Jennifer Mercurio, Director,
Public Affairs & Strategic Alliances

Jennifer Mercurio, who joined AGS as Director of Public Affairs and Strategic Alliances in November, has extensive experience in law, government, and public affairs.

A graduate of Columbia University's Barnard College, Mercurio worked as a media analyst in Kathleen Brown's California gubernatorial campaign, and while studying for her law degree at Brooklyn Law School she began working for former Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields. Admitted to the New York State Bar in 1998, Mercurio served as Fields' Deputy Counsel for Women's Policy and Land Use and went on to work as an associate in the law offices of Howard Goldman.

For several years, Mercurio was Associate General Counsel & Director of State Legislative Affairs for the Entertainment Software Association, a post she held before becoming the Director of Government Relations & Legal Affairs for the YMCA of Greater New York. In 2004, Mercurio created JB Mercurio & Associates, Ltd., a successful full-service government and community affairs and fundraising firm, of which she is President. She also serves on several Boards, including the New York Alliance Against Sexual Assault, the Citizen's Union Reform Leaders, and the New York Junior League Non-Profit Board Clearinghouse Committee.

Working for an organization dedicated to ensuring that older adults have access to quality healthcare appealed to Mercurio.

"The growing need for quality healthcare for aging Americans touches all of us," she says. "It's going to drive public discourse for the coming decades. AGS is perfectly placed to be one of the leading voices in this discussion, and I look forward to being part of it."

Mercurio knows -- firsthand -- the importance of ensuring that older adults have access to appropriate healthcare.

"My family has had and does have older family members with long-term health concerns and issues," she explains. "My family has also spent over a decade dealing with assisted care facilities for my grandmother, as she has slipped farther and farther into dementia. It's pretty obvious to me that the need for appropriate healthcare for older adults directly affects us all, and that AGS' mission directly impacts that effect."

At the AGS, Mercurio is responsible for developing short- medium- and long-term strategies concerning advocacy, public affairs, coalition building, grassroots activity and public policy. She will work with AGS leadership to develop the society's key messages and partnerships, alliances and strategies in these areas. In addition to further raising awareness of the AGS, its membership and its mission, she will, among other things, initiate and manage partnership relationships with key stakeholders -- healthcare, medical and aging groups -- that support these efforts.

Lee Rubenstein, Coordinator,
Public Affairs & Advocacy

A recent Oberlin College graduate with a background in non-profit and public sector work, Lee Rubenstein joined AGS as Coordinator for Pubic Affairs and Advocacy in January. Rubenstein is responsible for organizing public affairs and advocacy initiatives, meetings related to these initiatives, and day-to-day operations that ensure these projects progress in a timely manner. He reports to Jennifer Mercurio, AGS' new Director for Public Affairs and Strategic Alliances. (See left)

While at Oberlin, where he majored in history, Rubenstein worked for two nonprofit organizations and a political campaign. A grassroots organizer with OhioPIRG's Oberlin Chapter, Rubenstein was a member of the chapter's Board of Directors, and proposed and organized chapter advocacy campaigns. He was involved in publicity and volunteer recruitment efforts for Teach for American in both Oberlin and in New York City. During the summer of 2005, he joined Scott Stringer's successful campaign for Manhattan Borough President in New York City, working on campaign publications and voter outreach, among other things.

After graduating last June, Rubenstein joined Stringer's staff as Special Assistant to the Borough President. His responsibilities included facilitating and helping coordinate Stringer's meetings with the public, maintaining the Borough President's Web site, and writing talking points and office correspondence such as letters and proclamations.

"Something that I found while working with such a variety of non-profits and constituencies was that most social problems have a number of overlapping causes," says Rubenstein. "Therefore, enacting a solution in one field can have unexpected positive benefits in other areas. What attracted me to the AGS is that as the elderly population continues to grow, the effect of senior issues upon other facets of society is going to grow as well. America needs to start enacting solutions before things get out of hand."