Founder, William B. Wachtel
Wachtel & Masyr, LLP
Board Member since 1999
Mr. Wachtel, son of the founder of the Drum Major Foundation, Harry Wachtel, is the founding partner of Wachtel & Masyr, a law firm comprised of approximately 30 attorneys specializing in domestic and international business transactions and litigations. He is a graduate of the University of Vermont (B.A. 1975, magna cum laude) and Columbia University (J.D., 1979); Phi Beta Kappa; Harlan Fiske Scholar. Mr. Wachtel was the legislative assistant to United States Senator P.J. Leahy from 1974-75. He is a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and the American Bar Association. Mr. Wachtel is also founder of the Why Tuesday? Campaign. Why Tuesday? is a bipartisan effort to increase voter participation in our electoral process by moving our federal Election Day from the first Tuesday in November to the first Saturday and Sunday of the month.
Letter from the Founder

Honorary Chair, Andrew Young
Ambassador Young has held a wide range of leadership positions. He was a top aide to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the civil rights movement before being elected to three terms as Representative for the Fifth Congressional District of Georgia. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed him as the United States’ Ambassador to the United Nations. Mr. Young then served two terms as Mayor of the City of Atlanta and was a Co-Chairman of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games. He is Chairman of the Southern Africa Enterprise development Fund, Co-Chairman of GoodWorks International, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Drum Major Institute. The U.S. Secretary of State recently appointed him as a member of the National Security Council Study Group.

Martin Luther King, III
Realizing the Dream
Board Member since 1999
The elder son of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Martin Luther King, III has taken the torch lit by his father and continued the quest for equality and justice for all people. Since early adulthood, he has motivated audiences around the world with his poignant messages of hope and responsibility. His vision of a positive future built upon the principles taught by his father has touched thousands from Mozambique to Mississippi. A human rights advocate, community activist and political leader, Mr. King has been actively involved in significant policy initiatives to maintain the fair and equitable treatment of citizens at home and abroad.

Treasurer, Morris Pearl
BlackRock
Board Member Since 2006
Mr. Pearl is a managing director with BlackRock, one of the largest investment management firms in the world. He works on the infrastructure for managing risk in mortgage investments for both portfolios managed by BlackRock, and for portfolios managed by other managers for whom BlackRock supplies risk management services. Previously Mr. Pearl was the head of the Fixed Income Quantitative Research group at UBS, and its predecessor firms Kidder Peabody and PaineWebber, where he was elected managing director in 1997. His primary focus was on securitizing mortgages, and building the infrastructure which allowed his group to be the number one underwriter of collateralized mortgage obligations. Mr. Pearl began his Wall Street career in the financial strategies group at Prudential Bache Capital Funding in 1986. Mr. Pearl received his Bachelor of Science in Economics degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and his Bachelor of Applied Science degree from the School of Engineering and Applied Science of the University of Pennsylvania, both in 1982.

Interim Secretary, PJ Kim
PJ Kim is a first generation immigrant and naturalized US Citizen. He was a former Democratic candidate for New York City Council to represent District 1, Lower Manhattan. Although he was ultimately unsuccessful, he waged a spirited campaign that earned the endorsement of the New York Times, The Daily News, the New York Press, and thousands of voters and supporters. He was named to City Hall News' "Rising Stars 2009, 40 Under 40" and was also a fellow of the Council of Urban Professionals.

He was previously Vice President for Programs and part of the start-up team at Single Stop USA (SSUSA). SSUSA is an innovative national campaign to provide "one-stop shopping" for low income families to receive benefits screening and enrollment, free tax preparation, financial counseling, and legal services. SSUSA manages a network of anti-poverty sites in New York City and has also launched similar sites in San Francisco, Newark, and New Mexico. PJ was previously the Director of Income Policy at FoodChange, where he led the country's largest free tax preparation campaign to serve 43,000 low-income New Yorkers with $80 million in tax refunds and the Earned Income Tax Credit. Under his leadership, the FoodChange team opened hundreds of new bank accounts and enrolled thousands in subsidized health insurance.

His previous professional experience includes working as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company's New York City office.

He received both his MBA and Master's of Public Administration at Harvard Business School and the Kennedy School of Government. His graduate studies were supported by the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans. PJ graduated from Princeton University in 2001 with a degree from the Woodrow Wilson School for Public and International Affairs. He is a former Princeton Trustee and board member of the Korean American League for Civic Action.

Stuart Appelbaum
Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU)
Board Member since 2008
Stuart Appelbaum became President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union on May 1, 1998. He is also an International Vice President and member of the Executive Board of the 1.4 million-member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. He serves as chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store International Union and Industry Benefit Funds. He is an officer of two global union federations: IUF (International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations) and UNI (Union Network International). He is a Vice President of the Consortium for Worker Education. Prior to the disaffiliation of the UFCW from the AFL-CIO, Appelbaum served as a Vice President of the national AFL-CIO and a member of the federation's Executive Council from 1998 until 2005. He also currently serves as a vice president of the New York State AFL-CIO and the New York City Central Labor Council. Appelbaum previously served as Chief House Counsel of the Democratic National Committee. He also previously worked for the Michigan State AFL-CIO, and as Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the State of Connecticut. Appelbaum is a summa cum laude graduate of Brandeis University, where he was named a Louis Dembitz Brandeis Scholar and was elected a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He graduated with honors from Harvard Law School. He is a member of the bar of the State of Connecticut. Appelbaum resides in New York City.

