BIC Board of Directors

Board Members

Kate Barton grew up in a small town in Tennessee, graduated from Vanderbilt University, and began her career as an English teacher in the Centerville Ohio Public Schools in 1971. She came to the Berkshires in 1974 and began teaching English at Pittsfield High School. After 31 years in the Pittsfield system, she retired to focus on her tutoring business, coaching students for standardized testing (SSAT, SAT, ACT, MTEl, GRE) and assisting with prep school or college applications, as well as tutoring middle and high school students in study skills and a variety of subjects. Kate has served on a number of boards, including the Women’s Services Center, Berkshire Mental Health (now the Brien Center), the Berkshire Music School, and her church Vestry. Her particular interest is in fundraising. She is honored to serve on the Board of the Berkshire Immigrant Center. She feels that the treatment of immigrants is the defining issue for what we are as individuals and as a country. Kate lives in Hinsdale with her husband, Sam Craig, and their Black Lab.

Bob Bogomolny grew up in a suburb outside of Cleveland, Ohio, and attended college and law school at Harvard. Following graduation he practiced law in Cleveland and then moved to Washington and joined the Justice Department. He worked for a short time as a lawyer in the Bureau of Drug Abuse Control of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (now HHS.) When Bob left the government, he moved to the Vera Institute of Justice in New York where he worked on criminal justice reform. In 1970, he became a law professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and in 1977 became Dean of the College of Law at Cleveland State University in Cleveland for 10 years. Subsequently, he served as General Counsel of G.D.Searle, a multinational pharmaceutical company, for 13 years. In 2002 he became President of the University of Baltimore, a public university, and served in that capacity for 12 years. Upon retiring he moved to Lenox, MA with his wife, Janice Toran.

Dariana Castro is the Director of School Development at the Internationals Network for Public Schools. A National nonprofit that both supports and designs school programs that serve immigrants and refugee multilingual learners. Dariana is responsible for the school support of Internationals Network’s California Bay Area schools and for national network expansion initiatives, supporting the opening and development of new schools and academies. Prior to joining the Internationals Network team, Dariana Castro served as the Director of School Design at the NYC Department of Education. As an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, Dariana is committed to working in service of the immigrant and refugee community in the US.

Auric Enchill (Vice President) is a graduate of Tufts University where he majored in US History and minored in Entrepreneurial Studies. He currently works as a sales manager at Elegant Stitches, his family-owned business in Pittsfield. In recent years he secured a Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corporation grant to update the company website, increasing sales by 30%, and an SBA8a certification to become a government contractor as a minority-owned business. While at Tufts, Auric played men’s Varsity Lacrosse, earning several championships. In spring of 2019 he served as a judge for the Berkshire Nonprofit Awards and later served on the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires’ Board of Directors. Auric and his three brothers are children of Ghanaian immigrants who have resided in the Berkshires for over 25 years.

Gloria Escobar (Secretary) is the Financial Wellness Latinx Outreach Coach at Greylock Federal Credit Union. She was born in Colombia, arrived in the US 20 years ago, and obtained US citizenship in 2011. She is very active in the Spanish=speaking community and advocates for the inclusion and education of immigrant community members. Thanks to Gloria’s bilingual skills and her passion to work with the community she has had the opportunity to conduct financial wellness classes in Spanish as well as English as well as providing on-on-one financial coaching. She has been involved in the annual Latino Festival, assisted in the 100 Backpack Challenge, volunteered at the Gather-In Durant Park, Festival of Hope and Gladys Allen Brigham Center’s Thanksgiving Celebration, and serves on the Board of Directors at the Community Health Program.

Josh Hochberg (President) is a Berkshire native who grew up in Richmond and now lives in Lanesborough with his wife and two young sons. He is a Lawyer and Partner at Martin, Hochberg & Cianflone, PLLP in Pittsfield. The firm handles a wide variety of civil and criminal cases and Josh focuses on criminal defense, landlord/tenant matters, and civil litigation. Through his work in the criminal legal system he has become familiar with the collateral consequences a criminal charge can have on immigration and is inspired by the work BIC does to share that knowledge here. Josh studied abroad with the School for International Training in the Balkans (Croatia, Bosnia, and Serbia) as part of his undergraduate studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder and obtained his law degree from Hofstra University, School of Law. Josh also serves on the Berkshire Bar Advocate Board of Trustees and has recently volunteered with the Lanesborough Elementary School LIFE Committee as well as the Temple Anshe Amunim Management Team and Board of Trustees.

