About the Board Biographies of Executives

Steven Scotti has served as Executive Director of the New York State Workers' Compensation Board since September 2022. He was a practicing workers' compensation attorney for over 30 years, working exclusively in-house for New York self-insured employers, and dedicated to ensuring that injured co-workers promptly received all benefits to which they were legally entitled.

Steven began his legal career in the public sector at the U.S. Department of Labor, followed by over 15 years of service with the New York City Law Department, where he served as Chief of the Workers' Compensation Division for the last seven years. He joined Con Edison in 2002, where he managed the workers' compensation practice in its Law Department for over 16 years. Starting in 2013, Steven served for five years as Associate General Counsel for Labor, Employment, and Benefits, overseeing all labor and employment matters for the company. In 2019, he joined the Workers' Compensation Division of the New York City Transit Authority, serving as Deputy Executive Assistant General Counsel until leaving to join the Board.

In 2016, Steven was inducted as a Fellow into The College of Workers' Compensation Lawyers, a nationwide organization recognizing outstanding attorneys who have distinguished themselves for 20 years or more in the workers' compensation field.

Steven is Co-Editor in Chief and contributing author of the 2011 NYS Bar Association's Workers' Compensation Law and Practice in New York and a frequent speaker on workers' compensation issues. He served on two Governor's workers' compensation task forces (Governor Spitzer's 2007 Rocket Docket Committee and Governor Paterson's 2010 Task Force on Group Self-Insurance), as well as an FBI task force on workers' compensation fraud. Steven was a member of the Executive Committee of the Special Funds Conservation Committee, a former Chair and Special Counsel of the New York Self-Insurers Association (NYSIA) and a former President of the New York Claim Association (NYCA), receiving the distinguished Greg Saxum award from NYSIA and a lifetime achievement award from NYCA. In 2001, he received the New York State Workers' Compensation Board Chair's Award for Excellence.

Steven brings his years of study of the New York Workers' Compensation Law and expertise managing claims and legal operations at three of the state's largest self-insured employer programs to his current position. He strives to guide and improve the system for all stakeholders in furtherance of the Board's critical mission to serve injured workers and employers.

Steven grew up in Brentwood, Long Island, New York. He is the proud son of a devoted mother who did not live to see many of his accomplishments and a father who, after many childhood years in Italy, returned to this country unable to speak English and never graduated from high school, but set an example of hard work and integrity for his children. Steven worked his way through school, becoming the first in his family to graduate from college. He earned a BA in Political Science cum laude from Stony Brook University and a JD with honors from New York Law School. He is a member of Phi Beta Kappa Society, the nation's most prestigious academic honor society. He lives in Queens with his wife of 37 years, Patricia, and is the proud father of Mark and Paul.

Melissa Stefanko is the Deputy Executive Director at the Board, overseeing the Board's Financial Services and Office of Innovation divisions. Melissa also advises the Executive Director and Chair on policy matters concerning Board operations.

In addition to the Finance Office, which is responsible for managing the Board's fiscal accounts, the agency's operating budget, special funds, assessments, and the self-insurance program, Melissa also has oversight responsibility for Human Resources Management, Facilities, and the Office of Innovation (OOI). OOI is responsible for the modernization of the Workers' Compensation Board through the OnBoard program and related projects.

After earning a BA from SUNY Potsdam, Melissa began her New York State career with positions at the NYS Assembly and the Division of Budget (DOB). After tenures at DOB and Information Technology Services, where she had the opportunity to work on diverse public policy and financial issues, she joined the Board in 2003 and became the Director of Financial Administration in 2021.

Quinn Rapp-Ellis is the Board's General Counsel, overseeing all legal operations of the Board, including management of the Office of General Counsel (OGC). Quinn previously worked within OGC for over six years, before joining the New York State Executive Chamber in 2022 as Assistant Secretary for Labor and Workforce. At the Chamber, Quinn helped oversee a portfolio of agencies, including the Board, and played a critical role in key initiatives, including legislative changes to improve injured workers' access to care.

Quinn first joined the Board through the Governor's Excelsior Service Fellowship program. During her initial tenure at the Board, Quinn served as a Senior Attorney within OGC, working on a wide range of legislative and other initiatives, before serving as the Board's Director of NYS Paid Family Leave, helping the agency successfully implement and administer the program through its four-year phase-in in close coordination with more than 15 other New York State agencies.

Quinn holds a Juris Doctor from New York Law School, a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology and Law from John Jay College, and a Bachelor of Science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Deena Jones is the Director of Claims Operations at the Workers' Compensation Board where she provides strategic direction and leadership in the management of workers' compensation, disability benefits, Paid Family Leave and discrimination claims. Deena first joined the Board in 2006 as a consultant and held several leadership positions in the areas of quality improvement, project management and business analysis before being named to her current position in 2018. She has worked on a wide range of legislative and Governor initiatives, including the implementation of Paid Family Leave.

Prior to joining the Board, Deena spent nine years in the healthcare insurance industry and last worked for Kaiser Permanente, one of the nation's largest not-for-profit health plans. Deena holds an MPA from Marist College, a BA in Communication from SUNY Plattsburgh, and a Certified Business Analysis Professional (CBAP) designation through the International Institute of Business Analysis.

