NHI Regional Roundtable: New York State

Derek Gaskill is an innovative community development professional and LGBTQIA+ advocate based in New York City. He holds a Master’s degree in Urban Policy and Leadership from Hunter College and is currently employed as the Senior Development Project Manager at Ascendant Neighborhood Development. In this role, Derek oversees a range of projects related to affordable housing development, preservation, and neighborhood planning. Notably, he is the lead project manager on two groundbreaking affordable housing developments that are LGBTQIA+ affirming: ShareNYC, a 10-story shared housing development that will create 32 units of supportive housing for youth, and the Carmen Villegas Apartments, which will create affordable housing for older adults. Derek has lent his expertise to non-profits and government organizations, serving as a consultant to navigate the intricate intersections of housing policy and inclusivity. Derek’s dedication to this work is deeply rooted in addressing historical inequalities, particularly those exacerbated by redlining and systemic disinvestment.

Ross Karp is the Downstate Development Director for New York State Homes and Community Renewal. Prior to joining HCR he was Director of the Supportive Housing Loan Program at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. He received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago and holds a Masters in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Luis Nava Molero is the Salud es Vida National Program Director at the Latino Commission on AIDS, where he served as well at The Positive Life Workshop, and at The Latino Religious Leadership Program. He currently serves as the Chair of the Policy and External Relations Work Group at The DOH NYC HIV Planning Group, and co-chair at the NYC Joint Policy Committee at the NYC HIV Planning Council. Prior to his work with the Latino Commission on AIDS he served at the New York LGBTQ+ Center focusing on Immigration Support and Immigration Social Action activities. His work helped connect new immigrants with services and programs to help them establish successful lives in New York City. Luis also worked for Aid for AIDS International in NYC. Luis has extensive meaningful experience working with Spanish-speaking people living with HIV.

In his native Venezuela, Luis had a career as a professor of Political Science and International Economics at University Simon Bolivar in Caracas. He holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from Ball State University, where he was a Fulbright Scholar. As well, he was a Visiting Scholar at University of Connecticut, and he speaks Spanish, Russian, and English.

Judy Troilo joined The LOFT team as Executive Director in November 2014. During her tenure as Executive Director Judy has transformed The LOFT into the largest LGBTQ+ based community service provider for Westchester County by increasing the organization’s operating budget by 400%, tripling the size of staff, and providing over 100 free programs, services, and events, annually to thousands of LGBTQ+ community members in The Lower Hudson Valley and beyond.

Under her leadership, The LOFT successfully produces Westchester Pride, the official, annual Pride celebration of Westchester County that welcomes 7,000 visitors, and The Hudson Valley TransForum, the largest annual conference servicing the Transgender, Gender Nonconforming, and Non-Binary Communities in the Lower Hudson Valley.

Under Judy’s tenure, The LOFT has also been recognized at the local, state, and federal levels for its outstanding achievements in community building, public health, the arts, and in activism, having received numerous awards, grants, and commendations.

Most recently, and in partnership with Westchester County, Monadnock Development, and HANAC, Judy has spearheaded the building of The LOFT’s soon-to-be new campus which will also contain 140 units of affordable, senior, LGBTQ-affirming housing directly above the new center complete with an LGBTQ+ affirming medical clinic.

Judy’s other leadership roles include serving on Westchester County District Attorney’s (Mimi Rocah) Hate Crimes Task Force, the advisory committee for Equality New York, The Women’s Advisory Board of Westchester County, and a Board Member for Non-Profit Westchester.

Prior to Judy’s time with The LOFT, she has held other leadership positions in both the non-profit and corporate sectors, serving as Executive Director for more than 10 years for an Albany-based New York statewide not-for-profit organization, and as a Corporate Vice President of Creative for Island Records.

Judy is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts (BFA) in New York City. Aside from her role as an executive leader, she is also an artist, filmmaker, musician, and activist.

Ron Zacchi (all pronouns welcome) works at the Office of Governor Kathy Hochul as the statewide Director of LGBTQ+ Affairs during a time when Governor Hochul more than doubled funding for LGBTQ+ services statewide and signed into law the Lorena Borjas Transgender and Nonbinary Wellness and Equity Fund. Prior to this role, Ron served as the Director of External Relations for the Division of Human Rights. He entered state government through the Empire State Fellows program and served as Assistant Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA). While in state service, they have almost always been engaged with special projects for the LGBTQ+ community where they were an integral part of passing all major LGBTQ+ legislation over more than a decade. This landmark legislation includes passing the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), Gender Recognition Act (GRA), and legalizing gestational surrogacy banning conversion therapy; as well as, banning walking while trans, conversion therapy, and the gay/trans panic defense. Ron has a long career of public service which started with his leadership in the LGBTQ+ community during his decade long work on marriage equality, where they most notably served as the Executive Director of Marriage Equality New York (MENY) and led a successful statewide grassroots campaign for equal marriage rights in New York State. Ron earned his Bachelor of Arts from the Lawrence Herbert School of Communication at Hofstra University and an Executive MPA from the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College, where they were the recipient of the Hagedorn Scholarship.