Our Team

Executive Director – James R. Dolan, Jr., DSW, LCSW

Dr. Dolan has been employed as CEC Health Care’s Executive Director since September 2017. He has a Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling, and a Doctorate in Social Welfare from Adelphi University. Dr. Dolan is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

Prior to assuming the position as CEC Executive Director, Dr. Dolan was the Acting Commissioner of the Nassau County Department of Human Services. In this position, he oversaw the Office of Mental Health, Chemical Dependency and Developmental Disabilities; the Office for the Aging; the Office for Youth Services and the Office for the Physically Challenged. Dr. Dolan had a private psychotherapy practice for twenty-five years, and he was an Adjunct Professor at Adelphi University teaching graduate level courses for the School of Social Work. He was also the host of a radio program entitled “Recovery Road”, and early in his career he was a caseworker with Child Protective Services. He is an experienced public speaker, sharing his knowledge of mental health, chemical dependency and co-occurring disorders.

As CEC’s Executive Director, he develops organizational goals/objectives and insures their achievement. He maintains effective communication among all levels of the health center and its Board of Directors, as well as the communities the health center serves. Additionally, Dr. Dolan is responsible for the fiscal, administrative, operational and programmatic strength of CEC. Dr. Dolan facilitated the acquisition of the Melillo Center for Mental Health and developed a Primary Care Model that will increase access to medical and dental care for underserved populations.

Chief Medical Officer – Dr. Christine Brown, M.D.

Dr. Brown started with CEC Health Care in 2015 as Chief Medical Officer and strongly believes in providing exceptional and compassionate care to all patients. Equity and ensuring proper access to medical services are at the center of her approach to quality care. Dr. Brown’s personal mission is central to her role of leading the clinician team and quality improvement efforts of the Charles Evans Center. As a board-certified family medicine practitioner with experience in research, education, and community health, she is on a mission to serve and enhance community health. Additionally, Dr. Brown’s work places a strong emphasis on connecting all aspects of medicine, including learning data science and health I.T., ultimately to improve the clinician and patient experience.

Dr. Brown earned a Bachelor of Science in Neural Science and Psychology from New York University in New York and her Doctor of Medicine from SUNY Stony Brook School of Medicine in Stony Brook, NY. Dr. Brown has a special interest in preventive medicine, women’s health and applying quality improvement methods to chronic disease management. She believes strongly in keeping up-to-date with evidence-based medicine and partnering with each patient to provide culturally sensitive primary care.

Chief Financial Officer – Michael Catanese

Mr. Catanese holds a BS in Accounting from the University of Rhode Island and a Master’s in Public Administration from NYU. Michael has worked in the non-profit sector for over 45 years in various positions for clinics, hospitals, and local government offices. He also spent ten years with a Big 4 Accounting firm – Ernst & Young – in their healthcare consulting division and supervised numerous engagements for major New York City hospitals including Mt. Sinai, New York Hospital and St. Luke’s Roosevelt. Engagements included financial feasibility studies, mergers, developing revenue strategies and implementing cost efficiencies.

For the past 23 years he held the Chief Financial Officer/Controller for three organizations. These organizations provide mental health, substance abuse and primary care services, as well as supported housing and other psycho-social programs. Michael has supervised all functions of the accounting process including general accounting, accounts receivable and accounts payable, budgeting, billing, and payroll. Mr. Catanese received C.P.A. license in 1984 and is a member of The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Mr. Catanese brings with him extensive experience in the not-for-profit space having worked in community-based organizations for more than 25 years. He is responsible for the organization’s financial functions including: resource planning, strategic innovation, business development and new business opportunities, treasury management accounting, audits and reporting.

Mr. Catanese has extensive experience in obtaining grants at the local, state and federal level, including several with Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Mr. Catanese’s forward-looking and proactive stance is a vital contribution to the future viability of the organization and its ability to accomplish its mission.

Director of Dentistry – Judith Olshin, D.D.S.

Dr. Olshin has been an attending Dentist at the Northwell Health Northshore University Hospital Ambulatory Surgery Center since 2004 and is affiliated with other hospitals. While she has substantial experience treating all types of patients and dental conditions, Dr. Olshin works extensively with patients that have special needs and developmental disabilities.

Dr. Olshin graduated with honors from New York University College of Dentistry in 1999. After graduation, she performed her General Practice Residency at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, a Level 1 Trauma Center. Dr. Olshin worked in private practice before joining Advantage Care in 2004. She takes pride in maintaining the highest standards of care by attending continuing dental education courses throughout the year.

She has completed courses at the Pankey Institute, honing her skills in oral rehabilitation and occlusion. She is an active member of several dental associations and is a member of the OPWDD Dental Task Force. In her role at CEC, Dr. Olshin treats patients, supervises staff, and maintains the goals and needs of the staff. Dr. Olshin also serves as a member of the Quality Improvement Council for CEC, and is responsible for continuous quality improvement, and assessing the needs from the patient and staff perspective. She says her favorite part of providing dental services to CEC patients is “Patients appreciating the work you do for them, changing their smiles, and helping to take them out of pain.”

Director of Operations – Michele Sofronis, RN, MA, MS

Michele Sofronis joined CEC Health Care as the Director of Operations in January 2017. Michele is a registered Nurse and healthcare administrator with over 20 years of experience in strategic planning, operations and process improvement, organizational development, program implementation and evaluation.

