Steering Board

Cynthia Alcozer has been advocating for over 30 years for people with I/DD, Traumatic Brain Injury, Mental Health, Physical Disabilities and Complex Medical Challenges. Cynthia is focused on and dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for people by improving and impacting policy changes related to post – high school transitions, employment, housing, self-direction, and future planning opportunities for these communities. Cynthia is the founder of ACMENY, a Self-Direction Brokerage agency managing budgets for self-directed people in their communities. ACMENY service model is based on self determination to transition and divert people from institutional care.utilizing Cynthia’s skills and training as Certified Housing Navigator, Decision-Making NY Facilitator and Trained Bereavement Professional. Cynthia actively participates in the NY State Independent Living Council (NYSILC) and Advanced Care Alliance (ACA)  Family Advisory Council  and Center for Family Support-SDS Advisory  Committee since 2020.

Cynthia is a strong believer that people with disabilities are equally able to integrate and contribute within their communities. Cynthia amplifies this concept by her own activism and contributions to these communities. Cynthia is inspired by her own disabilities and her son who has an intellectual disability and chose to self-direct services since 2017.  Cynthia understands the power of collaboration with self-advocates, parent partners, champions in this field, and governmental officials to impact policy and improve programs outcomes for the future.

Cynthia looks forward to using her professional and personal experiences to support SOYAN’s  strategic planning as a Steering Board member and as a co-facilitator at  Family Education, Advocacy and Support meetings.  

Leslie Feinberg together with her husband of 37 years are life-long Long Islanders. The parents to 3 adult children, their youngest son, now 32 years old, has been self-directing OPWDD services and supports since 2011. To ensure that their adult son’s health, safety and access to supports and services were in place, Leslie ended her 20+ year career as a private sector paralegal and immersed herself in the developmental disability community.

New to the world of adult services, Leslie knew no one and nothing! It took years to connect with OPWDD and start the process. In 2016 Leslie launched Supporting Our Youth & Adults Network (SOYAN) partially to serve her own need for community and seeing the void for parents traveling similar path. SOYAN began as a social and resource network for families on the Self-Direction journey.  With an all-volunteer leadership with lived experience, SOYAN is now a not-for-profit committed to education, advocacy, empowerment and support of families and self-advocates living a self-determined life using the supports of OPWDD. It takes a village! Leslie looks forward to continuing the community outreach and connection and advocating with policymakers to ensure that all people with developmental disabilities have full access to their communities: to live, to work, to learn and to enjoy friendships!

Leslie’s advocacy education includes: Housing Navigation Training through the NY Alliance for Inclusion & Innovation (2023), Partners in Policymaking (2018), Family Peer Advocate through the NYS Families Together (2017) and Parent Leadership Training through Nassau County Child Care Council (2017). Leslie’s community contributions are recognized by Self-Advocates of NYS (SANYS) as Self-Advocate Advisor of the Year (2017), by Assemblywoman Missy Miller’s (District#20) introduction to the House of the People (2019), as Literacy Nassau’s Next Chapter Book Club co-facilitator of the year (2017), and Senator John E. Brooks’ (District#8) nomination as a Woman of Distinction (2020).

Lisa Fleisher is a founding steering board member of SOYAN and a parent of a 43-year-old son with intense support needs. Lisa is also a retired Professor of Special Education, with almost 50 years of experience supporting children with disabilities and their families through her teaching, research, grant activities and advocacy. After Lisa’s son experienced an unsuccessful and challenging foray through traditional residential services, she discovered and pursued the pilot program called CSS, the precursor to Self Direction with Full Budget Authority. In 2004, her son became one of the earliest participants, with Lisa as broker, and for the past 17 years, utilizing Self-Direction with Full Budget Authority, he has received  24/6 individually designed, intense supports, enabling him to live successfully in his own apartment, in the community and at work.

Lisa is a NYS certified Self-Direction broker.  From its inception, Lisa worked with state leadership at OPWDD, SANYS and the DDPC and on state-wide and local committees to develop and promote accessibility and sustainability of Self-Direction with Full Budget Authority… and she is determined to continue in that advocacy role.

