Moderator - George Donnelly, Editor, Boston Business Journal.  George Donnelly joined the Boston Business Journal as editor in November 2000 after working for two years as a senior editor at CFO magazine, where he covered a range of corporate finance topics. He was editor-in-chief of the Tab newspaper group, which included 15 weekly newspapers in the Greater Boston area, from 1995-1998. He began his journalism career as a reporter for the Somerville Journal in 1985, and he was editor of the Somerville Journal from 1987 to 1991.

Donnelly came to Boston in 1981 after getting a degree in English Literature at the State University of New York at Binghamton.

Michael Goodman, Ph.D. is Director of Economic & Public Policy Research at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute, where he works with clients, staff, and faculty to conduct customized studies that highlight aspects of the Massachusetts economy, with the goal of making university-level research available to local and state policy makers, as well as business and labor leaders. He is also the Managing Editor of MassBenchmarks, a quarterly journal that presents timely information concerning the performance of the Massachusetts economy. Dr. Goodman also serves as a member of the Board of Directors and as Massachusetts forecast manager for the New England Economic Project (NEEP).

Prior to joining the Institute, Dr. Goodman was the research manager for the Massachusetts Alliance for Economic Development and a research associate at the Worcester Municipal Research Bureau, where he founded the Center for Community Performance Measurement. Dr. Goodman received his M.A. and Ph.D. from Boston University.

Dan L. Monroe, Executive Director and CEO at the Peabody Essex Museum, has a degree in philosophy from the University of Colorado. He was formerly the President of the Portland Art Museum in Oregon, before that administered the Alaska State Museum system. He also served as President of the American Association of Museums and the Western Museums Conference. He has been a grant reviewer for the Institute of Museum Services, the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, and is a faculty member at the Getty Trust's Museum Management Institute. He played a central role in creating the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, and served on its Review Committee for five years. He has worked with Native American people since 1968, when he taught for a three years in a remote Tlingit Indian village in Alaska. Mr. Monroe is also an award-winning photographer.

John R. Schneider, Vice President, the Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth (MassINC) directs MassINC’s policy, civic affairs, and public outreach programs and initiatives.  He is responsible for the coordination of day-to-day operations and works closely with president on strategic planning, fund-raising, and board relations.

Before joining MassINC, Mr. Schneider directed a regional planning and economic development partnership in the state's high-tech corridor. He also served as chief of staff to the House majority whip and research director to the Massachusetts Legislature's Joint Committee on Education, Arts, and Humanities where he played a key staff role in the development, passage, and implementation of the Massachusetts Education Reform Act of 1993. Mr. Schneider has also taught in a variety of educational settings working with high school dropouts, adult and college students. Trained in education and public policy, Mr. Schneider has degrees from Northeastern University and Loyola University of Chicago. He resides in historic Lowell with his wife and daughter where he is active in the community and helps to produce folk music concerts and events.   

Beth Siegel is the President and Co-founder of Mt. Auburn Associates. Her policy work and writings have been influential in the economic development field. She wrote some of the earliest articles on the role of “clusters” in regional economic development and her report in the mid 90s to the Charles Stewart Mott and Ford foundations— Jobs and the Urban Poor influenced the field of sectoral workforce development. With concern for the fate of smaller cities, she also authored a report for the U.S. Economic Development Administration -- Third Tier Cities: Adjusting to the New Economy. Siegel gained recognition for her work on the strategic role that arts and culture play in economic growth, including the path-breaking study — The Role of the Arts and Culture in New England's Economic Competitiveness, and the recently released Louisiana: Where Culture Means Business. Siegel received a BA from Beloit College in Wisconsin and a Master in City and Regional Planning from Harvard University.

