Chairperson, Buffalo United Charter School

Buffalo United Charter School, Chair and Founding Member. Some of Diane's affiliations include but are not limited to the following:
Good School for All/Buffalo Reads
Task Force Member Leadership Buffalo, Graduate of the Class of 2000
2006 - University at Buffalo, Graduate School of Education - Dean's Service Award
2007 - Boys & Girls Clubs of America - Regional Executive of the Year Award

Diane manages a highly productive work force of over 100 employees at B+G Club Buffalo. She strives to create programs geared to developing our youth especially relative to gang violence and academic improvement, including a Prevention Strategy program.

Vice Chairperson, Sankofa Charter School

Founding Partner of P22 Type Foundry, Carima El-Behairy is one of the founding members of the Western New York Charter School Coalition. Currently serving as the Vice Chairperson of the WNYCSC, Ms. El-Behairy is a proud supporter of Western New York's independent public schools. Ms. El-Behairy is a founder of both Oracle Charter School and Keystone Charter School, and serves on the Board of Trustees for Sankofa Charter School.

As the mother of two children in Buffalo Public School system, she feels it is her responsibility to ensure the notion that quality education is a right and not a privilege. Ms. El-Behairy also serves as the Treasurer of the Board of Trustees for Planned Parenthood of Western New York, the Vice President of the Olmsted Parent Teacher Organization and, the Executive Committee Chair of the Western New York Book Arts Collaborative.

Treasurer, Charter School for Applied Technologies

The president of Quackenbush Co. Inc., Dave Quackenbush serves as the Treasurer of the WNYCSC and is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Charter School for Applied Technologies. Mr. Quackenbush's other board memberships have included Buffalo General Hospital, Buffalo State College Performing Arts, Boston Valley Terra Cotta, Elmwood Franklin School, the Nichols School, Shea's Performing Arts Center, Unitarian Universalist Church of Buffalo, United Way Annual campaigns, and the Visiting Nurses Association, among others. He is a graduate of the University of Vermont and served in the New York State Army National Guard.

Secretary, Enterprise Charter School and Niagara Charter School

A Certified Public Accountant, James Muffoletto has been in public practice in Buffalo for over 40 years. He has served as president of the Starpoint Central School Board of Trustees. Currently, he serves as the president of the Niagara Charter School Board of Trustees, the treasurer of Enterprise Charter School Board of Trustees, and the vice-chair of Sankofa Board of Trustees. Mr. Muffoletto is also a member Chameleon Community Schools Project.

Oracle Charter School

Westminster Charter School

John A. Carmichael is Vice President of M&T Bank and the Chief Executive Officer of the Westminster Community Charter School. For the past 14 years, Mr. Carmichael has managed a partnership in which M&T Bank has contributed over $11 million to Westminster (formerly Buffalo Public School #68). During this time, the school's test scores have risen from the bottom of the district to among the top of the district. Mr. Carmichael holds a BA in French Literature and an MBA from Cornell University.

Sankofa Charter School

Jeremy Colby is a partner in the law firm of Webster Szanyi LLP where he focuses on federal and commercial litigation and representation of school districts. Mr. Colby has been a member of the Sankofa Charter School Board of Trustees since 2006.

Elmwood Village Charter School

As the parent of an Elmwood Village Charter School (EVCS) student, Liz Evans is a founding member of the Elmwood Village Charter School and currently serves as the Vice-President of the Board of Trustees of EVCS. She works as a librarian at the Medaille College Library.

Community Charter School

Western New York Maritime Charter School

Melissa Hogues is a member of the Maritime Charter School Board of Trustees were she serves as the Academic Standards Chair. She has experience as a charter school teacher and reading administrator. Melissa is also the proud parent of an Elmwood Village Charter School second grader. She strongly believes that the vital change needed in our school community has begun with charter schools and every parent's right to choose the best education for their child.

Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School

Mr. Kumek has extensive expertise and experience in secondary and post-secondary math, science education, as well as in medicine. After completing graduate studies in medical physics at the University at Buffalo and residency at Roswell Park Institute in the Department of Radiation Oncology, he joined the University of Pittsburg Medical Center (UPMC) in Pittsburg, PA. Prior to his tenure at UPMC, Mr. Kumek participated in the establishment of the Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School (BASCS) in 2005, and has been serving as the Chair of It’s Board of Trustees since then. He is currently working as a consultant in medical physics and doing research at UB in the Learning and Instruction Department of Graduate School of Education.

King Center Charter School

The proud mother of a King Center Charter School alumna, Michelle A. Martin has been an advocate of the Charter School Movement since 2002 and began four-year tenure on the board of King Center as Parent Representative in 2003. Ms. Martin loves the unique advantages charter schools provide the community: exceptional educational opportunities, student and administrative accountability, and extensive parental involvement. Ms. Martin is a graduate of St. Lawrence University where she obtained her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Government and African Studies.

Tapestry Charter School

Steven H. Polowitz, Esq. is a founder of Tapestry Charter School Coalition and the Western New York Charter School Coalition. Mr. Polowitz, a partner in the law firm of Gradl Polowitz & Schwach, LLP and has been a private law practitioner in the City of Buffalo since 1980. In addition to managing the real estate practice division of his law firm, Mr. Polowitz does extensive work in the Not for Profit and Community Development areas of law, representing investors, lenders, builders and  developers in real estate related transactions, and not for profit corporations including community development corporations and charter schools. 

South Buffalo Charter School

A member of the South Buffalo Charter School Board of Trustees, Anne Marie Tryjankowski is a professor in the Education Department (Graduate Education and Leadership) at Canisius College. She is a former Buffalo Public School teacher and administrator, who believes that charter schools offer additional school choice options to parents in our community.

Pinnacle Charter School

Frederick Zazycki is a founding member of Pinnacle Charter School and has continued as a member of the Board of Directors since Pinnacle's inception in January of 2002. He holds a BS from Canisius College, and a Masters Degree in Hospital and Community Health Care Administration from Xavier University. He is retired from the NYS Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities, an Adjunct Faculty member of Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and volunteers as a certified Special Advocate for Children in the Erie County Family Court Drug Intervention Program.