Easton Resident Erika Goldstein Elected ToUrban League Board

**News Release Submitted by The Urban League of Greater Hartford**

June 29, 2024

The Urban League of Greater Hartford’s Board of Directors hosted its 2024 Annual meeting on June 20, where Easton, Conn. resident Erika Goldstein, Vice President of Global Modernization Acceleration at Otis Elevator Co.; was elected as a new member of its Board. This year, the historic organization is celebrating 60 years of community service to Connecticut.

The Urban League of Greater Hartford officers for the 2024-2025 fiscal year are: Chair Nicole Hughey, a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Executive; Vice Chair Wes Alexander, Vice President of Workforce Solutions at Travelers; Treasurer Gaston Persano, President of Engine Alliance at Pratt & Whitney; and Secretary Ellen Steinfeld, Senior Executive Vice President of Lending and Payments at Berkshire Hills Bancorp Inc.

In addition to Erika Goldstein, the new Directors are: Angelo Adams, President of Zipcar; Pamela Hippolyte, Assistant Vice President, Affordable Mortgage Loan Officer at Liberty Bank; Teshia Levy-Grant, Senior Managing Director and Diversity Equity Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB) Officer at Webster Bank; Dr. John Maduko, President of Connecticut State Community College (CT STATE); and Graham Robinson, Senior Vice President & Global President of Stanley Industrial at Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.

The continuing At-Large Directors are: Dr. Michael Bailey, Co-Pastor of The First Cathedral; Christopher Clarke, Vice President/Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch/Bank of America; Kelly Harper, Senior Manager of Accounting and Reporting Advisory at Deloitte, LLP; Jeffrey Hines, Chief Diversity Officer at UCONN Health; Julia Marquis, Vice President Legal Counsel at Aetna/CVS; and Laura Soll-Broxterman, President of Laura Soll Public Relations, LLC. Also holding a seat on the Board is Luz Holmes-Padgett as the President of the Urban League of Greater Hartford Young Professionals Auxiliary.

“We are excited to welcome the expertise and vision of our officers and our new Board members as our organization enters a new year of empowerment,” reflects David Hopkins, President & Chief Executive Officer of the Urban League of Greater Hartford. “I am excited to work with all of them and our dedicated staff as we conclude another decade of the agency’s legacy of impact.”

Erika Goldstein is Vice President, Global Modernization Acceleration for Otis Elevator Co. where she works closely with a global cross functional team focused on growing modernization orders. The modernization segment provides existing elevators and escalators a “second life”, by replacing aged mechanical and electrical components with the newest technology and features. To accelerate the modernization business, she is focused on simplifying the end-to-end process and leveraging technology to enable faster cycle times and delivery of solutions to customers. In addition, she works closely with marketing, engineering, and operations to develop refined modernization packages to address the global aged elevator market of 7 million units in 2023.

Goldstein already is actively engaged with the Urban League of Greater Hartford, where she works closely with the Project Ready program which is focused on preparing children for college. She is a member of the Momentum ERG and sits on the community service committee.

Born and raised in Buffalo, NY, Goldstein served in the U.S. Army as an Engineer Officer and started her career with Otis in 2004 and, since then, has spent most of her career in the New Equipment Field Operations (Construction)business leading and supporting construction projects, driving field efficiency and safety. She also worked abroad in India, Singapore, France and the United Kingdom leading Field Operations until 2020 before moving to Connecticut and taking over Global New Equipment Field Operations.

Goldstein holds a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Criminal Justice from Canisius College and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a focus in Sustainability from Yale University-School of Management.

She lives in Easton, Conn. with her husband, Preston.

Proceeds from the support of corporations, foundations, and individual donors help fund Urban League programs and operations. Donations are welcome and can be made at: www.ulgh.org/donate. Corporate Institutional Partners include Travelers, Pratt & Whitney, Webster Bank, Comcast, KeyBank, Stanley Black & Decker, Bank of America, OTIS Elevator, Eversource, LAZ Parking, Liberty Bank, UCONN Heath, Berkshire Bank, Hartford HealthCare, Barnes Group, Inc., Global Atlantic Financial, Lincoln Financial, Hartford Steam Boiler and Audacy.