City Futures 

Moderator- Kimberly Driscoll currently serves as the Mayor for the City of Salem. She is the former Deputy City Manager for the City of Chelsea, Massachusetts. Prior to being named to that position, Ms. Driscoll spent four years as Corporation Counsel to the City. Kim has an extensive background in planning and land use development, having worked as a real estate and commercial development attorney in private practice, as well as serving as the Community Development Director for the City of Beverly and as an Assistant Planner for the City of Salem. In addition to her appointive posts, Kim also served two terms as the Ward Five representative to the Salem City Council.

Timothy P. Murray, Mayor of Worcester is in his third term. Under Mayor Murray's leadership, the city is experiencing unprecedented progress: an economic revival, with $1 billion of new development projects under construction and more in the pipeline. Simultaneously, Mayor Murray has engaged the city's diverse social, cultural, and academic communities and forged new partnerships to enhance the spirit of renewal. Mayor Murray has used innovation and determination to fuel economic growth, expanding commuter rail service, launching aggressive brownfields reclamation initiatives and maximizing job creation and business development. The Massachusetts Cultural Council recently honored him with its Local Leadership Award.

Mayor Murray is a Worcester native. He earned his bachelors degree at Fordham University and earned a law degree from the Western New England School of Law, later becoming a partner in the firm of Tattan, Leonard and Murray. Prior to his elective service, Mr. Murray was active for many years in a wide range of community initiatives. He served on the boards of the Worcester Public Library, Worcester Historical Museum, Worcester Community Action Council, the Worcester Working Coalition for Latino Students and Preservation Worcester.  He and his wife, Tammy (Sullivan), have one daughter.

James Ruberto, Mayor of Pittsfield was born and raised in Pittsfield, MA. Mr. Ruberto graduated from St. Joseph’s Grammar Schools and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Villanova University in 1968. He was awarded a Masters of Business Administration at the University of Massachusetts in 1969 and has completed coursework for a Doctorate of Business Administration at Golden Gate University.

For the past 30 years Jim has been employed in plastics or plastics-related industries, including a career in the Sales and Marketing Department of DuPont.

He served as Senior Vice President and Divisional President of Plicon Corporation, guiding this entrepreneurial firm. At Rexene Corporation, a NYSE firm, Jim was an Executive Vice President and Divisional President of a $180 million global plastics packing business. He also led Huntsman Packaging Corporation’s $150 million North American flexible packaging business as Vice President and General Manager. In recent years he has served as a consultant to companies in these industries.

Mr. Ruberto, a Democrat, is a member of the Ward 5 City Committee. Since returning to Pittsfield, Jim has been involved in a wide variety of local community activities. He was elected Mayor in 2001 and re-elected in 2005 with 70% of all votes cast.

Investment Opportunities in Innovation

Moderator-Ranch C. Kimball is the Secretary of Economic Development for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. As Governor Romney’s chief economic advisor, he oversees the Department of Labor, the Department of Workforce Development, the Department of Business & Technology, and the Office of Consumer Affairs & Business Regulation. With more than 25 years of private sector experience helping businesses grow and succeed, he is uniquely qualified to set the direction of the Commonwealth’s economic development policies and initiatives.

Since his appointment in April 2004, Secretary Kimball has been a leading advocate for ways to make the Massachusetts economy stronger.  Prior to becoming secretary, he ran a private equity firm for Kissinger McLarty Associates and was a partner at Boston Consulting Group. He has also been recognized for his contributions in making Massachusetts a better place to run a business.  The Massachusetts Network Communications Council named Kimball one of its “Policy Makers of the Year” for 2005.

David W. Ives is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of North Shore International Insurance Services, Inc., an insurance management and consulting company. Headquartered in Danvers, they provide services globally to insurers, reinsurers and self-insured entities. A frequent speaker at industry seminars, Mr. Ives has published articles on insurance and claims topics in The Self-Insurer and The John Liner Review. Mr. Ives is active in many community organizations, including The Salem Partnership, where he served a three-year term as the President. He has also served as the chairman of the Salem State College Assistance Corporation.  He has been an advocate of the creative economy and its growth and has substantial interest in the investment opportunities inherent in the creative economy.