James A. Tacci, MD, JD, MPH (FACOEM, FACPM), is the Medical Director of the NYS Workers' Compensation Board. His focus is ensuring timely, appropriate and high-quality care for injured workers, to optimize their clinical and functional outcomes.

Prior to joining the Board, Dr. Tacci was a medical director and residency program director at the University of Rochester, where he still holds part-time clinical (non-workers' compensation) and teaching appointments. Previously, he directed occupational medicine programs or served as a senior medical consultant in such industries as healthcare, technology, automotive, defense, medical devices and pharmaceuticals. He also worked extensively with municipalities, school districts, utilities, and local police and fire departments. Dr. Tacci earned his BS in Biology from Cornell University, MD (with distinction) from the University of Rochester, MPH from SUNY Albany, and JD (magna cum laude) from Syracuse University. He completed residencies in General Preventive Medicine & Public Health (NYS Department of Health and Occupational Medicine (Harvard).

Timothy Purcell is the Board's Chief Innovation Officer and Program Director for the Board's enterprise-wide Business Process Reengineering (BPR) and System Modernization programs. As director of the BPR and System Modernization program, Tim is focused on leveraging innovative, citizen-facing digital government solutions to enable true business transformation both within the Board and across the Board's expansive external stakeholder community. Tim recently directed the Board's successful implementation of OnBoard: Limited Release. Tim also led the Board's award-winning Virtual Hearings initiative and oversaw the development of eClaims EDI, which leverages the International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions (IAIABC) Claims EDI R3.1 standard.

Missy Stewart is the Director of Public Information at the Workers' Compensation Board. As the head of the communications team, Missy works to promote the Board's efforts to protect the rights of NYS workers and employers and raise awareness of the critical benefit programs administered by the Board.

Prior to joining the Workers' Compensation Board, Missy was the Senior Director of Internal Communications for Reuters News, the world's largest multimedia news provider. Before that, she led internal communications for several organizations within Thomson Reuters. Missy holds a BA from the Ithaca College Roy H. Park School of Communications, where she majored in Advertising and Public Relations.

Juanita Perez is the Board's Deputy Director for Intergovernmental and Regulatory Services, overseeing the Office of Risk Management, Language Access, Data Management, and Integrated Services. Juanita and her team are responsible for providing reliable and on-demand quality service to thousands of stakeholders needing language interpretation, social services, and data information.

Previously, Juanita worked for the NYS Attorney General's Office and Department of Labor. She served as Corporation Counsel for the City of Syracuse and was an adjunct professor at Syracuse University. Juanita is a former Lieutenant Commander, Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG), in the United States Navy. She holds a Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law and a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, San Diego.

Michael Papa is Deputy Counsel at the NYS Workers' Compensation Board, responsible for handling highly complex legal issues and serving as the Board's primary litigator for Payer Compliance issues. Michael prepares legal opinions and memoranda in response to inquiries regarding the Workers' Compensation Law and acts as Board liaison to the Attorney General's Office with respect to Article 78 proceedings. He also collaborates with the Medical Director's Office to investigate medical provider compliance issues and assists the Director of Compliance with enforcement of penalties, among his other legal and supervisory responsibilities.

Michael has been with the Board for over two decades and has held numerous roles during this time. This includes heading up the Board's compliance efforts to ensure that the state's roughly 500,000 employers maintain workers' compensation, disability, and Paid Family Leave coverage, while simultaneously ensuring that the state's approximately 1,300 payers of workers' compensation benefits comply with the Workers' Compensation Law regarding the delivery of benefits to injured workers. Micheal also spearheaded the defense of a multitude of legal challenges to Board determinations and engaged in collection efforts against entities that owe the Board funds. Prior to joining the Board, Michael served as an Administrative Law Judge for the Department of Labor's Unemployment Insurance Division.

Teri Cooper is the Director of Compliance at the Workers' Compensation Board, where she oversees Employer Compliance and Payer Compliance. Teri first joined the Board in 1999 as an Investigator in the Enforcement unit. She has since held several managerial positions in the Bureau of Compliance, such as Chief Investigator and Program Manager 2, before being named to her current position in 2017. Teri has worked on a wide range of legislative and Governor-led initiatives, including the Exploited Worker Task Force, the implementation of New York Business Express, and Paid Family Leave (PFL).

Todd C. Roberts, Esq., is a Supervising Attorney who oversees the Board's Litigation Division, Penalty Collections unit, and Legal Hearings unit. As the supervisor of these three units, Todd is involved with various litigation matters which involve the Board in both State and federal court. This includes litigation surrounding insolvent group self-insurance trusts, the collection of statutory penalties and judgments entered against certain employers in the workers' compensation system, and ensuring the Uninsured Employer's Fund is properly represented in workers' compensation claims cases, respectively. Todd has also overseen and been involved in numerous GSIT cases, which have yielded significant recoveries to the Board.

Prior to joining the Board, Todd served as staff/trial counsel for Selective Insurance Co. of American, Inc., where he was involved in numerous litigation matters. He is a graduate of Boston University School of Law.