Rita Mella: The Chairperson of the Board, Ms. Rita Mella, brings extensive experience in community activism, board participation, and a commitment to working for social justice. A native of the Dominican Republic, Ms. Mella first arrived in the USA at the age of 22 when, on a scholarship, she completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Education. In 1988, she enrolled in CUNY Law School and completed her Doctor. of Jurisprudence law degree. She was elected as a Civil Court Judge in 2012 and is currently the first Latina Surrogate Court Judge in the Borough of Manhattan.
The importance of working for the public good, and in particular to benefit her community, is something Judge Mella learned from an early age. "I was raised in a household where morals and ethics played a significant role. From when I was very little, public service was encouraged by example in my house. And those values were reinforced in school. "If I had to define my life right now, I would say it is about public service."
She has been a member and chairperson of DWDC’s Board of Directors since December 8th, 1997.
Miosotis Cabrera is a businesswoman and philanthropist with a background in tourism, hospitality, and entertainment and is currently working in real estate in Westchester County, NY. She attended the Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE) in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration (1990-1993) with a concentration in Hospitality and Tourism. She also received a Salesperson Real Estate Licensing Course Certificate from Westchester Community College in 2017.
She founded The Miosotis Cabrera Foundation in 2015 with the focus of providing technological education and opportunities to the children of New York City. For the past seven years her foundation has been providing toys during the holiday season for the children in DWDC’s programs.
Her foundation is also a contributor to the Medical/Dental Humanitarian Mission organized by SOMOS Community Care and the Dominican Medical/Dental Association in the Dominican Republic.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since April 25th, 2018.
Alyssa has been working for L’Oreal since 2010 where she has held several positions, the most current leading brand strategy and marketing as the Vice President of Omni Marketing for Lancôme Makeup at L'Oréal.
Alyssa is a highly passionate beauty industry professional with expertise in brand marketing, retail and digital marketing for luxury lifestyle brands.
Her specialties are: Brand management, operational and digital marketing, competitive analysis, entrepreneurship, customer experience, in-store merchandising and activation, budget and forecast management and relationship building.
She is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York where she obtained her Master’s degree in Professional Studies in Cosmetics, Fragrance, Marketing and Management; received a certificate from MIT Sloan School of Management in Mastering Business Excellence, and holds a Bachelor’s degree from Boston College, College of Arts and Sciences where she majored in Major in Hispanic Studies, Minor in International Political Economy, Latin American Studies, and Pre-med concentration.
As an education and development advocate, she has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since December 3rd, 2019, is a member of the L’Oreal Women of Color Think Tank, and spends time mentoring young professionals with an emphasis on career development and self advocacy.
Lissette Durán is a Senior Associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLC in New York in the Sustainability & Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Advisory Practice. Lissette has extensive experience advising clients on their ESG efforts, with a focus on internal investigations and development of HR and DEI policies and disclosures.
Prior to joining the ESG practice, she was a litigation associate specializing in complex litigation and regulatory defense, representing leading companies in finance, oil and energy, and technology.
Outside of the office, Lissette is very active in the Latinx/Hispanic community. She is a Deputy Regional President for HNBA Region II, and a member of the Líderes Board of LatinoJustice PRLDEF. Since March 2018, she has been a member of the Board of the Dominican Women’s Development Center. Lissette earned her B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and her J.D. from Columbia Law School. After graduation, Lissette clerked for Judge Edgardo Ramos at the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of New York.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since March 7th, 2018.
Luz Bermudez was born in Santiago, D.R. and came to NYC in 1962. She is a retired former needle worker and community activist. In 1997 she received a certificate in the first Political Action Institute of the United Needletrades, Industrial & Textile Employees Union (AFL-CIO). In 1998, she successfully completed the AFL-CIO Health and Safety Educators Training Program. In the same year she formed the Health and Safety Committee at the Michael Felmand Company which led to very important safety changes in the work environment for more than 75 employees. She also completed a workers’ compensation training to educate staff on how to negotiate the compensation process.
In 1993, she organized the Rose Court Tenant Association at 603 Academy Street to defend tenants' rights and address concerns to the landlord. This association is still active today. For the past 10 years she has been active in every election cycle working for the NY Board of Elections and educating residents about the importance of voting. In 1997, Ms. Bermudez graduated from the NYPD Civilian Academy, and has continued to work on improving police-community relations. In 2008, she was elected to the 34th Precinct Community Council. Ms. Bermudez has also served as the local "Madrina" (godmother) of the Inwood Firehouse and has organized large street prayer services for fallen firefighters.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since July 11th, 2013.