Elliot Katzman is General Partner of Kodiak Venture Partners.  Kodiak manages funds targeting companies in eastern North America and works with entrepreneurs at the earliest formulations of their ventures to create business strategies, build the management teams, develop critical alliances and customer relationships, and recruit additional financial partners through all stages of investment and growth.

Prior to joining Kodiak, he founded and led Myteam.com, a direct marketing/web services company that merged with The Active Network.  Prior to Myteam.com, he was at SolidWorks, where as Senior Vice President and CFO, he led the merger with Dassault Systemes.  As CFO of Atria Software, he led an IPO and a $1 billion merger with Pure Software, the largest software merger of its time.  Prior, Elliot served as CFO of Epoch Systems, where he had senior operational responsibilities and managed the company’s merger with EMC.  He was also an executive with Prime Computer during its significant growth phase in the mid-1980s.  Elliot has served on several Boards, including Groove Mobile, Mindreef, Newforma, Pragmatech, SpaceClaim and Watchfire.

Dan Primack, Columnist for Private Equity Week, has been an editor with Venture Economics for over four years, having served as editor of PE Week, interim editor of The IPO Reporter and publisher of online content. He previously was a beat writer for Private Placement Letter, and co-founder of The 'Bury, a newspaper focused on youth issues within inner city Boston. Primack is a graduate of Haverford College, with a degree in political science.

Doug Redding is Chief Operating Officer, VIMAC Ventures LLC Doug joined VIMAC in 2002 as Executive in Residence and later that year became Chief Operating Officer. He is responsible for all internal operations of the firm and leverages his deep startup experience to assist VIMAC portfolio companies with financial, administrative, and operational counsel. He also has developed and transferred best practices as a free internal consultant whom portfolio companies can tap periodically for expert advice. Doug previously spent 20 years as a founder and senior level executive at several early-stage technology firms, including Software Developers' Company, Cortex Corporation, CenterLine Software and edu.com. He started his career with seven years at Price Waterhouse and is a Certified Public Accountant. Doug holds a BA from Stanford University and attended Cornell and UCLA Graduate Schools of Business.

Communications Revolution

Moderator- Karen Andreas is Executive Editor of Eagle-Tribune Publishing Co. and oversees its four daily and several weekly newspapers, including the Eagle-Tribune, the Salem News, the Daily News of Newburyport, and the Gloucester Daily Times. Ms. Andreas has been in the newspaper business for nearly 20 years, focusing on community journalism. She and her staff of 200 editors, reporters, photographers and newspaper designers focus on intensely local news -- from the classrooms, playing fields, town halls and coffee shops of 45 communities. Ms. Andreas and her staff have been honored with numerous awards, including national recognition for The Salem News’ 2005 series on “Opiates in Our Towns,” a comprehensive look at our youth’s abuse of heroin and OxyContin. Ms. Andreas is a longtime resident of the North Shore, and currently resides in Danvers with her husband and two young sons.

James M. Fairweather is Vice President  of Sales at Polycom, Inc Jim has been in the Massachusetts High Tech industry for over 25 years. He has held numerous Sales Executive and Management positions at Honeywell Bull, Stratus Computer, MCI WorldCom, and PitureTel. Jim’s responsibilities have included North & South American Sales & Marketing, eCommerce, and Global Markets. Jim is currently the Area Vice President of US Sales at Polycom Inc. based in Andover MA. Jim is a consistent and ethical leader with excellent communication, presentation, and negotiation skills. Jim is very active in the community. He is President & Chairman of The Boys & Girls Club of Assabet Valley (since 1995), Board Member of the Maynard Booster Club, member of Mass Telecommunications Council, American Management Association, Bentley Alumni Association,AV Little League, Maynard School & Recreation Council, and Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks. Jim also managed the first political implementation of Video Conferencing at the 2004 Democratic Convention in Boston, MA.

