Management Team and Staff
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Lena Alhusseini
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Ms. Alhusseini joined the Arab-American Family Support Center as Executive Director in April 2006 after a number of years at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), where she served as International Outreach Project Manager on issues of child protection, abduction and child trafficking. Prior to joining NCMEC, Ms. Alhusseini worked for the Gateway Battered Women’s Shelter in Denver, Colorado where she developed the Shelter’s children’s program and worked with immigrant populations including Arab-American women and children on issues of domestic violence. Before coming to the United States, Ms. Alhusseini served with a number of international organizations around the world on issues pertaining to child protection and human trafficking, including USAID and UNICEF. Most notably, she established the Jordan River Foundation’s child protection unit under the direction of HM Queen Rania Al Abdullah. That organization was the first in Jordan to address the issue of child abuse. Ms. Alhusseini is a recipient of the Auburn Seminary Women of Commitment Award 2007 and a Brooklyn District Attorney Extraordinary Woman of 2008 Honoree. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Dodge YMCA, the Human Services Council of New York City and the Greater Brooklyn Health Coalition. Ms. Alhusseini is of Saudi and Palestinian descent. |
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Bret Denning
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Mr. Denning joined the Arab-American Family Support Center in October 2006. Prior to that, he was a Senior Grant Writer at a non-profit social service agency in Manhattan. With previous experience in marketing and the legal field, Mr. Denning brings a unique background to his position as Director of Development at AAFSC. He has a B.A. Degree in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a J.D from the Massachusetts School of Law in Andover. |
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Yasmeen Hamza
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In May 2005, Ms. Hamza joined the Arab-American Family Support Center as a Child Welfare Caseworker. Previously, Ms. Hamza was completing her Master’s Degree in Social Work at New York University and worked at the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services-Domestic Violence shelter as a social work intern. In addition, Ms. Hamza interned at the Youth Empowerment Mission-Blossom Program. Ms. Hamza became Program Manager of Social Services in August 2006. She holds a B.A. Degree in Child and Adolescent development from San Francisco State University. | |
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Maha Attieh
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Hizam Wahib Senior Legal Program Coordinator
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Mr. Wahib joined the Center in November 2001. He previously worked for AT&T for four years as an International Operator. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Mr. Wahib attended Kingsborough Community College and the John Jay College of Criminal Justice/CUNY. | |
J.C. Salyer Staff Attorney |
Mr. Salyer joined the Center in November 2006. He is currently an Anthropology Ph.D. candidate at the CUNY Graduate Center. Mr. Salyer worked extensively with Arab-American clients who were detained in the weeks and months following September 11 while he was a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey. He has a B.A. Degree in Anthropology from the University of Georgia and a J.D. from Georgia State University. | |
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Amena Iqbal Caseworker |
Ms. Iqbal joined AAFSC's Preventative Services Program in December of 2009. She is a recent graduate of Seton Hall University, receiving a B.A. in Social and Behavioral Sciences, with a concentration in Sociology. She is fluent in English and Urdu. | |
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Awali Samara Outreach Coordinator
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Ms. Samara has extensive experience working with the Arab-American community and previously worked in the Child Psychiatry Department at Columbia University/NYS Psychiatric Institute. Ms. Samara has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the College of Staten Island/CUNY. |
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Shumi Akhter Caseworker
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Ms. Akhter joined AAFSC’s Preventive Services Program in January of 2008. A recent graduate of New York City College with a degree in Human Services, she completed internships at United Cerebral Palsy, Catholic Charities and the Administration for Children’s Services. Ms. Akhter is fluent in English and Bengali. |
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Amber Eltaieb Caseworker  |
Ms. Eltaieb joined the Arab American Family Support Center in November, 2009. She has experience in case management, client advocacy and event management. Prior to joining AAFSC, Ms. Eltaieb worked as the Housing Advocate at a down town Manhattan homeless shelter servicing the elderly and mentally ill. She has a decade of overseas experience and spent several years studying and working in Dubai. Ms. Eltaieb graduated from the American University of Sharjah with a double major in Public Administration and International Relations and is currently pursuing a Masters of Social Work at New York University. She is fluent in both English and Arabic. |
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Peter Volkmar Caseworker |
Mr. Volkmar joined the Preventive Services Program in July of 2009. He is a recent graduate from University of Wisconsin-Madison with a double-major in Math and Religious Studies. Prior to joining the AAFSC staff, he volunteered at a reading intervention program in Madison, Wisconsin. Mr. Volkmar also worked in a Law Firm for 1 year. Mr. Volkmar can converse in Arabic, Turkish and Azeri. | |
Arwa Ibrahim Crisis Counselor |
Ms. Ibrahim joined AAFSC in January 2009 as an Americorps volunteer and held the position of case planner with the preventive program from June of 2009 until April of 2010. A 2008 graduate of Rutgers University with a joint degree in Middle Eastern Studies and Women's Studies, Ms. Ibrahim previously worked with a non-profit organization that provided medical relief to Iraqi refugees in Jordan. Ms. Ibrahim is passionate about women's and human rights issues, and has completed internships with the Center for Women's Global Leadership and the U.N. Mission to the OIC. |