Ahmed Ismail is a native of Egypt. Ahmed grew up in Giza, where he attended Cairo University, faculty of Law and earned his LL.B. Ahmed migrated to the US shortly after the Arab Spring had erupted. Upon coming to the US, Ahmed attended and graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Law and currently has his own practice in Pittsfield, MA. Ahmed was a client of BIC early on and benefited tremendously from the Center in his journey to obtain his green card. He is very grateful to be able to help and be part of the Berkshire Immigrant Center and being able to help all his good friends and extended family. He lives in Pittsfield with his wife, Michela Tagliapietra, and their two children.

Roberta McCulloch-Dews is the Vice President of Marketing at Greylock Federal Credit Union. Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Roberta immigrated to the United States when she was two years old. Growing up in the Bronx, Roberta observed – and took to heart – her family’s strong work ethic, commitment to education, and service. A communications professional with more than 20 years of experience, Roberta began her career as a newspaper journalist, and later transitioned to marketing communications and public relations. Roberta serves as a Trustee on the board for the Norman Rockwell Museum and is also on the board for the Girl Scouts of Central and Western Massachusetts, and the Samuel Harrison Society. She is also a youth mentor with the Rites of Passage Empowerment Program (R.O.P.E.). Roberta graduated from New York University with a bachelor’s degree in print journalism and earned a master's degree in social and public policy from SUNY Empire. Roberta and her husband, Warren Dews, Jr., have three children, Warren III, West, and Kennedy.

Marianna Poutasse was born and raised in the Berkshires, and returned - after stints in New York and Philadelphia - in 2000 to raise her own family here. Since 2013, she has been an associate interior designer with Alberti Design Studio, a Providence, Rhode Island-based residential design firm, managing ADS’s satellite office in the Berkshires. Her early career was spent as an independent consultant specializing in design and social history, material culture studies and antiques. She is also the author of Power of Place: Herman Melville and the Berkshires (2013). Prior to her board position at BIC, she served on the boards at the Berkshire Music School, Berkshire Country Day School and Chesterwood Museum & Gardens.

Susan Puddester grew up in Vermont, graduated from the University of Vermont with a degree in Social Work. She worked as a Geriatric Social Worker, in Nursing homes, Adult Day Care and Home Health. She returned to New England in 2011, after spending 32 years in Maryland with her husband Fred, raising their two children. Immediately after arriving in Williamstown she became involved with Higher Ground, an organization established to assist 325 residents of the Spruces Mobile Home Park move through the process of re-establishing themselves after the disaster. In addition to Higher Ground, Susan has been involved in several local boards and Town committees, including Williamstown Community Chest, Louison House, the Fund for Williamtown, Williamstown Council on Aging, Williamtown Planning Board and as a member of the Williamstown Comprehensive Plan Committee. She is currently working with two immigrant families from Afghanistan, who have immigrated to the area. The highlight of this relationship for her, has been to have been present at the birth of three babies. Susan is thrilled to be joining the BIC Board, as the care and treatment of immigrants is a priority for her and her husband.

