Dean's Advisory Board

Mark Snyder is the Managing Partner of Snyder Wealth Group, bringing over five decades of experience in wealth management, retirement planning, and financial consulting. He holds prestigious industry designations including Retirement Management Analysis, Chartered Financial Consultant, and Registered Fiduciary. A proud Stony Brook graduate with a degree in Engineering Sciences, Mark is a past president of both the Stony Brook University Alumni Association and the Gloria & Mark Snyder Hillel Center at Stony Brook. He and his wife Gloria also helped establish the Gloria and Mark Snyder Cancer Symposium in partnership with Stony Brook Medicine. Mark is additionally involved with the JTM Foundation at Mather Hospital, Theatre Three in Port Jefferson, the Port Jefferson Rotary Club, and the Financial Planning Association of Long Island.

Tushar Amin is a C-level executive with deep expertise in strategy, technology, operations, and finance. He is currently the President & Chief Operating Officer of Kaiju Capital Management, an AI-native investment firm focused on predictive analytics and portfolio intelligence. Previously, he was CEO and Board Director of Hazeltree Fund Services, a leading fintech SaaS company specializing in liquidity management for hedge funds and private equity firms. Before that, he spent 18 years at IBM as COO and Chief Strategy Officer for IBM’s $27B Global Technology Services business. Earlier in his career, he spent 6 years as a management consultant at PwC advising public sector and aerospace clients.

Arlene Butterklee recently celebrated her 28th anniversary as a Radiation Therapist at Northwell Health, where she treats cancer patients. Previously, she worked as a logistics engineer at Grumman, where she presented a technical paper at the Society of Women Engineers National Convention. She received a B.S. with a double major in Biology and Psychology from Stony Brook University (1982), an M.S. in Policy Analysis and Public Management from Harriman College at Stony Brook (1984), and an A.S. in Radiation Therapy from Nassau Community College (1995), where she was valedictorian. Ms. Butterklee is also well known as a dog trainer, handler, and breeder of Chinese Cresteds and Lowchens, with over 350 champions to her name, and she rescues pit bulls and breeds service dogs for deaf and handicapped individuals.

Neil H. Butterklee, J.D., is an attorney in private practice focusing on energy and business law, with expertise in wholesale electric markets, renewable energy, and electric transmission development. He recently retired as Associate General Counsel at Con Edison, where his accomplishments included helping establish New York’s energy markets and the creation of NY Transco. At Stony Brook, he serves as an adjunct professor, President of the Stony Brook Alumni Association, and a member of the College of Business Dean’s Advisory Board. He received his J.D. Cum Laude from New York Law School, an M.B.A. in Finance from Adelphi University, an M.S. from Harriman College at Stony Brook, and a B.A. in Political Science from Stony Brook University.

Carlos Cabana is the Founder and CEO of Quantex, an AI technology company based at Stony Brook’s CEWIT incubator that builds governed AI systems to help financial institutions automate workflows and modernize legacy infrastructure. He brings more than three decades of global capital markets experience, most recently as Managing Director and Head of Equity Sales & Trading at CastleOak Securities, with earlier roles at Morgan Stanley, Bear Stearns, Knight Capital Group, Cantor Fitzgerald, Topeka Capital Markets, and a decade at Bloomberg LP. He holds a B.A. in Economics and Spanish from Bucknell University, an M.B.A. in Finance from Hofstra University, and an M.S. in Business and Computer Information Systems from Hofstra University.

David Calone is the CEO of Jove Equity Partners, LLC, a venture capital firm that helps start and build technology companies across the United States. He is the co-founder and Board Chair of a technology-enabled health care company recognized four times by Inc. Magazine as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the country, and is a co-inventor on 19 U.S. patents. He is the founder of the Long Island Emerging Technologies Fund and the founding National Board Chair for Patriot Boot Camp, supporting veteran entrepreneurs. He previously served as Chair of the Suffolk County Planning Commission (2008–2015). Mr. Calone is a graduate of Harvard Law School and holds an economics degree from Princeton University, where he was a USA Today College Academic All-American and twice elected student body president.

Carlton J. Charles is Senior Vice President of Treasury and Risk Management at Hearst, a $13 billion private and diversified media company based in New York City, where he leads enterprise-wide treasury strategy, financial risk oversight, and capital markets activity. He also chairs Level Up Ventures, Hearst’s venture capital unit supporting diverse founders, and leads the company’s Supplier Diversity Council. He serves on the boards of Hearst and M&T Bank, and is a board member of Urban Arts, a nonprofit empowering under-resourced youth through game design and digital storytelling. Charles holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, a Master’s in Public Policy, and a Bachelor’s in Quantitative Economics from Stony Brook University.

