The board of directors of the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies has elected Donna Sytek of Salem as chair of the Center. The Center is an independent, not-for-profit, non-partisan organization that provides objective information and analysis on issues facing state policy makers.

 

Ms. Sytek is a veteran of New Hampshire politics, having served as Speaker of the New HampshireHouse of Representatives, chairman of the NH Republican Party, and for 23 years as a state representative from Salem.

 

Founding chair, Martin Gross, of Concord, continues to serve the Center as its chair emeritus. Mr. Gross is senior counsel with the Concordlaw firm of Sulloway & Hollis, P.L.L.C. He served as counsel to two New Hampshire governors and is a former mayor of Concord. He currently chairs the Community Health Center Advisory Committee of Bi-State Primary Care Association.

 

Todd I. Selig, administrator for the town of Durham, has been named asthe board’s vice chair. Mr. Selig has served in a variety of municipal and school administrative positions in New Hampshire communities, including Raymond, Laconia, New Boston and Hopkinton.

 

Brian F. Walsh of Hanover has been elected secretary-treasurer of the Center. Mr. Walsh chairs the Hanover Board of Selectmen and is the founder and original CEO of three technology start-up companies.

 

Sheila T. Francoeur of Hampton has been elected to the Center’s board. Ms. Francoeur was a New Hampshire State Representative for ten years. During that time she served as Speaker Pro Tem, Majority Whip and Chair of the Commerce Committee.

 

Continuing to serve on the Center’s board of directors are:

 

·        John B. Andrews, executive director of the NH Local Government Center (formerly the NH Municipal Association). Mr. Andrews serves on the Governor's Citizens Health Initiative, the NH Bar Association's Board of Governors and is a Trustee of the NH Bar Foundation.

 

·        John D. Crosier, Sr. of Dover. Mr. Crosier retired as president of the Business & Industry Association of New Hampshire, and is a trustee of the University System of New Hampshire. He was a founding board member of Leadership New Hampshire.

 

·        Chuck Morse of Salem. Mr. Morse served as a New Hampshire State Senator for four years and was chair of the Senate Finance Committee. He is a small business owner and former Salem selectman and town moderator.

 

·        Stuart V. “Mike” Smith of Lyme. Mr. Smith retired as president of Dartmouth Printing Company and currently serves on the board of the Conservation Law Foundation, the Audubon Society of NH’s Advisory Council, and is active with the Society for the Protection of NH Forests.

 

·        James E. Tibbetts of Colebrook. Mr. Tibbetts ispresident, chief executive officer, and director of the First Colebrook Bank. Mr. Tibbetts has 28 years experience in banking and is the chairperson of the Small Business Development Center Advisory Board, an incorporator of the New Hampshire and Northern New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, and director of the Colebrook Development Corporation.

 

·        Kimon S. Zachos of Manchester. Mr. Zachos is a partner in the Manchester law firm of Sheehan, Phinney, Bass + Green. Mr. Zachos served in the NH House of Representatives, was named NH Business Leader of the Year in 1994 by Business NH Magazine and received the Business & Industry Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000. He is currently a director of Hitchiner Manufacturing Company.

 

·        Lewis M. Feldstein of Hancock. Mr. Feldstein ispresident of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation and is a non-voting member of the Center’s board of directors. The Concord Monitor selected Mr. Feldstein as one of the “100 People Who Shaped New Hampshire in the 20th Century” and he has been named one of the most influential people in New Hampshire by Business NH Magazine.

 

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