Committee Members

Meet the bargaining committee members for the graduate student union.


    Carlos Alonso

    Alonso, the Morris A. and Alma Schapiro Professor in the Humanities, has been dean of Graduate School of Arts and Sciences since July 2011. He specializes in 19th- and 20th-century Latin American intellectual history and cultural production, and in contemporary literary and cultural theory. Previously, he was the chair of the Department of Latin American and Iberian Cultures and director of undergraduate studies for the Institute for Comparative Literature and Society.


    Patsy Catapano

    Catapano is the deputy general counsel for Columbia University and a member of the Office of the General Counsel since 1989. She represents the University on a wide range of issues, primarily advising clients at Columbia University Irving Medical Center on health care and medical school issues. Her practice also includes employment and faculty issues across the University. She received her B.A. with Honors in Philosophy and Linguistics from the University of Reading (U.K.) in 1971, her J.D. from New York University in 1979, and her M.P.H. from Columbia University in 2006. She is admitted to the practice of law in New York State.


    Dan Driscoll

    Driscoll is the Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer for Columbia University and has served since March 2017. Previously, he was Associate Vice-President and Deputy Chief HR Officer. Before joining Columbia in 2014, he held similar human resources positions at Merck and British Airways.

     


    Linda Mischel Eisner

    Linda Mischel Eisner has served as the director of special projects in the Offices of the President and the Senior Executive Vice President since January of 2014.  Ms. Mischel Eisner’s previous experience includes 14 years as a law clerk to the Honorable Raymond J. Dearie of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.  Ms. Mischel Eisner holds a law degree from the Yale Law School and a bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in computer science from Columbia College. She was named valedictorian of Columbia College’s first coeducational class.


    Idina Gorman

    Gorman is the Director of Labor & Employee Relations on Morningside campus at Columbia University. She handles cases in General Practice, Employee Benefits, Employment & Labor, Mediation and attended Fordham University School of Law.


    Nancy Johnson

    Johnson is the Vice President of Budget and Financial Planning, Office of Management and Budget at Columbia University.


    Sarah Jubinski

    Jubinski is the Assistant Provost for Administration and Planning, Office of the Executive Vice Provost. 


    Soulaymane Kachani

    Kachani is the Vice Provost for Teaching, Learning, and Innovation and the Senior Vice Dean, Columbia Engineering, Professor of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research. Professor Kachani conducts research in the fields of dynamic pricing, revenue management, machine learning, logistics, supply chain management, algorithmic trading, statistical arbitrage, traffic flow modeling, and transportation analysis. Prior to joining Columbia, Professor Kachani was a senior consultant at McKinsey & Company. He has continued to consult to McKinsey, large corporations and startups in the areas of pricing, supply chain management, operations, asset management, and corporate finance. Professor Kachani received a Diplôme d'Ingénieur in applied mathematics from École Centrale Paris, France, and a Master of Science and a PhD in operations research from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was the recipient of the 2012 Egleston Distinguished Service Award for exceptional achievement, leadership and contributions to the excellence of Columbia University.


    Yinghui Mao

    Mao is the Assistant Dean for Graduate Affairs and Associate Professor of Pathology & Cell Biology in the College of Physicians and Surgeons. Dr. Mao runs the day-to-day management of the Office of Graduate Affairs resolving issues that arise from students and graduate programs. He previously served as an Assistant Vice-Dean for Research in the Office of the Senior Vice-Dean for Research assisting investigators with extramural grant application preparation. Dr. Mao is a molecular biologist, biochemist and cell biologist by training with a focus on fundamental problems in cell cycle. Before joining Columbia in 2005, he was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, University of California at San Diego.


    Scott Norum

    Norum is the Vice President for Finance and Administration at Columbia University.


    Bernie Plum

    Plum is a partner at Proskauer and a former member of Proskauer’s Executive Committee and former co-chair of the Labor & Employment Law Department. He focuses mainly on collective bargaining, arbitration, and strategic planning in a variety of settings, including the performing arts, entertainment, sports, newspaper and utilities industries. He has served as chief spokesperson and strategist in a wide variety of collective bargaining situations, and also has litigated labor and employment matters in the state and federal courts of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Illinois, Delaware and California.


    Mirian Stincone

    Stincone is the Assistant Director, Labor and Employee Relations on the Morningside campus at Columbia University.