Workshop Facilitator

Juli Harpell-Elam from Jersey Battered Women's Services is JBWS’s Project Prevention Coordinator and has been involved in the domestic violence movement since 2004.As a counselor, she worked with many children and teens who had experienced significant violence at home and in their relationships. This motivated her to focus her work on preventing domestic abuse.

Juli has worked with the Girl Scouts of Northern NJ to educate girls and leaders, advise on Gold , Silver and Bronze Awards and to develop the “REACH for Healthy Relationships” Interest Patch Project on dating abuse and domestic violence prevention. She also works with youth leaders in high school and middle school to create their own projects to promote healthy relationships and prevent dating abuse. She was one of the staff contributors for JBWS’s Know More to Say “No More”: A High School Curriculum on Dating Abuse Prevention. In 2009, she received NJ Child Assault Prevention’s Beverly Crawford Award for her prevention work.

Ms. Harpell-Elam has a Master of Arts in Education in Counseling Psychology from Seton Hall University. She is a Licensed Profession Counselor in NJ and a big supporter of Team Bella.

Workshop Facilitator

Workshop: What's the Reel Story?

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Dr. Liz Henry or “Dr. Liz” is a board certified pediatrician who has been practicing pediatrics for the past 13 years and is a partner in a practice in North Brunswick, NJ. She grew up in Rutherford, NJ and achieved the honor of becoming a First Class Girl Scout before she graduated from high school as the valedictorian of her class. She attended Princeton University where she majored in English. She went on to study medicine at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and completed her pediatric residency at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. She subsequently worked at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for one year before moving back to NJ and joining her present practice. She is married and has a 12 year old daughter who is a Cadette.

She has been an active member of her community. She has served as a Service Unit Manager for the past 3 years for Service Unit 67, Franklin Township. She has received community service awards from the NAACP and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority as well as commendations from the Franklin Township town council. She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Government Relations Committee as well as numerous other professional associations, including the American Medical Association and the Medical Society of New Jersey. She conducts workshops for tweens and teens on health and well being and is passionate about having youth recognize their greatness. She is an international public speaker and is presently working on a website for tweens, teens, and parents that is designed to empower them in all areas of well being and specifically addresses issues like self esteem, bullying, and peer pressure.

Workshop Facilitator

Workshop: What are they trying to sell us? / Do you buy that?

Sian Millard has been community outreach coordinator with Bergen County, Division of Alternatives to Domestic Violence (ADV) for almost 10 years, first serving in the Legal Unit as a Victim Assistance Counselor, and currently as the Community Education & Outreach Unit Coordinator. Sian provides professional training to various groups throughout Bergen County, including law enforcement, healthcare professionals, social service agencies, as well as community groups and organizations. The Outreach unit also provides workshops to all Bergen County High Schools on Teen Dating Abuse and Domestic Violence.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Diane Allen is known by many titles: corporate President, working mother, pilot, sharpshooter, daredevil hang-glider, award-winning TV News Journalist, Quaker Sunday School teacher, and now, member of the New Jersey State Legislature.

Born in New Jersey, she has lived in Burlington County for close to 50 years. Diane graduated from Moorestown High School as valedictorian. She then received a Bachelor's Degree in Philosophy from Bucknell University. While there, she founded a swimming team, which she then led to the AAU Nationals. She also competed on the college rifle team. Following graduation in 1970, she began her broadcasting career doing public service programming on WJJZ Radio in Mount Holly, NJ, soon becoming a reporter and then news director.

Next, Diane joined New Jersey Network as a reporter, where her 'beat' was the State House. She eventually became the station's news anchor. During this time, she and her husband competed internationally on kites (hang-gliders), with Diane winning dozens of trophies and titles, including 1973 National Champion.

In 1976, she joined KYW-TV, in Philadelphia, to host a weekly women's program. Soon she was promoted to noon anchor and later given her own daily talk show. Following a three year stint working for ABC in Chicago, she returned to KYW in 1982. After seven years serving the station as primary anchor, producer and reporter of major stories and documentaries, she moved across town to the CBS-owned station, WCAU-TV, where she was executive producer, evening anchor and education reporter.

In 1994, after standing up to CBS for discriminatory practices, and having the government find in her favor, Diane left the station to work full time in her own media production company.