Dave Russell (Treasurer) was born and raised in the midwestern United States. Dave served in the US Air Force, including attendance at the AF Academy. He graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering. Dave’s career included nearly 30 years with Procter & Gamble as a Project Manager and Program Manager, three years managing a sizeable portion of the project portfolio at Yale University as a Director, and multiple years consulting in the field of project management. Dave served as the President and Chair of the Board for the Southwest Ohio Chapter of the Project Management Institute (PMI) and was active with PMI until his retirement. He currently serves on the Finance Committee for his church and is the Chair of the Facilities Committee for Barrington Stage Company. Dave and his wife, Debra Miersma, reside in Dalton. They enjoy travel, predominantly to foreign countries, and have developed a genuine understanding of the differences in culture and lifestyle that exist within the world. Being of help in processes to accommodate the huge demands for support and guidance in our immigration systems has created the commitment Dave has to serve on the BIC Board. He has two children and five grandchildren, all residing in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Erin Seagrave is originally from Northeast Arkansas, where she spent her childhood meeting people from all over the world through the International Student Center on the Arkansas State University (ASU) campus, contributing to an appreciation and curiosity for other countries and cultures. She attended ASU after high school, too, earning her B.A. and M.A. in Sociology, an Ed.S. in Community College Administration, and an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership. More recently, she earned several certifications to teach English as a Foreign Language. Erin has worked for twenty years in higher education institutions with a focus on student success and creating a culture of inclusion and belonging within the academic community. In addition to joining the Berkshire Immigrant Center Board, she has also recently joined the Board of Berkshire HorseWorks. Erin currently lives in Pittsfield with her husband, Alan, and works at Berkshire Community College.

Dr. Stan Shapshay was born in Brooklyn, NY where he attended the public schools and graduated from Brooklyn College. His parents were immigrants from Russia. He received his medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia and did his Internship and Residency training in Surgery and Otolaryngology at the Boston University and Tufts University Medical Centers. He spent a year as a Surgical Fellow with his family in Stockholm, Sweden where he experienced the difficulty of being a foreigner speaking another language and adjusting to another culture. After 2 years in the Army Medical Corps in Tacoma, Washington, Stan returned to Boston where he practiced academic medicine for 30 years (Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery) and served as the Professor and Chairman of the Tufts-New England Medical Center Department of Otolaryngology. He was in addition a Professor of Otolaryngology at the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and has been a Professor of Otolaryngology at Albany Medical College for the past 14 years where he continues to practice medicine on a part-time basis and teaches medical students and residents-in-training. He has lived in the Berkshires for 14 years in the town of Richmond with his wife, Ruth.

Carole Siegel, Ed.D. was a school adjustment counselor in the Pittsfield Public Schools for 30 years. Previous to that she was a history teacher and guidance counselor at Mount Greylock Regional High School in Williamstown. In 1990 she was honored by the Berkshire Eagle as one of ten people who made a difference in Berkshire County. Carole received her doctorate from the University of Massachusetts in 1995. For over 30 years, Carole taught at the graduate level on improving the social-emotional climate of schools. She presented workshops and keynote speeches on this topic throughout Massachusetts and in Chicago, Philadelphia, Austin, Texas, as well as at the Harvard School of Education. She currently serves on the boards of Berkshire Health Systems, 18 Degrees (formerly Berkshire Children and Families), Knesset Israel Synagogue, and is an Emeritus trustee of the Berkshire Theatre Group. Previously, she served on the boards of Berkshire United Way, Berkshire OLLI, Hospice Care of the Berkshires, the Jewish Federation of the Berkshires, Elder Services of Berkshire County and as Chair of the Boston Symphony volunteers at Tanglewood. In 2018 she received the lifetime achievement award from the Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires.

Joseph Zlatnik was born in Kiev, Ukraine, and immigrated to the United States in 1989. He was raised in Queens, New York. Joseph’s childhood experiences with immigration have left an indelible mark on his life, and he sought to join the Board of Directors of BIC to be of service to other immigrants. Joseph received his Bachelor’s Degree, summa cum laude. in Legal Studies from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and his Juris Doctorate from Boston University School of Law. He moved to Berkshire County in 2011 to join his family who had moved to the area, and to work at the Berkshire District Attorney’s Office. Subsequently, Joseph worked as an associate attorney at Hochberg Law Offices in Pittsfield. Joseph currently operates his own private law practice in Pittsfield, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Berkshire Bar Advocates, an agency responsible for providing public criminal defense services to indigent defendants in Berkshire County Courts. Joseph is thrilled to join the Board so he can assist in furthering its goals of aiding the immigrant constituents of Berkshire County.

For more information, please contact us at board@berkshireic.org.