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| Naziha Norri Senior Case Manager, Family Justice Center |
Naziha Norri is AAFSC/TAMKEEN’s Senior Case Manager at the Family Justice Center, Brooklyn. Born in Rabat, Morocco, she earned a BA in Law and Political Science from the University of Mohamed V and her MA in Political Sociology and Comparative Politics from the University of Paris. She was the program manager for the immigrant association, "Repères-Identités +," in Paris, and researched solutions and services to support African and Arab immigrant families. Prior to her time in France, Naziha worked with the Independent Women Organization in Rabat, lobbying for changing the family code in Morocco and increasing women’s rights. Naziha is tri-lingual in Arabic, French and English. | |
| Michelle Robinson Development Associate | Ms. Robinson joined AAFSC in 2010 as a Development/Fundraising Associate. She previously worked as a hospital administrator and as a manager for clinical information systems in health care institutions. Just prior to joining AAFSC, she worked in the area of regulatory compliance for New York City’s public hospital system. She is also a reading and writing tutor in one of Brooklyn’s largest adult literacy programs. Ms. Robinson holds a B.A. degree in Comparative Literature and an M.A. degree in Business/Health Services Administration from the University of Wisconsin – Madison; and she has a J.D. degree from Brooklyn Law School. | |
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Nidal Alloubane Arabic Instructor |
Ms. Alloubane became an employee of the Center after spending two years as an AmeriCorps volunteer. She also teaches Arabic to non-Arab students at P.S. 261 in Brooklyn. A graduate of Houra College in Jordan, Ms. Alloubane spent ten years working in the educational field in Jordan, including time as a school Principal. |
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Paul Anderton
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Mr. Anderton is the Youth Program Manager at AAFSC. A native of England, he has spent the last ten years working as a Teacher and Development Professional in countries around the world, including Taiwan, Mexico, Japan, Uganda, Nepal and Zambia. Mr. Anderton has a Masters Degree in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia in the U.K. Prior to joining AAFSC, he was volunteering with the Refugee Resettlement Program at the International Rescue Committee in Manhattan. |
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Gina Vellani |
Ms Vellani joined AAFSC in August, 2007. Ms Vellani had previously worked in Poland for five years as an ESL instructor as well as a Community Development Coordinator working with dysfunctional families in providing educational services. She has an MA in Education and Development from the University of East Anglia and has completed an internship working with a team of consultants for the United Nations in women’s development issues. |
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| Roberta Baum ESL Instructor  |
Roberta Baum joined AAFSC as an ESL instructor in November 2009. Before joining the AAFSC team, she worked for several international companies, and traveled abroad for business, which exposed her to different cultures and people. After taking some time off to start a family and be home with her daughters, Ms. Baum is excited to be launching a new career teaching English to new immigrants. | |
| Ruth Shelley ESL Instructor  |
Ruth Shelley began teaching ESL at AAFSC in 2007. After graduating from Antioch College, Ms. Shelley earned a Masters in Developmental Reading at NYU before going on to teach at Freeport High School for 24 years. Ms. Shelley is licensed to teach reading and elementary-school-age children. | |
| Mark Keitges ESL Instructor |
Mark Keitges joined AAFSC in 2009 as an ESL Teacher at our Bay Ridge location. He studied English and Film at Texas Christian University before earning a M.Ed. at Seattle University in Adult Education and Training. He has worked previously at Seattle Goodwill Industries and Renton Technical College. | |
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Renee Orser Americorps - Adult Education Program |
Ms. Orser joined AAFSC in September, 2009 as an Americorps volunteer with the Adult Education Program. She holds a BA from Tufts University in International Relations and Arabic. During her course of study, Ms. Orser attended an intensive Arabic program at the University of Jordan as well as completed internships at the International Rescue Committee and the University of the Middle East Project.
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Azdahar Ali Americorps - Health Enrollment Program |
Azdahar Ali joined AAFSC in August 2009 as an AmeriCorps volunteer with the Access to Healthcare Program. She previously worked with AAFSC as a member of our Health Advocates program through Long Island College Hospital and the Healthy Families Program. She has extensive experience working with the Arab American community, most recently as a volunteer at Methodist Hospital as an Assistant Nurse and an Arabic Translator. | |
Sara Elghobashy AmeriCorps - Preventative Services |
Ms. Elghobashy joined AAFSC’s Preventive Services Program as an Americorps member in January 2010. She is a graduate of New York University with a BA in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies and Religious Studies. Ms. Elghobashy is fluent in Arabic and English. |
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Jake Horowitz Americorps - Youth Program |
Jake Horowitz recently joined AAFSC as an AmeriCorps Volunteer with our Youth Program. He is a graduate of Stanford University, where he majored in Middle East history and political science. Mr. Horowitz developed a passion for the history, culture, and politics of the Arab world while studying in Egypt, and he has since spent significant time studying and living various countries in the Middle East, including Lebanon, Morocco, and Israel/Palestine. He plans to attend law school after his year with AAFSC. | |
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Cynthia Seay
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Ms. Seay joined AAFSC in June 2007. A graduate of Iona College, she previously worked for National Medical Fellowships, a non-profit organization that helps minority men and women obtain their M.D. or D.O. degrees. Ms. Seay is excited to be part of the AAFSC team and working closely with everyone at the Center. |
