Staff

Leadership | Design and Product | Enterprise Data Solutions | Finance & Administration | Poverty Research | Programs & Evaluation | Strategy & Operations | Technology

Leadership

Carson C. Hicks, Ph.D. | Deputy Executive Director

Carson C. Hicks is the Deputy Executive Director of NYC Opportunity. In this role she oversees the day-to-day work of NYC Opportunity and its staff. She also serves as an in-house consultant on evaluation design and methodology. Dr. Hicks has held various senior leadership positions since joining NYC Opportunity in 2007. From 2011-2014 she was the Director of Programs and Evaluation. Prior to joining NYC Opportunity, Carson was a Teaching Fellow at Columbia University and Managing Editor of the Journal of Sociological Methodology. She completed her undergraduate degree at New York University and received her Ph.D. in Sociology from Columbia University.

David S. Berman | Director, Programs and Evaluation

David S. Berman is the Director of Programs and Evaluation for NYC Opportunity. In this role, Mr. Berman helps to launch new NYC Opportunity initiatives, and oversees the NYC Opportunity team that works with City agencies on program development, implementation, performance monitoring and evaluation for all of NYC Opportunity's initiatives. David's past work at NYC Opportunity has included helping to create new performance management strategies, and overseeing innovative workforce development initiatives, as well as programs serving and disconnected youth and NYC Opportunity's public health programs. Previously, David worked with the AIDS Service Center of NYC (now the Alliance for Positive Change). He holds master's degrees from Columbia University in both Public Administration and Public Health, and graduated from Oberlin College.

Adam Cohen | Special Policy Advisor

Adam Cohen is Special Policy Advisor for NYC Opportunity. In this role, he works in a variety of areas, ranging from offering advice on policy issues and legal matters to helping to plan communications strategy. He has played a significant role in helping to draft a mayoral executive order on equity and in developing a privacy policy for the City's public housing broadband service. Prior to joining NYC Opportunity, Mr. Cohen was the chief speechwriter for the Mayor. Before coming to the City, he served as a senior policy advisor to Governor Andrew Cuomo. He is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School.

Christine D'Onofrio, Ph.D. | Director, Poverty Research

Christine D'Onofrio oversees NYC Opportunity's innovative methodology for measuring poverty in the City, along with NYC Opportunity's work in tracking other indicators of economic well-being. Dr. D'Onofrio's work includes overseeing the use of the NYC Opportunity's poverty measure as a tool in developing new policies in the areas of opportunity and inequality while recognizing the structural roots of poverty. She is a labor economist who has previously worked as a research and budget analyst and developed models to estimate the effects of taxation and tax credits on the poverty rate.

Elizabeth Kadernauth | Director, Administration and Finance

Elizabeth Kadernauth is the Director of Administration and Finance at NYC Opportunity. In her role, she works as a liaison with city and non-city entities to support and implement citywide policy expansion, and is responsible for overseeing and maintaining the budget, financing and operations of NYC Opportunity's digital product portfolio. Prior to NYC Opportunity, Ms. Kadernauth worked as a Medical Economics Analyst at the NYS Catholic Health Plan with a focus on transitioning long-term care services under a managed care system, and at the Mayor's Office of Management as a Budget Analyst for NYC's $6B Medicaid budget. She holds a Masters in Public Health with a concentration in Health Policy and Management from Boston University, and a B.A in Economics and Biological Sciences.

Darnell Sessoms | Product Director

Darnell Sessoms leads the Product Team and oversees the strategy, ongoing delivery, and success of our digital products and services. The team’s portfolio connects millions of New Yorkers to benefits and services each year and supports City and community partners to better serve their constituents. Starting as a Product Manager on the team, he’s launched several products in our portfolio and led projects to help case workers digitize their workflow and improve the experience of LGBTQ youth and youth who experience homelessness. Darnell is a native New Yorker, with extensive lived experience navigating the social safety net. He has a BA in Anthropology from Skidmore College and MA in Communication and Technology Management from NYU.

Sara Shoener | Director, EquityNYC

Sara Shoener oversees EquityNYC, which supports City agencies in building their capacity to increase racial and social equity in New York City. This work includes the EquityNYC report, which is a digital hub for City data and strategies, and the Community of Equity Practice, which is a space for equity champions in City government to share best practices, develop resources, and promote healing in their work. Previously, Sara contributed to the development of NYC interagency initiatives such as the Unity Project, the Commission on Gender Equity, and programs to reduce the collateral consequences of incarceration on family members. Sara received her Doctorate in Public Health from Columbia University, where she studied gender-based violence survivors’ experiences with local government systems.