board of directors

Jassen is Vice President at Goldman Sachs and serves as Deputy Chief of Staff of Internal Audit. Prior to his current role, he was responsible for the design and execution of various strategic initiatives, served as lead business liaison on cross-divisional process and technology redesign initiatives, and was an internal auditor covering the firm's Asset Management and Private Wealth businesses. Before joining Goldman, he was a technology project manager at J.P. Morgan Chase, a Sergeant in the German Military Police, and a member of the NATO-led Stabilization Force (SFOR) in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Jassen was born in Bulgaria, raised in Germany, and now lives in the New York area. He is a graduate of Pace University in New York, was introduced to Rocking the Boat in 2005 through a Goldman Sachs work-sponsored volunteer day, and served as the Board's Treasurer from 2006-2007 prior to being elected President. His expertise in management oversight and strategic development, in combination with his generous spirit and love for water sports, make him a great asset to the Board.

Sara is deputy business editor of the New York Post and co-founder and editor of Recessionwire.com, a website created to capture the stories and improve the lives of urban professionals impacted by the economic downturn. She was previously lifestyle editor for Conde Nast's Portfolio.com and Forbes.com, and a reporter for newspapers in New York and Alabama, where she won awards for her work on chemical weapons and environmental issues. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Johns Hopkins University, and a master's in journalism from Columbia University. She grew up sailing on Long Island Sound.

An Attorney with Schulte Roth and Zabel, LLP, Michael focuses on structuring complex and sophisticated financial instruments for qualified investors. Prior to his law career, Michael worked in various Compliance and Controllers functions with Goldman Sachs. Michael brings to the Board a wealth of experience in establishing and monitoring corporate financial controls and efficiency procedures. Michael enjoys the outdoors, traveling, and reading about history.

Bill Isaacs is a Vice President of Business Affairs, Original Programming at HBO, where he works on documentary and family programming and new media initiatives. He is a graduate of the University of Richmond, holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Connecticut and spent many years involved in theatre. He enjoys sailing, camping and reading.

Amy Alterman is a senior strategy and business development executive with broad general management, strategy, and finance skills. This includes 10+ years in corporate strategy, business development, and marketing for American Express coupled with management consulting experience at A.T. Kearney. She has significant experience conceiving and implementing successful growth strategies and has also been recognized throughout her career for building and leading high performing teams. Currently residing in Manhattan, Amy enjoys traveling, skiing, cooking, and wine tasting. She has run two marathons: Anchorage and New York City.

Zack Friedman is an associate at The Blackstone Group. Prior to joining Blackstone, Mr. Friedman worked at Morgan Stanley & Co. in the investment banking division. He has also worked in real estate private equity at Lubert-Adler Partners and in the corporate law department at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. Previously, he served as a White House intern for the Chief of the Staff to the President. Mr. Friedman received a BA from Johns Hopkins University, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa, and an MPP from Harvard University. Mr. Friedman earned a JD from Columbia Law School, where he was named a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, and an MBA from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Dustin is a director for The Blackstone Group Informational Technology division. Previous to Blackstone, Dustin worked for Cisco Systems, Citigroup, and has consulted independently for many Wall Street firms. Dustin has spent time working as a volunteer for City Year and Year Up at various locations in the South Bronx and is on the board of NYCwireless. He is a avid sailor and resides in Brooklyn, NY. Dustin's passion for working with young people along with his love of the water and boats are great additions to Rocking the Boat's board.

Ned has spent most of his life in New England, sailing, studying environmental science, logging, farming, and building houses. He has sailed and taught environmental science all over the world. He brings to the Rocking the Boat Board a great love of wooden boats and education, and a great deal of life experience. He was formerly on the Board of Directors of The Robbins-deBeaumont Foundation.

In her current role at TimeWarner Inc., Vidya Murali manages the financial, strategic and business operations for aviation and corporate responsibility. Prior to this role, Vidya worked in the Internal Audit groups at TimeWarner and KPMG LLP where she specialized in operational reviews. Vidya brings to the board a wealth of experience in business and financial operations with a strong focus on achieving operational efficiency and developing best practices. Vidya enjoys the outdoors, playing tennis, reading and traveling.

Conley Rollins works in the Investment Management Division at Goldman Sachs where he focuses on investments in Private Equity. Before joining Goldman he worked for the City of New York as Chief of Staff and Senior Vice President at the Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC). At the NYCEDC he focused on strategic internal and external initiatives and oversaw intergovernmental and press affairs as well as research and strategic planning. He grew up in Charleston South Carolina, where he quickly learned to love the water.