Tony Kahn is the Director/Producer of WGBH Radio’s Morning Stories Program  An award-winning radio host and producer, Tony Kahn is currently the producer/director of WGBH Radio’s Morning Stories program. Kahn has written, produced, narrated and hosted more than 50 radio and television programs and series for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), National Public Radio (NPR), Nickelodeon, A&E, Monitor Radio, and Boston television stations WGBH and WCVB. In addition to having served as the original host of PRI’s The World—public radio’s global news program—Kahn is a regular panelist on WGBH/NPR’s weekly witty word game show, Says You! He has also been a regular commentator for Public Radio International’s Marketplace and NPR’s Morning Edition. Kahn’s broadcast work has received 12 New England Emmys, a National Emmy nomination, the Edward R. Murrow Award for Feature Reporting, six Gold Medals of the New York International Festival, an Ohio State Award, the A.I.R. Radio Award for Radio Interviewing, and the Grand Award for Radio Drama from the New York International Festival. Several of his documentaries have been screened at film festivals throughout the US; other works, including three plays and five screenplays, have received notable recognition. Kahn’s acclaimed public radio series, Blacklisted, chronicled the experiences of his father, Hollywood screenwriter Gordon Kahn, who was blacklisted during the McCarthy era. Most recently, Kahn has been recognized for placing public radio in the vanguard of the new media revolution with the 2004 launch of his Morning Stories podcast—public radio’s first podcast.

Mark Minelli is Principal and Founder of Minelli Inc. Over his twenty-year communication design career, Mark Minelli has earned a reputation as a creative leader and trusted source for communication planning and development. Since 1988, his brand consultancy and design firm has developed successful branding and communication programs for Fortune 100 companies, universities and leading cultural institutions and has grown to become one of the most respected firms in the region.

A graduate of the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning at the University of Cincinnati, Mr. Minelli has been a guest professor of design at the Art Institute of Boston, Massachusetts College of Art, and Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. He currently sits on the Board of Overseers for Boston's Institute of Contemporary Art and chair's the ICA's marketing and identity committee. 

Carolyn Wall, is President of Narrowstep Inc., the TV on the Internet company and named veteran

television and publishing executive, Carolyn Wall, President in October of 2005. Having held top leadership positions at a number of the nation's most respected media companies, Wall has extensive branding, business development and senior management experience with some of the most respected media properties. During her 11 years at News Corporation, Wall was Publisher of New York magazine, Executive Vice President of Murdoch Magazines, and Vice President/General Manager of New York television station Fox 5.  As Publisher of Newsweek, Wall led strategic initiatives to develop and extend the brand.

Ms. Wall has a reputation for establishing strong media brands that resonate with consumers and the advertising community.  Throughout her 25+ years in the industry, she has specialized in building start-ups and rebuilding brands.  She also has particular insight into repurposing content and an understanding of developing successful revenue streams that go beyond a reliance on traditional advertising.

Prior to her tenure at Newsweek in 1998, Wall's distinguished career includes a term as President of WBIS+TV, where she was recruited to execute the vision of ITT and Dow Jones, creating New York City's first new broadcast television station in 30 years.  WBIS+ was first with a hybrid programming premise: money by day, sports at night.  In addition, Wall served as President and CEO of Cowles Business Media.  Most recently she was a co-founder of Branded Radio Networks, an entrepreneurial venture in retail radio.

Innovative New Markets

Moderator-Vicki Donlan is Publisher and Founder of Women's Business Boston, a 25,000 controlled-circulation newspaper devoted to women in business in the Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island region. She is a regular guest discussing women in business on New England Cable News' Business Day.

Ms. Donlan was the first Executive Director of the Commonwealth Institute, a nonprofit organization founded by twelve prominent Boston women CEOs to assist women entrepreneurs in the growth of their businesses. As cofounder and first Executive Director of the South Shore Women's Business Network and founder of the Alliance of Women's Business and Professional Organizations, Ms. Donlan has been instrumental in the growth of networking for women entrepreneurs and corporate leaders.