Today, she is President of VidComm, Inc. in Burlington, NJ, where she and her staff produce broadcast documentaries as well as DVDs, CDs and digital videos for a variety of clients, including fundraising videos for not-for-profit groups. She also provides media training and produces live events for many clients. During her 30+ years in the media, Diane has won eight Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award and dozens of other national and international awards.

In November of 1995, Diane was elected to represent the 7th Legislative District in the New Jersey General Assembly. She took office in January of 1996, and in June of that year, Diane was appointed chairperson of the Assembly Advisory Council on Women.

Diane was elected in the New Jersey State Senate in November of 1997 and, in January of 1998, began a four year term. During that period she had more bills signed into law than any other legislator. In 2003 Diane served in the Senate leadership as Republican Conference Leader. She is currently Deputy Minority Leader, and serves as a member of the Senate Health, Human Services & Senior Citizens and the Senate Education committees. In 2008, Diane was appointed to the Joint Committee on the Public Schools.

She has served on New Jersey's Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission since 1998, was appointed to the New Jersey Council of Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs in 2004 and was appointed as one of two state representatives on the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2006.

Diane lives with her husband Sam in Edgewater Park. Their daughter, Sara, has followed in her mother's footsteps as a broadcast journalist; their son, Leeds, is an electrical engineer.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Dr. Afriye Amerson is a Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey 2008 Women of Achievement Honoree.

Dr. Amerson knows that timing is everything- and then some. She is an OB/GYN in private practice Amerson Women Health Care * 130 Kinderkamack Road, Suite 300 * River Edge, New Jersey 07661. She juggles an onslaught of speaking engagements, patients, lab research, hospital demands, and a spin class—all while keeping her eye on the clock.

She needn’t be worried though. Blessed with a lyrical West African name at birth, Afriye (pronounced Af-free-YAY) means “child born at the right time”. And you might add, child at the right place too. At the tender age of six months, she became a media sensation when civil rights legend Rosa Parks cradled her for a photo op. The picture, still mounted on a piece of driftwood in her father’s living room, is a symbol of this doctor’s desire to make a difference in the world- just like Miss Parks so many years ago.

"Being a doctor and working in the media means I can be a bridge for people. I see so many women in my office from a 14-year old Irish girl going through puberty to a 97-year old great-great-grandmother from the Dominican Republic.” Diversity illuminates every part of this bilingual doctor’s life. “Language is the color of life” says Dr. Amerson, “It allows me to connect with every person who walks through my door.” Speaking with a voice that exudes a potent combination of warmth, confidence, and humility, she shares, “I have extraordinarily close relations with my patients, and they teach me so much about being a woman and a wife, a mother and an infinite source of love.”

That extraordinary closeness extends to audiences and viewers as well when they catch Afriye in action. A sought-after speaker, she is currently a spokesperson for pharmaceutical giant Ortho-McNeil and mulling over a future path in television. She chose obstetrics and gynecology as a specialty because “an OB/GYN sees more happy patients than any other doctor,” and she wanted to be around the joy. With her beeper going off seven times in ten minutes, Dr. Amerson’s clearly in her element as she gently laughs, “I’ve got three babies on hold. I might have to run out of here!”

She’ll be right on time as always but Dr. Amerson is also ahead of her time, starting high school at age 12, entering medical school at 20 and finishing her residency at 29. Pretty heady stuff for any young woman and this physician’s following a sure-fire prescription for success. While an undergraduate at Duke, she picked up a life-long motto while pledging a sorority. “I learned ‘that excuses are tools for the useless. They are monuments of nothingness, and those who specialize in excuses seldom excel at anything else.“

Dr. Amerson makes no excuses about her drive for excellence. She’s known since she was five years old that she wanted to be a doctor and a healer. Her parents, Bernida and Rolando, were college sweethearts who valued achievement. Her mother is an educator who founded two schools, her father an electrical engineer. “There was no room for failure in my life, but I’m not driven by collecting accolades.” Smiling warmly she adds, “I am definitely a work in progress. I can’t wait to see what’s coming next!”

Vibrant and vivacious, there’s no doubt this good doctor with good timing will succeed.

