing Small Contractor in 2010, Anchin & Anchin’ s Fastest Growing Large Contractor in 2012, Professional Women in Constructions 2011 Executives Award and Women Builders Council Championship Award in 2009. In 2016 she joined the WBC board of directors and has served as Vice President since January 2019. |
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VICE PRESIDENT Denise M. Berger FAIA, FRICS A results-oriented leader with more than 30 years of executive experience in the building trades industry, Denise Berger joined AECOM in 2020 she is responsible for leading strategic planning, marketing, and branding, digital transformation, and ESG across all regional business lines. In addition, leads Strategy and growth for New York City. A champion for equitable engagement and inclusion, Denise serves on AECOM’s global Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (ED&I) Steering Committee and is the former chair of WTS International ED&I committee, advancing women in transportation. Read More Berger is the former chief of operations for the engineering department of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, where she was responsible for the operations of an engineering department comprised of over 570 engineers and architects with an annual budget of $1.3 billion. |
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VICE PRESIDENT, PUBLIC POLICY Tanya Pope Tanya Pope is Assistant Vice President for University Supplier Diversity and Program Integration at Columbia University. Working primarily in the Facilities and Operations Department, she is responsible for sourcing capable, diverse vendors to support the University’s construction projects and business initiatives. In addition, her department oversees reporting and community projects related to Columbia University’s agreements for its Manhattanville Campus expansion with the community, City and State of New York. Read More In 2017, Pope and her team launched the CU Grow: Leadership Development Program for Vendors, a program designed to help select MWL businesses to grow their business through a coaching program with a curriculum designed by the Columbia University School of Professional Studies. The launch of CU Grow followed the conclusion of the multi-year, Columbia University/Corporate Alliance MWL Construction Trades Certificate Mentorship Program, which Ms. Pope also helped shape and implement. Prior to re-joining Columbia University in 2016, Ms. Pope worked in the in the nonprofit sector, with the NYC Department of Small Business Services and in business development roles in entertainment, publishing and travel. She holds a Bachelor’s in Communications Management and a Master’s in Leadership and Strategic Management, both from Manhattanville College. She earned a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in Finance at the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA). |
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TREASURER Terry Pissi, CPA Terry Pissi, CPA, is an accounting and audit partner at Anchin with more than 30 years of experience. She advises clients in a range of industries including construction, real estate, and public relations. Pissi takes great pride in truly understanding her clients' businesses and concerns and how those issues affect their personal financial goals; she asks the right questions, listens closely, and responds proactively to her clients’ needs. She is deeply involved in the career development of Anchin’s professional staff by providing training and mentoring. Read More
Pissi chairs both the CARE Committee, which organizes the Firm’s charity and recreational events, and AWIN, Anchin Women's Initiative Network, which focuses on the professional development of women in the Firm. Terry has spent her entire professional career at Anchin, having joined the firm as an intern while in college. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW).
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RECORDING SECRETARY Gayle Benjamin Gayle Benjamin is a Business Leader at Jacobs, a multi-disciplined architectural and engineering firm that has consistently ranked No. 1 on Engineering News-Record (ENR)’s Top 500 Design Firms. Benjamin has more than 25 years of experience leading and supporting public and private clients throughout New York City and New York State. Read More As a seasoned Construction Manager, Benjamin attributes her success to strong leadership skills, the ability to effectively communicate and collaborate, and a strong focus on project execution excellence. Her success has resulted in repeat business from clients. Benjamin has a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture and Planning from the State University of New York at Buffalo. |
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CORRESPONDING SECRETARY Palmina Whelan, CCM, MCIOB Palmina Whelan is currently the owner of Palmina Whalen Strategic Solutions where she has extensive experience assembling high functioning teams and driving collaboration among stakeholders. She previously served as Managing Director of Real Estate & Facilities for American Airlines in the Corporate Real Estate division and is responsible for managing major multi-billion dollars airport capital improvement projects in the Northeast, Dallas, Central Regions of the U.S and Canada. Her responsibilities include directing all aspects of development within her regions, including master planning, engineering, capital improvement program and commercial real estate. Read More Whelan provides key leadership support to guide the overall strategic planning for the Airports the development and construction of facilities in fulfillment of the Airports Master Plans. Whelan currently sits on the Technical Committees for the DFW, LGA, EWR, JFK, and BOS Aviation Master Programs and has successfully executed multiple Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) construction projects in North America for the Aviation industry. She was recently elected to the National Academy of Construction (NAC). In electing Whelan, NAC cited her as a “recognized leader in aviation and infrastructure programs with significant contributions to business and financial viability and operational efficiency of major projects and programs.” |
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PAST PRESIDENTS Deborah Bradley
Deborah Bradley is Founder and President of Deborah Bradley Construction & Management Services, Inc. (DBC), a full-service General Contractor and Construction Management Consultant to institutional and educational facilities and public agencies throughout New York State. Today, DBC celebrates 25 years in business and continues to be a 100% woman-owned and operated business enterprise. Through Bradley’s hard work and dedication to quality, she now oversees an over twenty-million-dollar firm with fifty employees and a broad range of capabilities. Despite the firm’s extensive growth in recent years, Bradley is hands-on in all aspects of the company’s performance. Her early experience as a CPA with Deloitte & Touche and her MBA from Columbia University serve her well as she guides the firm she founded. Read More Bradley is on the executive board of Women Construction Owners & Executives (WCOE) and is involved with several other noteworthy organizations in the construction industry, including the Regional Alliance of Small Contractors and the NYC Building Congress. She also serves on the NYC School Construction Authority (SCA) and NYC Department of Design & Construction (DDC) Diversity Boards. As a business owner and mother of three, Bradley is committed to teaching and mentoring young women entering the construction industry as well as helping other small M/WBE firms grow and prosper. |
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Cheryl McKissack Daniel Cheryl McKissack Daniel is President and CEO of The McKissack Group, Inc., and has more than 20 years of experience in the construction industry. Born in Nashville to architect William D. Berry and teacher, Leatrice McKissack, she represents the fifth generation of the McKissack family’s century-old business, McKissack & McKissack, the oldest minority-owned design and construction firm in the nation. As President and CEO of The McKissack Group, McKissack Daniel provides executive leadership on numerous high profile projects and ensures that diversity is implemented throughout each phase of a project or program. Read More McKissack Daniel serves on various boards, including the Philadelphia Authority of Industrial Development and the National Liberty Museum Board, where she was honored as a ‘Hero of Liberty’ for her support of humanitarian initiatives and for promoting the responsibilities of a free and diverse America. McKissack Daniel also served as co-chair on Philadelphia Mayor John Street’s Transition Committee for Small Business and is an active member in both the New York Building Congress and Women in Transportation (WTS). She earned both a bachelor and master’s degree in civil engineering from Howard University. |
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Sandra Wilkin Praised by Forbes in an October 2012 profile on her game-changing digital “makeover of [the] New York construction industry,” Wilkin is a passionate advocate for minority- and women-owned small business enterprises (M/W/SBEs) and the creative ways Bradford’s three core divisions ⎯ technology, diversity consulting and construction management – can support them. In partnership with Leica, Bradford provides laser scanning and Building Information Modeling (BIM) services for building life-cycle and disaster recovery information projects, such as 9-11 and Hurricane Sandy. This capacity-building approach provides a competitive edge for a small woman-owned business enterprise (WBE) like Bradford. |
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