Larry Greenstein is the parent of a self-directing adult with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Larry and his wife of 38 years, Star Anthony, are the proud parents of 2 adult children. Their son Kevin (now 30 years old) has been self-directing since 2012. Larry is a staunch advocate for people with disabilities and is a Partners In Policymaking Graduate (2004) and has served for 16 years on his local school board and is currently a member of the Nassau BOCES Board of Education and is a Vice President of the Nassau-Suffolk Schools Boards Association, although any opinions expressed by him, are his alone and should not be ascribed to any organization.

Larry is a proud founding member of the Steering Board of Directors of SOYAN and also serves as Treasurer.

Susanne Marcus brings over 30 years experience in the field of education to share. Her experience and passion lie in supporting students who have been “othered” in educational settings where their voices are unheard. Marcus has taught English as a Second(ESL)/New Language (ENL) for over 30 years. Her research interest is in the overrepresentation of ESL students in programs for students with Special Needs.

A two-term past president of NYS TESOL, Marcus retired as an English as a New Language (ENL) teacher for the Great Neck Public Schools, where she continues to offer K-12 Professional Development and teach in the ENL Summer Program.
As a facilitator for New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), Susanne writes and conducts seminars for NYSUT’s Education Learning Trust (ELT). She has facilitated storytelling workshops using strategies from The Moth Storytelling Workshop and Herstory Writers Network Workshops. In an effort to work towards equity, inclusion and justice, Marcus works to bring unheard voices to the community-at-large because this is the first step to raising awareness of our ranges of abilities. She is a literacy coach for Fordham University’s Center for Educational Partnerships and an educational consultant for Herstory Writers Network. Susanne holds degrees from CUNY Queens College and Fordham University.

Allison Starkman is the Legal Guardian for her sister Lauren, since their mom passed away 9 years ago. Allison wanted her sister to have the ability to choose her supports and services. Allison’s sister Lauren has been Self Directing her Services since 2017.

Allison walked away from a 20-year successful career as a Financial Director in the Automotive Industry to learn the OPWDD system and to be able to support her sister to the best of her ability. What she thought would be a 1-year process to learn and help her turned into many years. During this time, she was asked by many in the community for assistance given that she had learned the system well.

Allison became a Self-Direction Broker and developed an Enhanced Brokering concept with the hope of helping many people, specifically people with I/DD with aging caregivers and others who need additional assistance to sustain and be successful in utilizing Self Direction. This concept can be a significant piece to sustainability: What happens when a caregiver ages, is not able to keep up with the burdensome paperwork or is no longer here. She hopes this concept can be an option for anyone that would need additional support.

Allison is also a Housing Navigator through the NY Alliance.

Allison serves on the Family Advisory Board of Advanced Care Alliance, (ACA) one of the Care Coordination Agencies servicing people with Disabilities.  Allison advocated for a task force within ACA to be developed to address the issues that arise when a caregiver can no longer support their loved one. ACA has adopted the task force and it is in the beginning planning stages.

Allison volunteers and support many families through the Town of Oyster Bay, including the GAP program for Children and Adults with a Disability. Allison has assisted hundreds of families trying to navigate the OPWDD system.

Allison is very proud to serve on the Steering Board of SOYAN and work with an amazing group of volunteer professionals who understand what families struggle with as many are caregivers themselves who want to make this journey just a little easier for all. Allison and her co-facilitator team of volunteer professionals provide monthly meetings and workshops focusing on all aspects of Self Direction through SOYAN’s Family Education Advocacy & Support Group.  SOYAN connects with hundreds of families. I am honored to be a part of the SOYAN team.

Allison meets with Senators, local legislators and public officials to advocate for all with a disability and to educate them on the current challenges, being transparent, focusing on brainstorming and working together on ways to improve the system and quality of life for people with a disability.

Allison deeply believes and is often heard saying “You can only control the effort not the outcome in life.”

Allison does her very best each day to listen, educate families, advocate and support those that need it the most. Allison believes in helping one another whenever possible and paying it forward.