Prior to assuming her current role at CEC, Michele served as the Director of Operations at Access Healthcare, an FQHC in Manhattan. She was also the Director of Informatics for a large multi-discipline provider outpatient health center located throughout the five boroughs of New York City.

Michele holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing, from Hunter College, a Master of Arts in Nursing Administration from NYU Steinhardt Graduate School for Nursing Education and a Master’s of Science from NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School for Public Service. Her interest is focused on reducing health disparities, improving childhood and adolescent health, and advancing the field of dissemination and implementation research.

Director of Quality Assurance and Corporate Compliance – Anne Marie Phillips, LMSW

Anne Marie Phillips, LMSW, is a mission-driven and process-oriented leader who is passionate about serving our community, ensuring continuous quality improvement, and corporate compliance with all regulatory requirements. She is highly skilled with informatics, data analysis, and with helping programs find opportunities to better support clients’ health outcomes and goals. Toward that objective Ms. Phillips directs agency development efforts and plays a key role with strategic planning. Ms. Phillips received her Bachelor of Science in fine art and psychology and Master of Social Work from Adelphi University, and she has over 20 years of experience in program evaluation, organizational strategy and program development.

Anne Marie joins the CEC Health Care team as an experienced, quality leader with a public health background. She has managed many aspects of quality improvement in a variety of settings from a project leader in clinical redesign initiatives with the Nassau/Queens Performing Provider System DSRIP program, with the AHN|RHS BHCC Independent Practice Association, to consultative roles by assisting venture funds scale their behavioral health services portfolio. Recently, she taught graduate level courses for the School of Social Work in Leadership and Macro Practice at Fordham University in Lincoln Center. She is pleased to be working for an agency that views health as state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease.

Director of Community Rehab and Recovery Services – Laura La Sala, LMHC

Laura La Sala is a licensed Mental Health Counselor with a career dedicated to serving individuals with Severe Mental Illness. Laura graduated with her Master’s in Mental Health Counseling from SUNY College at Old Westbury. She began her career at the Melillo Center as an outpatient mental health and chemical dependency therapist. In this role she became familiar with mental health housing which ignited a passion to ensure that all recipients have the right to decent, safe and affordable housing. Under the Melillo Center, Laura held various leadership roles within the housing department. Laura’s commitment to support community living has expanded with the merger of the Angelo J. Melillo Center into the Charles Evans Center in 2019.

As Director of Community Rehab and Recovery Services, Mrs. La Sala is responsible for the development and implementation of programming for individuals and families that address social, rehabilitative and supportive needs related to chronic health issues, homelessness, mental illness and poverty issues. Mrs. La Sala oversees the Residential, ACT and Health Home Care Coordination departments and is strengthening consumer support services across a broader perspective to achieve positive outcomes and effective care. Mrs. La Sala demonstrates daily a belief that all recipients deserve safe and comprehensive community support services to maintain their independence in the hands of a dedicated and passionate counselor.

Director of Operations, Glen Cove Office – John Javis

John Javis oversees Glen Cove operations, which include the clinics licensed by OMH, OASAS and DOH, the Community Mental Health Promotion and Support Program, and the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic.

John has worked in the public behavioral health sector for nearly three decades and has managed a variety of programs on Long Island and in New York City. Prior to coming to the Charles Evans Center, John was the Chief Executive Officer of the Behavioral Health New York City IPA, a network of nine OMH and OASAS Clinic providers.

John has spent most of his career in Nassau County serving as the Director of Special Projects for the Mental Health Association (MHA) of Nassau County (1998 – 2015), the Operations Director for the Advanced Health Network IPA (2015-2017), and the Director of Behavioral Health for the Nassau-Queens PPS (2017-2019). While at MHA Nassau, John supervised various psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery programs including a clubhouse program and a Personalized Recovery Oriented Service (PROS). He also developed an innovative program to embed primary care services into a behavioral health day program.

In 2007 John founded the Veterans Health Alliance of Long Island (VHALI), a coalition of organizations that provided training, advocacy, outreach and peer support to Long Island Veterans and families. John is most proud of efforts in advocating for funding and helping to shape a model of Veteran-to-Veteran Peer Support in Nassau, Suffolk and in other counties of New York State.

While at the Nassau-Queens PPS, John led initiatives to achieve behavioral health outcome measures across Nassau County and Eastern Queens; this required working relationships with hospital systems, behavioral health providers and community-based organizations.

John also has past military service as a First Lieutenant in the US Army Reserves in the Chaplain Candidate program, where he provided pastoral counseling and support to soldiers and their families in the US and in Germany.

Director, Development and Community Relations – Michael DeGeorges

Michael holds a BS in Business Economics from SUNY Oneonta. Michael has worked in the non-profit sector for over 15 years, in marketing and fundraising capacities, for a variety of non-profit organizations. Michael started in the advertising field, working mainly for Ogilvy & Mather, overseeing national commercial television advertising for clients including Proctor & Gamble and Kimberly Clark.

Michael shares his experience in the not-for-profit world having provided his marketing and fundraising skills to help build infrastructure for people in desperate need in the 17 countries throughout the Caribbean and Latin America, including Haiti. He also spent three years planning special events to raise money for people with kidney disease, to either receive dialysis treatment or secure a new kidney.

As Director, Development and Community Relations, Michael is responsible to carry out CEC’s integrated marketing campaigns, including virtual and live events and to establish relationships with external partners to drive CEC’s brand awareness to positively impact community health on a localized level. Michael is committed to working across all CEC departments to deliver the highest quality care to our patients.