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n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m | F e b r u a r y 2 0 2 3 | n e w h a v e n B I Z 23 P o w e r 2 5 G r e a t e r N e w H a v e n Shirley Chock, Co-founder, New England Asian- American Cultural Center e New England Asian-American Cultural Center in Milford opened to great fanfare in the summer of 2022, with more than 100 people there to celebrate amid a shower of gold-colored confetti. Martial arts entrepreneur Shirley Chock co-founded the center, along with Jack Guo. e new center is a 7,000-square- foot space located in an industrial park at 49 Research Dr. It brings together the operations of Wu Dang Kung Fu Academy and Aiping Tai Chi, and offers martial arts, dance, cultural and educational programs. e center's mission is to share Asian culture throughout the state and beyond. It offers Asian-American cultural programming for groups of up to 150, in alignment with the state's mandate to teach Asian American and Pacific Islander history in public schools. e center aims to be a destination in New England for Asian-American cultural programming, from school field trips to community events. In early February, it hosted a lunar new year celebration with cultural performances. e state's Asian-American community is growing, and now makes up about 5% of the state's population. Chock previously had a career in finance, and began training in martial arts under Grandmaster Aiping Cheng, who established the Aiping Tai Chi Center in Connecticut in 1996. In 2017, Chock le finance behind to take over the Aiping Tai Chi Center, offering classes to students throughout the region. Chock also reaches students worldwide through her online content. Chock additionally serves as a board member for the International Association of New Haven, an independent charitable foundation that funds programs that enhance and promote cultural understanding. Gail Kosyla, Chief Financial Officer, Yale New Haven Health Gail Kosyla took over as chief financial officer for the Yale New Haven Health system on Nov. 28, following a national search. Kosyla is now overseeing finances for the system, which includes Yale New Haven Hospital, and four other hospitals, including Bridgeport, Greenwich, Lawrence + Memorial and Westerly hospitals, multiple specialty networks and Northeast Medical Group, a nonprofit medical foundation with several hundred community-based and hospital-employed physicians. e system is pursuing the acquisition of three more hospitals, Waterbury, Manchester Memorial and Rockville General. As CFO, Kosyla is focused on the system's financial health. e COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted hospitals nationwide. Yale New Haven Health has faced similar challenges. Before Kosyla's arrival, the system in September cut 155 jobs, a number that included 72 layoffs and the elimination of 83 vacant positions. Kosyla said she hopes to prevent future layoffs by redeploying workers and scrutinizing open positions. She said she will also work to build more efficiencies into the health system's operations, to improve its overall financial situation. Kosyla is a certified public accountant and fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. When she was picked, Yale health system administration cited her broad experience in senior roles at regional and national health systems. Kosyla had been with RWJBarnabas Health since 2019, most recently serving as executive vice president of system financial operations. Kosyla's healthcare career also includes time at Hunterdon Healthcare System in New Jersey, Catholic Health Initiatives/ Catholic Health East in Pennsylvania, St. Francis Medical Center in Trenton, New Jersey, and St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. Before moving into health care, she started her career in public accounting. Tom Orkisz, Chairman & CEO, Inline Plastics Tom Orkisz is chairman and CEO of Inline Plastics in Shelton, which makes clear, recyclable plastic food containers. Grab tomatoes or fresh cupcakes at the grocery store, and chances are, Inline Plastics made the containers. e manufacturer celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2018. Orkisz has been at Inline for more than 32 years, according to his LinkedIn profile, and he is a graduate of the UConn School of Business. Orkisz has led the company through innovation and expansion, such as when it developed its "Safe-T-Fresh" line, which are tamper-resistant and tamper- evident plastic containers with patented tear-strip technology. In June 2022, Inline launched its "Safe-T-Chef " line — tamper-evident packaging that can protect hot and warm fresh-prepared foods. Orkisz said there was demand for it in the marketplace, particularly as take-out, third-party delivery and grab-and-go foods continue to grow in popularity. In January 2023, Inline Plastics announced the addition of rectangular products to its Essential Platters line, which are clear and infused with post- consumer content. e platters come in various sizes and have compartments for food. e company's recent expansion under Orkisz has also been a geographic one. In May 2022, Inline Plastics announced it had expanded its footprint into the Midwest to meet growing demand. It opened a new manufacturing plant in Gladwin, Michigan, at the site of the former Cam Packaging facility. e addition secured a Midwest production and distribution facility to complement Inline's Shelton operations in the Northeast; Georgia in the South; and Utah in the West. At the time, Orkisz said the purchase of Cam Packaging's operation, with its machines and workforce, boosted Inline's capacity to fulfill growing customer demand. Susan Thomas, President, Melville Charitable Trust Putting an end to homelessness has been a focal point for Susan omas' career. omas is president of the Melville Charitable Trust, which is headquartered on Church Street in New Haven. She was picked for the position in 2020, and as president she oversees the trust's grant- making strategy, philanthropic partnerships and administration. e trust dates back to 1990, and gets its name from the Melville family, philanthropists and leaders of the Melville Corp., a retailer whose holdings at one time included om McAn shoes, Marshalls department stores and the CVS pharmacy chain. Since its 1990 launch, the Melville Trust has given more than $165 million in grants to organizations committed to ending homelessness. Recent examples of its grants include $250,000 for the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness and $250,000 for Habitat for Humanity. omas was at the helm when the trust in 2021 launched a new grant-making strategy focused on underlying conditions that cause homelessness and housing instability, and the people most impacted, including minorities and those with extremely low incomes. ese factors can include issues such as employers paying low wages; racist housing, zoning and land use policies; and lack of access to quality education, according to the trust. Prior to becoming president, omas served as the trust's program director. In that role, she managed a state and national portfolio of grants with the common goal of fighting homelessness. During her tenure at the trust, omas participated in the Annie E. Casey Foundation's Fellowship program. omas credits this experience with helping the trust develop its grant-making strategy that focuses on ending homelessness for Black, indigenous and people of color. Before her career in the nonprofit world, omas worked for 15 years in the areas of accounting, management consulting and strategic planning. Diane Arnold, President & CEO, Essex Savings Bank Diane Arnold took over as president and CEO of Essex Savings Bank in the summer of 2021, becoming the first woman ever in the bank's top position. Arnold has been in banking since 1983, when she took a job as a bank teller while in college. Now she leads the bank, which has six offices, including two in Essex, and one in Chester, Madison, Old Lyme and Old Saybrook. It was first established in 1851. Arnold worked at banks in Branford and Southington before joining Essex Savings Bank in 2002. Prior to her promotion to president and CEO, Arnold had served as the bank's senior vice president and chief lending officer. Throughout her career, Arnold has served as a mentor to up-and-coming bankers, and she said she has always felt the need to share her knowledge so others have the same opportunities she did. Arnold has played a key role in developing the bank's commercial loan portfolio. When she took over as president and CEO, she said continuing to expand it was among her top priorities. Another priority for Arnold has been supporting local businesses, and she says doing so is key to the bank's past and future growth. Essex Savings reported $485 million in assets in 2020, and that figure had grown to $557 million in 2021. According to Arnold, she is focused on keeping Essex Savings up to date on the latest technology and products so it can compete with larger institutions, while providing the personal service and close customer relationships of a small community bank. Arnold also serves on the boards of both Essex Savings Bank and Essex Financial Services Inc. n

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