Rebecca Blunk was appointed Executive Director of New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) in June, 2004.  Having previously held the positions of deputy director and director of programs, Rebecca’s work has involved the design and oversight of many programs at NEFA, including the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest National Jazz Network, the National Dance Project, the Mexico Exchange Initiative, and Matchbook.org, an online cultural marketplace that dynamically links New England’s artists with presenters throughout the country.  

Lisa Chamberlain, Managing Partner, The Chamberlain Group, graduated from Princeton University in 1981 with an undergraduate degree in English and an ambition to produce live theatre. She attended the Yale School of Drama in the MFA program in Theatre Management.  Her graduate internship took her to New York and R/Greenberg Associates, a special visual effects and graphic animation company, where she spent the next six years as a producer of visual effects and feature film advertising. In 1989 she became vice president/executive producer for visual effects at Editel New York, a digital production company, where in 1994 she was promoted to vice president/general manager with a staff of over eighty.  She joined Cinergi/Mass.Illusion in Lenox, MA in 1995 and produced visual effects for the studio’s work on ERASER, EVENT HORIZON, and STARSHIP TROOPERS.

With Eric Chamberlain in 1997, she founded a small company to design and fabricate the “Bullet Time” visual effects camera rig for the feature film, THE MATRIX (Academy Award, Visual Effects, 2000). When they were approached to prototype and manufacture anatomy models, the Chamberlains were intrigued and shortly enamored enough to redirect their careers into medical education. In 1999 they founded The Chamberlain Group, dedicating themselves to this new endeavor.

In 2000 Lisa’s business plan for The Chamberlain Group won first prize in the University of Massachusetts Five College Business Plan Competition. In 2003 the company received the Governor’s Entrepreneurial Spirit Award for Outstanding Service to The Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the Areas of Job Creation and Economic Development. The Chamberlain Group serves an international clientele of medical device manufacturers, teaching institutions, and hospitals in forty countries and most of the fifty states providing anatomical models for R&D, demonstration, and training of surgical procedures. Lisa’s efforts for the company are focused in business development and financial management.

Charles McDermott, Deputy Director of Massachusetts Cultural Council, has more than 20 years of experience in the creative economy.  He joined the Massachusetts Cultural Council in 1992 and has served as Deputy Director since 1995.  He has also held positions at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the National Arts Stabilization Fund, the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Chinese Garden in Vancouver, BC, and several public radio stations.  He holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management.

Mark Richey, President and Founder of Mark Richey Woodworking and Design Inc., began his woodworking career in 1978 as an apprentice to Bill Dowd, a well known harpsichord maker in Cambridge Massachusetts. Mark studied at the Boston Architectural Center at night and worked part time as a draftsman for a local architect designing fine custom homes. By 1982 he began his own business, combining his architectural and woodworking skills in a one man cabinet shop in the basement of his Malden apartment.

 In 1984 he married Teresa Sal Y Rosas, a native of Peru, and the two became business partners launching Mark Richey Woodworking and Design Inc. Today, 3 moves and multiple expansions later, MRWD employs over 70 people in their newly renovated, state of the art facility in Newburyport MA, providing high end architectural woodwork for commercial, institutional and residential clients throughout the US and overseas.

Mark is also an avid mountain climber and has climbed and explored around the globe including a successful ascent of Everest in 1991 Mark, Teresa and their 17 year old daughter Natalia reside in Essex Massachusetts.

Incubating New Ideas

Moderator- Nan Doyle is Associate Vice President at the Museum of Science, Boston, where she oversees outreach programs that connect audiences with science, technology and engineering.  Ms. Doyle has an exceptional ability to bring a business perspective to creative-sector initiatives.  Her distinctive background includes nearly twenty years' leadership in public and not-for-profit organizations. Previously, Ms. Doyle was Director of Corporate Development for Genzyme Corporation.  She received the 2004 "Top of the Arts" award for her pro bono work with the Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston and the New England Creative Economy Council.