Dr. Afriye Amerson is a member of the American Medical Association and the Medical Society of New Jersey. She is currently the assistant attending at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Hackensack University Medical Center, and the founder of La Doctora's Angels, an awareness campaign on umbilical cord blood banking. Since 2001 she has also been in private practice at Prospect Women’s Medical Center in Hackensack, New Jersey.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Linda Greenstein has been serving in the General Assembly since January 2000. She was educated at Vassar, Johns Hopkins University, and the Georgetown University Law Center and is a specialist in disability law. Prior to her current position, she was a Senior Staff Attorney at the Community Health Law Project and has served as a Deputy Attorney General in Trenton and as an Assistant District Attorney in Philadelphia.

As a fulltime Legislator, Greenstein was appointed Deputy Speaker of the General Assembly in 2006, following a four-year period serving as Assistant Majority Leader. She also Chairs the Assembly Judiciary Committee and is a member of the Assembly Health and Senior Services Committee. The author of New Jersey’s tough anti-telemarketing law, she sponsored legislation expanding Megan’s Law, and calling for a State Constitutional Convention for property tax reform.

Greenstein has served as an elected member of the Plainsboro Township Committee and as vice president of the Mercer County School Boards Association. She is currently a board member of the Central New Jersey Council, Boy Scouts of America.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Alison M. Trachtman Hill is the founder and managing partner of Critical Issues for Girls (www.ci4g.com).

A results-oriented management professional, Ms. Hill has more than 12 years of experience working in project management, program design and implementation, curriculum development, research and evaluation, fund development, and workshops and training.

Prior to founding CI4G, Alison managed the national anti-violence initiative at the headquarters of the Girl Scouts of the USA. Funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, this initiative contributed to girls’ healthy development in the areas of bullying prevention and intervention, crime prevention, gang prevention, and Internet safety, with an emphasis on cyberbullying and cyberthreats. She also contributed to the organization’s college-preparedness program and co-authored numerous print and digital resources for girls.

Ms. Hill graduated from Tufts University with a BA (magna cum laude) in Spanish and Women’s Studies. She holds a Master of Public Administration degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, with a concentration in Non-Profit Business Management. Honored for her academic achievement with a Chancellor’s Fellowship to pursue a PhD in Sociology at The Graduate Center, City University of New York (CUNY), Ms. Hill focuses her research on girls’ and women’s issues. Her current work incorporates the ways in which culture and gender socialization impact girls’ identities and relationships in online communities.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Marlene Bauer Pissott is president and founder of InGroup Inc., Wyckoff, NJ. Established in 1995, InGroup provides marketing-communications and public relations services from concept to final implementation, including management and maintenance of the finished product for nonprofit, government, and enterprise clients. The company also provides ad hoc creative services. InGroup has experience with client’s both big and small – including Hackensack University Medical Center, NJ TRANSIT, Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, Navigator Wealth Management, and Cohen & Burnett, among others. InGroup boasts a Web specialty division called WebSwagger.com, delivering high-value – low cost Web solutions for business.

Prior to launching InGroup, Marlene enjoyed a successful career in marketing and medical publishing. Her accomplishments include a national branding/PR campaign for a manufacturer of executive leather goods. In the publishing field, she expanded the client base of the publisher’s newsletter division by 600% in a little more than a year by launching six new, disease management specific publications over the course of seven months. The successes of these publications were driven by innovative, niche marketing and direct mail.

Marlene lends her time and expertise to serving on the board for Bergen County Community College’s Women’s Institute. She is an active member of Women in Communications and has also served on board positions for other professional groups including New Jersey Network of Business and Professional Women and the Felician College Alumni Association. She has been a featured speaker for organizations such as various chapters of the Alternative Board for small business owners, Women in Communications, and Fairleigh Dickinson University 2008 Executive Lecture Series.

Marlene has received the distinguished Alumni Award from Felician College and was recently honored as a “Woman of Achievement” by the Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey.

Marlene holds a B.A. in Social and Behavioral Sciences from Felician College, NJ. She currently lives in Northern New Jersey with her husband and two children.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Wendy J. Galloway currently serves on the senior staff of the Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno as the Director of Programs for the New Jersey Department of State. Her office manages many of the community based programs that include the NJ Commission of American Indian Affairs, the Office of Faith Based Initiatives, the Martin Luther King Commission and the Office of Volunteerism/AmeriCorp to name a few.