Mara Terrero is a native of the Dominican Republic who has resided in the United States for most of her life. Maria has dedicated her life to advancing awareness of self-identity through her work as a dancer, vocalist, and community activist, highlighting the African presence in Dominican culture. María presently resides with her life partner in Albuquerque, New Mexico where they both work as co-directors of the Afro-Dominican music project KumbaCarey. Maria is a member of the Advisory Board of AfroMundo, a nonprofit organization in New Mexico.
In the fall of 2010 she joined the dynamic team that founded DWDC’s Early Head Start Program. Mamá Tingó first as Home Visitor, then as a family worker, and finally as family services coordinator. She was instrumental in the formation of the family services, recruitment and outreach components of the program as well as the parent engagement and leadership through family partnerships and the program’s Parent Council. Upon her retirement from DWDC in 2018 María joined as a Community Representative in the Parent Council and also in the DWDC’s Board of Directors.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since December 3rd, 2019.
Dr. Andel V. Nicasio completed her bachelor’s degree in organizational psychology at the Pontifical Catholic University Madre y Maestra in the Dominican Republic. She holds two master’s degrees, one in Rehabilitation Counseling from Hunter College New York and the other in Clinical Psychology from the University of Central Florida. She completed her doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of Central Florida and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Medical University of South Carolina with specializations in trauma, telehealth, and mental health disparities research. Dr. Nicasio’s research focuses on (1) addressing health disparities through the development and adaptation of culturally-informed interventions, and (2) the dissemination and implementation of evidence-based interventions using telehealth in low-resourced environments within the United States and internationally. Her research is guided by interdisciplinary and community-based participatory research approaches.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since June 8th, 2008.
Karina Aybar is a Women's Empowerment psychotherapist, coach & community organizer. Her motto is "building women's resilience through vulnerability". Karina is a firm believer in the power of community organizing and advocacy to bring about systemic change, as well as educating and training different organizations and institutions to ensure more equitable and just practices via her workshops around intimate partner and gender equity, sexual harassment, breaking the stigma around mental health, self-care & stress management, identifying internalized oppression, among other topics. In 2017 she opened her own psychotherapy and coaching private practice in Manhattan, and virtually.
Karina is a citywide organizer & steering committee member of the Brides March Against Domestic Violence, an annual event that helps eradicate and raise awareness about the devastating effects of domestic and intimate partner violence. Karina serves on different boards and collective of women leaders dedicated to increasing political power and influence in all issues pertaining to women, mental health, and immigrant communities in New York City.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since October 27, 2016.
Dr. Casilda Balmaceda was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina and has an M.D. from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons specializing in neurology. She has also received postdoctoral neurology training at Montefiore Hospital, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, Cornell University, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She has been an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Columbia University and Presbyterian Hospital. She has published 25 original articles in several prestigious journals. She has received 16 different honors and awards naming her as one of the best doctors in the field of neurology in the United States of America.
She has a neurological private practice in the heart of our community on Fort Washington Avenue and 176 Street. She has a very active clinical practice, particularly in headache, general neurology, and pain. She conducts patient education seminars for patients with fibromyalgia and pain conditions. She sees about 30 patients a day.
Dr. Balmaceda belongs to several professional organizations and is also a board member and volunteer at several organizations in the United States and in the Dominican Republic.
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since December 3rd, 2019.
Janette Malloy was born in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. In 1982, she was accepted to Long Island University School of Pharmacy. Upon graduation in 1987, she was hired as a Pharmacist for Bellevue Hospital where she worked for 10 years. In 2007, she accepted the position of Supervising Pharmacist at Duane Reade and trained all new post-graduation pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.
In July 2015, she opened her own pharmacy named Cibao Pharmacy in Washington Heights in New York City.
Due to her hard work and dedication, Jannette has been truly blessed in serving the Dominican community and has received many awards for doing so. She has been a member of the DWDC since December 2019.
She believes that Latinos need to be united regardless of their backgrounds. Her slogan is “We are all created equal by our Creator.”
She has been a member of DWDC’s Board of Directors since March 7th, 2018.