George Fifield is a new media curator, a writer about art and technology, a teacher and an artist. He is the Founder and Director of Boston Cyberarts Inc., a nonprofit arts organization, which produces the Boston Cyberarts Festival. This international biennial Festival of artists working in new technologies involves numerous exhibitions of visual arts; music, dance, and theatrical performances; film and video presentations and symposia at numerous arts and educational organizations throughout Massachusetts. In addition, Fifield is Curator of New Media at the DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park in Lincoln, MA. Fifield writes on a variety of media, technology and art topics for numerous publications.

Dr. Robert M. Krim,  Executive Director of Boston History & Innovation Collaborative is an historian, and a leader of a unique Greater Boston alliance dedicated to helping Boston leaders use its history to help sustain the innovation economy.   With a career that spans economics, higher education, management consulting and tourism, he has worked to build alliances in Boston between leaders and neighborhoods and worked on issues which cut across several sectors and communities-- tourism and history, academia & business, black and white, and government and business. As a “Senior Specialist” Fulbright Scholar, he visited New Zealand in ’05 for the NZ Historic Places Trust; a leading NZ newspaper dubbed him, “the American history guru” after the visit for his innovations. As a Harvard undergraduate, he covered the ‘60’s as a “stringer” for the Washington Post, focusing on the ’68 presidential campaign and on student and youth movements of the period.  Leaving Boston for graduate study in Economic History at London School of Economics and to get an MA in US History at University of California at Berkeley in 1972,  Krim eventually returned to Boston in ‘73, and taught History, Economics, and Management for a decade as part of the initial faculty at Roxbury Community College.   He became the first chair of the Business Department, hired a predominately minority faculty, and built a community economic development focus. 

Invited by Mayor-elect Ray Flynn to head up a transition team on city management, Krim left teaching in 1984, to focus on applying the latest in management techniques to improve Boston’s city services.  He did the Boston management work in conjunction with completing a Joint MBA/PhD at Boston College. His work with the City of Boston developed over time from an internal unit to an external partnership and a national model.  In 1989-90 Dr. Krim spun off what he had built with the City, and founded the Boston Management Consortium.  A public-private partnership, the Management Consortium, and its successor organization, facilitates organizational efficiency and innovation for Boston's government by matching the best of Boston’s organizational development consultants with the City’s most critical urban problems  - public safety, public schools, racial intolerance, jobs and economic development, and health care.   He worked with Boston's two most recent mayors (Flynn and Menino) and their staffs.    The United Nations flew him to Medellin, Colombia to consult with their municipal government on policing issues.   He is proudest of his small, but catalytic role, in helping Boston develop an effective model for community policing which helped to turn around the City’s rising homicide rate (’89) to a steep decline.  

Connie Williams is in Marketing at Synectics.  Connie is a 20-year marketing veteran who previously served in a number of senior marketing positions at Heublein/IDV (now a division of Diageo PLC), and a major New York-based global advertising agency.

She is a consumer-focused professional with extensive experience in business strategy, marketing segmentation, positioning and new products. Her interest in developing more creative approaches to integrated marketing communications, brand equity and new product development led her to Synectics. At the firm, she leads a team that helps clients unleash their creativity to solve challenging business issues, especially in the marketing and new products arena.

Connie grew up in Southern California and received her B.A. at UC Irvine in History and Anthropology and her MBA from UCLA in Marketing and Labor Relations. She is married to Tom Foote, a Special Education Administrator in the Bristol, CT school system. She has two children, Paul and Sarah,and lives in Hartford, CT in a restored Victorian 'castle'. Connie enjoys golf, jazz, and weekends at a lake cottage in the Berkshires.

Growing Regions

Moderator- Alison Berglund was appointed Director of the Office of Small Business & Entrepreneurship for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in July 2005. This office is responsible for the advocacy of policies and programs of small and mid size companies across the state.