She comes to the State Department after a 27 year career as a Commanding Officer in the New Jersey State Police. She held many different positions as an enlisted member with the Division that included General Road Duty, Academy Instructor, Recruiting Supervisor, Public Information Officer and Troop Commander. Her last assignment was working directly with the Superintendent as the Community Affairs Officer. As State Police Spokesperson, she was the first woman to hold that post. She is also the first African American woman to attain the rank of Major and the humble recipient of numerous commendations and service awards.

Wendy Galloway graduated from Monmouth University, West Long Branch, NJ with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education and a Masters Degree in Administration. She has served as an adjunct instructor at both Seton Hall and Monmouth University. She is a graduate of Leadership NJ and a founding member and Board of Trustee officer for New Jersey Women in Law Enforcement. Interesting enough, Wendy’s first career after college was as a Teacher/Specialist with the Neptune Township Public Schools.

Wendy Galloway is also very active in the community serving on various boards such as Second Vice President of the Girls Scouts of the Jersey Shore, the State Police Memorial Association, the NJSP Former Troopers Association and the NY and NJ Asian American Advisory Committee. Wendy is also a member of the NJ State Human Relations Council and the Ocean County Human Relations Commission. On a local level, she serves the community where she resides as a member of the Business and Public Safety Committee and the Township Planning Board.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Denise Restauri is the Founder and CEO of AK Tweens and AllyKatzz.com.

AK Tweens is the leading consulting, research and marketing company that captures the thoughts and opinions of tweenage girls and is built around one of the country’s largest COPPA compliant tween girl social networking sites, AllyKatzz.com. 100,000 tweenage girl members come to AllyKatzz.com to share uncensored information about what's going on in their worlds: opinions, ideas, dreams, people, places, products and trends. Denise translates their thoughts and opinions from “tweenage chatter” into valuable feedback for parents, educators, organizations and companies seeking a more meaningful and beneficial relationship with the tween girl. Denise is the country’s foremost expert on tweenage girls and is a frequent commentator on national television, newspapers, magazines and radio programs including CBS Early Show, BBC America, The Today Show, ABC, NPR, E!Online, USA TODAY, People Magazine, among many other outlets.

Denise has more than 25 years of marketing and sales experience, including nine years as VP of Sales for USA TODAY, where she was the creative and business force behind the evolution of USA TODAY into the “travelers” newspaper and the #1 newspaper in the nation. In addition, she worked closely with the White House to produce education programs that put USA TODAY in the nation’s classrooms.

Panelist — Panel Discussion with Women Trailblazers

Barbara McMorrow, Director of the Board of Chosen Freeholders, is only the second woman to be elected to this office in the history of Monmouth County. She is currently liaison to Public Works, Safety, & Facilities having previously served as liaison to the Finance and Human Services departments.

Mrs. McMorrow always wanted to be a teacher. She began her career in education at Freehold High School, until she was promoted to a supervisory position at Howell High School, eventually becoming the first female principal.

While a teacher, she was elected to the Freehold Borough Council, serving as Council President and Police Commissioner. Barbara participates on the annual “Running and Winning” panel that encourages high school aged women to become involved in public service.

Freeholder McMorrow was the 2008-2009 visiting Chair of Public Service at Monmouth University, her Alma Mater, and the first woman to hold that honor. The women in her seminars were heartened to learn that it is possible to have a professional career and a personal life, and still be involved in public service!

She was named one of “40 Who Make a Difference in Ocean and Monmouth Counties” by Gannett News, is the 2008 recipient of the NAACP of Greater Long Branch President’s Community Service Award, and was a Greater Monmouth Chamber of Commerce Athena Award nominee. She is a member of the Legal Aid Society of Monmouth County, AAUW, and the League of Women Voters. She also served as Co-chair of the Governor’s Teen Driving Study Commission, and as a member of the Attorney District IX Ethics Committee and the Monmouth County Traumatic Loss Coalition.

A young woman, who is currently vice president of a large company, wrote the following to her former teacher: “I am who I am today because you saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself and you believed in me when no one else did.” You only have to be with Barbara McMorrow for a brief time to hear that echoed many times and in many voices. Through the years, she became a role model for so many young ladies by working toward goals without being concerned that being a woman would be a problem.

Barbara credits much of her work ethic and leadership ability to her years in Scouting. From Brownie to Girl Scout, she found that Scouting offered her many opportunities to learn and to achieve in an environment of encouragement.

She resides in Freehold Township with her husband, J. Patrick, an attorney.

Skype Q&A