Our Board Of Trustees
Affiliation: Dean School of Health Professions and Natural Sciences,
County College of Morris
Dr. Maria P. Isaza
Board Chairman
Dr. Maria P. Isaza is the Dean of the School of Health Professions and Natural Sciences (HPNS) at the County College of Morris (CCM). She was born in Cali, Colombia and immigrated to the United States in 1990. She has been a Morris County resident for the past 30 years and currently resides in Wharton, NJ with her family.
Dr. Isaza is a CCM alumna and graduated with a B.S. in Biology from the College of St. Elizabeth in 2002. She then received her Ph. D. in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in 2009. She started working at CCM in 2007 as an adjunct professor and was hired as a full-time professor a year later in 2008. She served as the Chairperson of the Biology and Chemistry Department for eight years and became the Dean of the HPNS in 2021.
As the Dean of the HPNS, she leads a dedicated and enthusiastic team of faculty members that are committed to providing premier educational programs in in the areas of biological, chemical, and environmental sciences; health professions including nursing, radiography, respiratory therapy, paramedic science , and occupational therapy assistant; exercise science and personal trainer; landscape and horticultural technology; teacher education specializations and public health.
Dr. Isaza is also very active in her community and has been a board member for the Advocacy Committee at Employment Horizons since 2019. In addition, she was selected by the County Commissioners in 2019 to serve in the Morris Area Paratransit System Citizens Advisory Committee.
Anthony Agudelo
Vice-Chairman
Affiliation: Anthony Agudelo Landscaping and Colombian Coffee Distributors
![001-ROCKSTEADY IMAGES [Headshots for Iris Goicochea 05.16.2021 (Print)]-ROQ10034.jpg](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/eec54f_1ccdcac8a4af42e295d20060141a15f6~mv2.jpg/v1/crop/x_0,y_419,w_3840,h_3836/fill/w_347,h_347,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/001-ROCKSTEADY%20IMAGES%20%5BHeadshots%20for%20Iris%20Goicochea%2005_16_2021%20(Print)%5D-ROQ10034.jpg)
Iris Goicochea
Secretary
Born in Hoboken, NJ, Iris Goicochea is second generation Puerto Rican. Her parents emigrated from Puerto Rico in the 1970s and settled in the small city for job opportunities at a time of great struggle on the island. The third of five children, from an early age, Iris loved reading and learning. Her grades helped her to advance quickly through the Hoboken public school system. She entered an exclusive high school with high honors and continued her education under a full scholarship, including the Educational Opportunities Scholarship, at Drew University.
After college, she served as Paralegal in NYC and NJ and later worked as a Junior Analyst for various Hedge Funds in NYC. Iris enjoys extracurricular activities such as dancing, acting, and traveling. Iris participated in cultural dance events as well as local drama clubs and programs. She helped coordinate various cultural events at Drew University that included a visit by author and activist Piri Thomas. She was a member of the Hispanic Culture Club, as well as the Umoja Club. Iris graduated in 1999 with a B. A. in Philosophy and Spanish.
Currently, Iris serves on the board of MCOHA as secretary and leads a ministry group called The Reconciliation Table. She is a Master of Divinity candidate at Alliance Theological Seminary and is founder of Tabitha Rising, LLC, an independent consulting firm. Iris married her childhood best friend, Shane, in 2004. Both Iris and her husband homeschool their three children.
Lydia Silfa
Treasurer
Lydia Silfa, currently Vice President at TD Bank has many years of banking experience with various banks in New York City including 15 years in Wall Street in different capacities including Private Wealth and institutional Custody.
Lydia is active in the community and serves as Treasurer of the Rockaway Borough Business Association. She has an undergraduate degree in Finance and Investments from Baruch College, City University of New York and an advance in Economic Policy from The New School for Social Research.
Gordon Graber, Esq
Board Member
Gordon Graber is a founding partner at Sullivan and Graber with offices in Morristown, New Jersey, and New York City. He is a Certified Civil Trial Attorney and Rule 1:40 qualified mediator by the New Jersey Supreme Court. Gordon is admitted to the State Bars of New Jersey, New York, and the U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey.
Gordon completed his Bachelor’s Degree graduating with distinction from the University of Rochester and earned his law degree from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey Law School in 1977. He is a Trustee of the Morris County Bar Foundation.
Gordon and his wife Helen reside in Mendham. They have two adult children, Devin and Brette, living in Seoul, South Korea, and New York City. Gordon has been a proud board member since 2004 and currently serves as Chair.
Francis J. Bastone
Board Member
I am a retired career municipal administrator with a career spanning 4 decades serving local governments in northern New Jersey. My motivation to serve on the Board of Directors is that my background will be of benefit to MCOHA in its mission of providing service and community integration in furtherance of our strong heritage as a nation of immigrants.
Professionally, I am now a part-time municipal management consultant and a part-time yacht broker. I have served as my Community Association President for over 10 years. In my leisure time, I am a life-long ice hockey player and an international cruising and racing sailor.
Natalie Palacio
Board Member
Jennice Webb
Board Member
Jennice Webb is The Salvation Army’s Divisional Education Director, overseeing multiple childcare, afterschool and summer camp programs across the state of New Jersey. Her career as an educator began in a childcare center as a float teacher. Her passion for nurturing young minds and her ambitious mindset allowed her to achieve her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at Montclair State University and Master’s in School Counseling at Caldwell University. Her 12 year career involves serving children in public and private settings as a teacher, early childhood director, and certified school counselor. She is actively pursuing her Doctoral degree, class of 2023, in Education with a specialization in Curriculum and Teaching. Her experience in various childcare roles has led to the opportunity of presenting at the Grow NJ Kids and NJAEYC conferences. Jennice stays active in her community by serving on the town’s local Board of Health and on the advisory board of New Jersey Association for the Education of Young Children.