Larry Danielson is a senior partner and practice leader at Deloitte, with 40+ years of experience developing and executing business, technology, talent, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) strategies for some of the world’s largest organizations, with deep expertise in financial services and technology. He is a recognized technology transformation expert and skilled advisor to C-suite executives and corporate boards on digital strategy, finance operations, regulatory compliance, talent development, and risk oversight. Mr. Danielson graduated from Stony Brook University with a B.E. in Electrical and Biomedical Engineering and holds an M.S. in Computer Science from Stevens Institute of Technology. He is also an avid investor in real estate development and technology start-ups.

Michelle Flaim has been with Travelers Insurance for over 20 years in underwriting and claims roles, and currently serves as Excess Casualty Assistant Vice President, overseeing underwriting, profitability, growth, and retention. She also taught Risk Management and Insurance at Stony Brook University from 2022–2024. She holds a B.A. from Fordham University and an M.S. in Organizational Leadership from Quinnipiac University, as well as CPCU and AIC insurance designations. Ms. Flaim served on the Long Island CPCU board from 2010–2021 and as Long Island and New Jersey CPCU Governor from 2017–2019. She is currently a board member of the Long Island Insurance Foundation, which supports an Insurance and Risk Management program at Stony Brook University.

Rob Gitto is Vice President of The Gitto Group, a Long Island-based real estate development and management firm he joined after graduating from Skidmore College in 2001. Alongside his father, Tony Gitto, he has helped develop more than one million square feet of retail, multifamily, and office space across Long Island, overseeing everything from land acquisition and planning through construction and long-term management. He holds a Master of Science in Real Estate Development from the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate and serves as Co-Chair of Stony Brook University’s Real Estate Institute, Vice President of the Long Island Real Estate Group, President of the Port Jefferson Village Business Improvement District, a board member of the Long Island Builders Institute, and President of The 1957 Club.

Kelley Heck serves as Executive Vice President of TRITEC Development Group, where she leads acquisitions, entitlements, financing, leasing, business development, and stakeholder engagement, with a focus on sustainability and smart growth. She previously worked at Bloomberg L.P. as an Account Manager serving equity buy-side clients across the New York metropolitan area. She holds a Master of International Business from The Fletcher School at Tufts University and a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Middlebury College. Ms. Heck serves as Co-Chair of the Real Estate Institute at Stony Brook University and is a board member of the Long Island Builders Institute, the New York League of Conservation Voters’ Long Island Chapter, Long Island Home Builders Care, and Newsday’s Next LI Advisory Board.

Jason Lipiec serves as executive vice president and Long Island regional president of M&T Bank, a Buffalo-based regional commercial bank with more than $200 billion in assets. In his role, Lipiec oversees and continues to expand a $3 billion commercial banking portfolio, with a focus on hospitality, middle market, nonprofit, commercial real estate and healthcare clients. Beyond his business responsibilities, Lipiec devotes significant time to advancing economic development, cultural belonging, food security efforts and support for social service organizations across Long Island. His leadership also includes mentoring and encouraging employees to achieve the bank’s goal of 40 hours of volunteer service per employee. As regional president, addressing community needs has remained central to Lipiec’s work. He has long been active with numerous charitable organizations and currently volunteers with Habitat for Humanity, helping hard-working families pursue homeownership on Long Island. Since 2014, Lipiec has served as treasurer of the Deer Park Soccer Club and previously spent 15 years coaching multiple girls’ teams. Before assuming his current position, Lipiec was a senior group manager overseeing M&T Bank’s middle market business in New York City. Prior to joining M&T, he spent six years at Long Island Savings Bank, working in residential mortgage loss mitigation and commercial mortgage portfolio management. He began his banking career at Manufacturers Hanover Trust in credit card collections. Lipiec earned his undergraduate degree from the New York Institute of Technology and later completed a Master of Business Administration in finance at Hofstra University. He lives in Deer Park with his wife and their three daughters.

Douglas Monticciolo is the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Investment Officer, and Co-Founder of Brevet Capital Management, an investment firm he founded in 2006 specializing in credit financing for private contractors serving the government sector. He began his career at Goldman Sachs, later held senior roles at Lehman Brothers and Deutsche Bank, and left his pursuit of a Ph.D. at Columbia University—where he worked with Fischer Black, creator of the Black–Scholes model—to enter finance. Mr. Monticciolo received an M.E.S. in Applied Mathematics from Columbia University, an M.S. in Applied Mathematics from Stony Brook University, and a B.S. in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science also from Stony Brook. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Hope for New York and is a member of the Chief Executives Organization (CEO).

Gloria Snyder, a 1972 graduate of Stony Brook University, is an accomplished entrepreneur, philanthropist, and community leader who serves as Vice President of Snyder Wealth Group. Before joining the firm, she founded and successfully led Specialties Galore, Ltd., a fundraising company that supported more than 250 schools and nonprofit organizations over nearly three decades. A former educator, she also holds a degree from American University. Gloria is deeply involved in community service and has held leadership roles with organizations including Jefferson’s Ferry, Stony Brook Cancer Care, the Staller Center for the Arts, and Temple Isaiah. A former President of the Stony Brook Alumni Association, Gloria was the driving force behind the creation of the Alumni Association Dean’s Choice Awards.