Keynote Panel:
LIC: Inspiring Innovation
9:00 - 10:00AM
Why does having an innovative, entrepreneurial city matter? What role does LIC play in the larger
ecosystem and what role should LIC play as new opportunities, such as in innovative ways of
working, living, of mobility, of industry such as Life Sciences, move from theory to reality? And how
do we ensure that the benefits of innovation reach deep into the community?
Seth Pinsky (Moderator)
RXR Realty
Seth Pinsky is an Executive Vice President at RXR Realty,
where he leads RXR’s investment efforts in emerging
opportunities in the New York region. Previously, Pinsky
directed Mayor Bloomberg’s Special Initiative for
Rebuilding and Resiliency, which developed a $20 billion
climate change plan for the City. Pinsky also served
as New York City Economic Development Corporation
President from 2008 to 2013. Prior to NYCEDC, Pinsky
was an associate at Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton
and an analyst at James D. Wolfensohn Inc. He graduated
from Columbia College and Harvard Law.
Seth is a member of the Long Island City Partnership
Board.
Greg Morrisett
Cornell Tech
Greg Morrisett is the Jack and Rilla Neafsey Dean and
Vice Provost of Cornell Tech. Previously, he served as the
Dean of Computing and Information Sciences (CIS) at
Cornell University and was also a Professor and Associate
Dean for Computer Science and Electrical Engineering in
the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Before Harvard, Morrisett served on the faculty of
Cornell’s Computer Science Department. He received his
bachelor’s degree from the University of Richmond and
both his Master’s and Doctorate degrees from Carnegie
Mellon University. Morrisett’s research focuses on the
application of language and verification technology to
building secure software systems.
Paul Arcario
LaGuardia Community College
Paul Arcario, Ed.D. has been an academic leader and
faculty member at LaGuardia Community College/CUNY
(“LaGuardia”) for more than 30 years. He was appointed
as Interim President by CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos
Rodríguez in August 2019. Dr. Arcario most recently
served as Provost and Senior Vice President, from 2012-
2019. In that role, he managed the Academic Division’s
$40 million annual budget; led faculty recruitment and
development; oversaw day-to-day management of key
academic initiatives; and supervised the Student Affairs
Division, which serves the college’s nearly 20,000/yr.
students pursuing associate degrees. Arcario earned his
Ed.D. and M.Ed. in TESOL from Columbia University
Teachers College, and a B.A. (magna cum laude) and
M.A. in English from New York University.
Paul is a member of the Long Island City Partnership
Board.
Julie Samuels
Tech:NYC
Julie Samuels is the Executive Director of Tech:NYC,
an organization representing 750+ companies across
New York’s tech industry. Before that she was Executive
Director at Engine, a nation-wide nonprofit focused on
technology entrepreneurship and advocacy, where she
remains a member of the Board. Julie is a frequent
commentator on technology and policy issues for
national media—particularly in the intellectual property
space—and she has filed briefs with the Supreme Court
and testified before Congressional Committees. She
previously worked at the Electronic Frontier Foundation,
where she was a senior staff attorney and the Mark Cuban
Chair to Eliminate Stupid Patents. Before joining EFF,
Julie litigated IP and entertainment cases. She serves
on the Boards of Engine, TechCongress, and the Internet
Education Foundation, on ABNY’s Steering Committee,
on the Innovation Council of the Partnership for New
York City, and on Comptroller Scott Stringer’s Red Tape
Commission. She was recently named one of Crain’s Most
Powerful Women in New York. She lives in New York City
with her family.
James Patchett
NYC Economic Development Corp.
A proponent of affordable housing and a principal driver
of Mayor de Blasio’s effort to create 100,000 jobs, James
Patchett became President and CEO of NYCEDC in
February 2016 after serving as Chief of Staff to Deputy
Mayor Alicia Glen. Before his transition to NYCEDC, Mr.
Patchett was pivotal in securing many of the Mayor’s
signature affordable housing achievements and was
one of the de Blasio administration’s chief negotiators
on major land use matters. Mr. Patchett holds a BA
in Economics from Amherst College and an MBA from
Stanford University. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and
their two young children.
#LICSummit 7