Sandra Cuneo
Cuneo Advocates
Board Member since 2002
Ms. Cuneo is an attorney who is a native New Yorker with strong ties to Washington, D.C., and has lived and worked in both cities for most of her professional career. From September 2004 to the present, Ms. Cuneo has served as the Executive Director for Police Assessment Resource Center. She was previously the director of claimant services at Trial Lawyers Care, a nonprofit organization that referred 9-11 victims and families to pro bono attorneys who helped them file claims with the federal Victims Compensation. From 1995 until 1998, Ms. Cuneo was the Executive Director of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial in Washington, D.C. For the two years prior, she served as the Washington Counsel to the Governor of New York State. Ms. Cuneo graduated cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 1983.

Jennifer Cunningham
Knickerbocker SKD
Board Member since 2005
Jennifer Cunningham currently serves as a Senior Advisor to 1199 SEIU and a Political Consultant with Knickerboxer SKD, a leading strategic and political communications firm. Jennifer has decades of experience in issue advocacy, grass-roots mobilization and political campaigns at the local, state and national level. Before advising the 1199 SEIU, which represents 250,000 healthcare workers throughout New York State, she served as its Executive Vice President. In her capacity as EVP, Jennifer directed the Union's extensive political and communication program with a statewide staff of over 50 professionals, a 100 station telecommunications center and a member-drive political action fund with annual revenues of over $4 million. Prior to her election at 1199 SEIU, she served as the Executive Director of the SEIU New York State Council. Jennifer came to SEIU after serving in the New York State Assembly for several years as Deputy Council to Speaker Sheldon Silver. A graduate of Wesleyan University and NYU Law School, Jennifer worked for several years as a lawyer with the firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.

Rosanna M. Durruthy
Aequus Group
Board Member since 2003
Rosanna is the founder and President of Aequus Group, a human capital development consultancy focused on developing and realizing the talents of individuals in work and life. Prior to Aequus Group, Rosanna developed her skills and experiences through two decades in corporate and line human resources management. She has held executive positions in human resources at Vivendi Universal, Blockbuster, and Merrill Lynch. Her leadership responsibilities have included strategy, design and implementation in global diversity, leadership development, staffing and technology with these high performing, global industry leaders. In 2002, Rosanna was recognized by both Hispanic and Hispanic Business magazines on their annual lists of leading Hispanic Women.

Matthew Goldstein
City University of New York
Board Member since 1999
Dr. Matthew Goldstein has served as Chancellor of the City University of New York since September 1999. He is the first CUNY graduate to lead the nation's most prominent urban public university (City College, Class of 1963). Dr. Goldstein has served in senior academic and administrative positions for more than twenty years, including as President of Baruch College; President of the Research Foundation; and as Acting Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs of CUNY. Prior to being named Chancellor, he was President of Adelphi University.

Robert F. Kennedy
Waterkeeper Alliance
Board Member since 2002
Robert F. Kennedy's reputation as a resolute defender of the environment stems from a litany of successful legal actions: prosecuting governments and companies for polluting the Hudson River and Long Island Sound; winning settlements for the Hudson Riverkeeper; arguing cases to expand citizen access to the shoreline, and suing sewage treatment plants to force compliance with the Clean Water Act. Mr. Kennedy serves as Senior Attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, Chief Prosecuting Attorney for the Hudson Riverkeeper and President of the Waterkeeper Alliance. He is also a Clinical Professor and Supervising Attorney at the Pace Environmental Litigation Clinic at Pace University School of Law in New York. Earlier in his career he served as Assistant District Attorney in New York City.

Tom Watson
Changing Our World, Inc.
Board Member since 2003
New York Internet pioneer Tom Watson is co-founder of Changing Our World Inc., a national philanthropic services company, its Chief Information Officer, and publisher of its media arm, onPhilanthropy.com. Under Tom's leadership, Changing Our World has become a national leader in the use of online fundraising and media technology on behalf of its non-profit clients, and maintains the largest email network for philanthropy professionals. Before joining Changing Our World, Tom was co-founder and co-editor of atNewYork.com, the pioneering Internet news and information service that has chronicled the rise of New York's Silicon Alley since 1995. Tom also co-founded SiliconAlleyJobs.Com, the leading online resource for new media jobs in the greater metropolitan area. He has been a columnist for The New York Times and a contributing writer to The Industry Standard. His work has also appeared in Wired, the Los Angeles Times, and many other publications. Tom is also a co-author of the recent book, Fundraising on the Internet. Tom is a Guest Contributor on the DMIBlog, and has his own Typepad blog.
tomwatson.typepad.com

Randi Weingarten
United Federation of Teachers
Board Member Since 2006
Randi Weingarten is president of the United Federation of Teachers, representing more than 140,000 active and retired educators in the New York City public school system since 1998. She is also a vice-president of the 1.2-million-member American Federation of Teachers and a board member of New York State United Teachers. Weingarten, a vice-president of the New York City Central Labor Council of the AFL-CIO, also heads the city Municipal Labor Committee, an umbrella organization for some 100 city employee unions. As a teacher of history at Clara Barton High School in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, from 1991 to 1997, Weingarten helped her students win several state and national awards. Weingarten holds degrees from Cornell University and the Cardozo School of Law. She worked as a lawyer for the New York firm of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan from 1983 to 1986.

Andrew Young III
Young Solutions
Board Member since 1999
Mr. Young is president of Young Solutions, a company that manufactures envelopes for Fortune 500 companies and national non- profit organizations. With an extentive client list, Young Solutions has become the company of choice for meeting the envelope and printing needs of corporations across the country. In addition to serving on the board of DMI, Mr. Young is also very active in Hank Carter's Wheelchair Charities and the Southwest Atlanta YMCA.