Kudos…

To the new trustees of the The Music Conservatory of Westchester, a nonprofit community school in White Plains that offers music and theater instruction and education, as well as music therapy. They are Jon Pundyk, Gary E. Bashian, and Mayo Bartlett. The appointments were announced by board president Siew Leng Chuah.

Gary E. Bashian, a Greenwich resident, is a principal at Bashian and Farber LLP, practicing in estates and trusts, estate litigation, guardianship litigation, business planning, corporate and commercial litigation, and nonprofit corporation law. Bashian currently serves as vice-chair of the estate litigation committee of the New York State Bar Association’s trust and estates law section, and has previously served on the executive committee of the New York State Bar Associate’s elder law section. He is a former chair of the trusts and estates section, has served as the chair of the tax section of the Westchester County Bar Association, and was a director of the Estate Planning Council of Westchester. Bashian is a past president of the Westchester County Bar Association, serving from 1995 to 1997.  Bashian formerly served as a director of the YMCA of Central and Northern Westchester and is the former general counsel for the United States Tennis Association/eastern section. 

Mayo Bartlett, a White Plains resident, is a partner at Young & Bartlett, LLP, a law firm focusing on plaintiff’s personal injury, criminal defense, and civil rights matters. He previously worked in the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office and served as a litigator in the Superior Court Trial Division prior to his appointment as the chief of the Bias Crimes Unit.  Bartlett is currently a vice president of the Westchester County Bar Association, where he is also a member of the judiciary committee, and is a former director of the Westchester County Black Bar Association and the former chair of the Westchester County Human Rights Commission.  Bartlett was an active member of the New York State Hate Crimes Coalition, an organization that played a pivotal role in the passage of the Hate Crime Act of 2000. Bartlett currently serves on the advisory board of the Westchester Holocaust Education Center, is a director of CLUSTER (Congregations Linked in Urban Strategy to Effect Renewal), the New York Civil Liberties Union, and the Legal Aid Society of Westchester County, and is a member of the African American Men of Westchester. He has also served as an adjunct professor of law at Pace Law School.

Pundyk, a Rye resident, is the CEO of Glamorise Foundations, Inc. Prior to joining Glamorise, Pundyk was a consultant with Booz-Allen & Hamilton (now Booz & Co.,) where he worked with the strategy practice group and specialized in growth strategies for consumer product companies.  Additionally, Pundyk held a variety of brand marketing positions at Proctor & Gamble. Pundyk earned an MBA from the Tuck School at Dartmouth College and a bachelor’s of science degree from Cornell University. 

“Mr. Pundyk, Mr. Bashian, and Mr. Bartlett’s impressive backgrounds will bring new and great perspectives to the Music Conservatory of Westchester,” said Carol Shiffman, executive director. “All are longtime advocates of the musical arts, having given their time and talents for decades. We are pleased and privileged to welcome them to our board.”

The conservatory is located at 216 Central Ave. For information about classes, call 761-3900 or visit the new Website at musicconservatory.org.