Upon graduation from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst Alison embarked on a 19 year career with Procter & Gamble. Responsibilities included management positions in various sales, business development and marketing roles. Much of her P&G career was spent developing new business opportunities in the Beauty Care & Paper Products divisions and in particular with National Accounts.  In 1996, Alison joined Hannaford Bros. Co for the start up and creation of Hannaford HomeRuns, a home delivery grocery service. Alison was the Vice President of Marketing and Sales.  Hannaford later sold their majority interest of HomeRuns for $100 million.

Robert Halpin is the Director, Merrimack Valley Economic Development Council, a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to advance the economic interests of the entire Merrimack Valley.  The council seeks to improve the overall level of communication and coordination between public and private sectors and to promote increased collaboration and cooperation between communities of the Merrimack Valley.  He served as Town Manager in North Andover, MA from 1996 to 2000; Westford, MA from 1985 to 1996; and served as Executive Secretary for the Town of Pepperell, MA from 1978 to 1985. He has a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Suffolk University in Boston and Bachelor of Arts Degree in Community Planning and Management from the University of Massachusetts at Boston.

Wendy K. Northcross is CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce and former executive of the Hyannis Area Chamber of Commerce.  A founder of the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum, she continues to serve on its foundation board.  She serves on the boards of several Cape organizations including the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod, Cape Cod Community College, Cape Cod Cooperative Bank. Northcross received her Certified Chamber Executive (CCE) designation in 2004 from the American Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE).

Christine Sullivan is President of the Creative Economy Association of the North Shore (CEANS).  Ms Sullivan is Executive Director of the Enterprise Center at Salem State College. The Enterprise Center and Salem Partnership have worked for the past three years on the development of the creative economy on Boston’s North Shore.  CEANS was created in response to the strong need for a professional association expressed by over 60 creative economy companies in seven focus groups held in the fall of 2004.   Christine comes from a background that encompasses entrepreneurship, economic development, public policy and education. In 1986 she founded Hawthorne Associates, a marketing, advertising and public relations firm specializing in the training/learning industry.   Prior to starting her own business, Christine was Massachusetts Secretary of Consumer Affairs, responsible for consumer advocacy and the oversight of various regulatory agencies. She has also done extensive work in economic development and tourism, and was Chief of Staff in a Congressional office in Washington, DC. Christine also chaired the Communications Department at Endicott College in Beverly, MA and owned and published a tourist magazine in Salem, MA. At this time she is a member of the Salem Planning Board and the Salem Redevelopment Authority, the board of the Salem Chamber of Commerce, and is a Director of Beverly Cooperative Bank.  . She received a BA from Vassar College and a Masters Degree in Public Administration from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Town Meeting

Moderator- John R. Schneider, Vice President, The Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth (MassINC)

Lt Governor Kerry Healey, Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts Kerry Healey was elected Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts in 2002 and serves as a key policy advisor on Governor Romney’s leadership team. Lieutenant Governor Healey has taken on a broad range of assignments to advance the Romney Administration’s reform agenda.  She is the primary contact for municipal leaders regarding local finance and budget issues and co-chairs the Commonwealth's five Regional Competitiveness Councils, which are responsible for regional economic development initiatives. Healey currently chairs several special commissions for the Governor focused on criminal justice reform, sexual and domestic violence, homelessness and the maritime economy. She also presides over the Governor's Council, the body responsible for confirming the Governor's judicial appointments.

From 1987 to 1997, Healey enjoyed a distinguished career as a law and public safety consultant at Abt Associates, Inc., in Cambridge, MA.  While at Abt, she conducted extensive research for the U.S. Department of Justice related to child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, gang violence, victim and witness intimidation and the prosecution of drug crimes. Healey’s findings led her to author four books and numerous articles focused on improving standards and practices throughout the criminal justice system.
 
A Beverly resident, Healey has been an active member of her North Shore community. She is a past member of the Foundation Board of North Shore Community College and the Friend’s Board of Beverly Hospital. Healey successfully co-chaired the campaign to rebuild her city’s library, raising over $1 million in private funds and grants.  In 2001, she co-chaired Beverly’s United Way Campaign to support community development efforts.

Healey also served as a member of the adjunct faculty at Endicott College and the University of Massachusetts at Lowell teaching criminal justice and social policy.

Prior to her election, Healey was Chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party and is credited with successfully re-energizing and expanding the party’s grassroots base, laying the foundation for the party’s current record setting fundraising effort.

Healey graduated from Harvard College in 1982 and received a bachelor’s degree in government.  She was awarded a Rotary International Scholarship in 1983 and earned a Ph.D. in political science and law from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. In 1985, Healey was chosen to be a visiting researcher in the International and Comparative Legal Studies Program at Harvard Law School and continues to pursue her interest in international affairs as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Representative Daniel Bosley is Chair of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies. Representative Daniel E. Bosley, of North Adams, serves as the Chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies. The Committee considers all matters concerning commercial and industrial establishments.  In addition, the committee oversees the retention of existing knowledge-based industries and the creation of innovation systems to assist companies from research to development; computer and information technology.  In his capacity as chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, Representative Bosley has been on the forefront of several important legislative initiatives.  In particular, Representative Bosley was the principal author of the Commonwealth's groundbreaking stem cell research statute, which is quickly becoming a national model for similar legislation. Additionally, Representative Bosley was instrumental in crafting the House version of a $345,000,000 economic stimulus package, designed to encourage and support the growth and development of business and improve the state's economy.

First elected as State Representative in 1986, Representative Bosley is currently serving his tenth term.  Bosley graduated cum laude from North Adams State College in 1976, with a BA in History and Political Science.  In 1996, he received his MA in Public Policy from UMass Boston.   In 2001, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts awarded Bosley with an honorary Doctor of Laws.  He lives in North Adams with his wife, Laura, and his daughter, Stephanie.

Representative Eric Turkington, Chair, Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development  Representative Turkington has resided in Falmouth since 1948.  He graduated from Lawrence (Falmouth High School) in 1965 and continued his education at the University of Pennsylvania where he earned his BA in 1969 and Boston College Law School where he earned his JD in 1977.  He is married to Nancy P. Taylor and is an Attorney with the Glynn Law Offices in Falmouth.  Representative Turkington started his political career as Falmouth Selectman in 1979 to 1982.  He has served at House of Representatives since 1988, where he is Chair, Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development.

Tom Dusenberry, CEO/Founder Dusenberry Entertainment   Following a 20-year career with leading global game-makers Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers, Thomas Dusenberry founded the entertainment software publisher, Hasbro Interactive, Inc. Hasbro Interactive quickly became a top-10 PC and video games publisher. Under Mr. Dusenberrys leadership, the company successfully developed and marketed such global game brands as Atari (tm)and Monopoly (tm), and won the interactive rights for Formula 1 (tm), NASCAR (tm), a full line of game shows, and arcade classics Frogger (tm) and Pac-Man (tm), among others. Mr. Dusenberry has served on the boards of the Interactive Digital Software Association and Entertainment Software Ratings Board, and is a frequent guest speaker at interactive entertainment and toy industry events, such as the Consumer Electronics Show, Electronic Entertainment Expo, Game Developers Conference, Digital Kids, and American International Toy Fair.

Joseph Thompson, founding Director of MASS MoCA is the largest center for contemporary and performing arts in the United States.  Since opening in 1999, MASS MoCA has won a reputation as a national center of excellence for the production and presentation of new art in all media, and is widely celebrated as a catalyst for economic revitalization in western Massachusetts, bringing over 600 jobs and over $20 million per year in economic impact to its home town.A 1981 graduate of Williams College, Thompson received an MA in art history in 1986 from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was named an Annenberg Fellow.  In 1984 he was awarded a residency at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, as the James Webb Fellow for excellence in the management of cultural institutions.  He earned an MBA from the Wharton School of Business in 1987, where he was made a Morganthau Fellow for his work in public policy and management.