Board of Directors
Cynthia A. Langley
Chairman
Ms. Langley, Volunteer Recruitment Specialist, Recruitment Resources, for AARP's Volunteer Center; develops volunteer opportunities within AARP and over 25 national organizations. Ms. Langley has more than 25 years of experience with services for older adults who want to continue to apply their skills through volunteerism. As executive director of the Northampton Council on Aging in Northampton, Massachusetts, she developed and managed services and programs for older adults in areas that included volunteerism, education, and advocacy.
Ms. Langley has a B.S. in child development from Simmons College in Boston. Ms. Langley has served on the NOWCC Board since November 1997.
Frank K. Hurd
Vice Chairman
Mr. Hurd is an executive with over 20 years of management, government relations, and fiscal management experience. His extensive military career extends from command and staff positions in Korea, Germany, and the U.S. to Commander of a cavalry squadron in Europe to Chief of the U.S. Army's Senate Liaison Division.
In his current position as Vice President, Chief Operating Officer of the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI), Mr. Hurd oversees the all fiscal aspects of CRI, its sustainability efforts and manages it's federal and state advocacy programs. Mr. Hurd serves as the Chairman of the Board of the Carpet America Recovery Effort an organization dedicated to finding ways to divert carpet waste from landfills. As Managing Director, Finance and Operations, for the Chlorine Chemistry Council, he designed and implemented a computerized budget commitment tracking system and streamlined contracting and payment procedures. As Chief, Senate Liaison Division, United States Army, he functioned as the Army's prime contact with the U.S. Senate and managed a government relations staff.
Mr. Hurd's academic degrees include a Bachelor of Science from Mercer University and a Master of Science in Industrial Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Mr. Hurd was appointed to the Board in 2001.
Al Ressler
Secretary and Treasurer
From 1999 until his retirement from Federal service after thirty two years in 2003, Al was the Director for the Office of Human Resources and Statistics, Administrative Office of the U. S. Courts. In this position he was the Judiciary's senior advisor and policy advocate on judiciary-wide human resources and statistical programs. Prior to joining the Judicial Branch of government, he served in the Department of Defense for over twenty years as a human resources expert and spent over four years as the senior civilian in the Defense Logistics Agency's Senior Executive Service.
Mr. Ressler is a North Dakota native and attended North Dakota State University earning both a Bachelor of Science degree in social sciences in 1969 and a Master of Arts degree in political science in 1971. He was commissioned as a military intelligence officer in the U.S. Army in 1971 and subsequently entered Federal service in the Executive Branch in the human resources management career field. His career progression included assignments in the United States and Germany with senior management positions in human resources in the Department of Transportation and Department of Army. He was selected into the Senior Executive Service in 1989 and served in the SES until his retirement from government service in 2003.
During his career, he has been a key planner and strategist for all aspects of human resources and other administrative support functions. He is acknowledged as a change agent and an innovator in positively dealing with human capital and management issues during periods of organizational transformation and change. His professional recognition includes the Presidential Meritorious Executive Rank Award, Dept of Transportation Excellence in Leadership Award, the DLA Exceptional and Meritorious Civilian Service Awards, multiple Department of Army awards, and annual SES bonus awards. Mr. Ressler was appointed to the Board in 2004.
Teresa M. Holland
Ms. Holland brings many years of experience in labor and employment law to the NOWCC Board. She currently serves as an attorney at Epstein Becker & Green, P.C., where she advises Fortune 500 clients on a full range of labor and employment matters. She was previously the Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Secretary at Pfizer, Inc., where she led the Employment Law Group. In that role, she served as the chief employment counsel responsible for advising senior management on global human resources policies and employment issues for more than 120,000 Pfizer employees worldwide. She also led the Pfizer employment law team in pre-merger planning and post-merger integration during the Warner Lambert and Pharmacia acquisitions.
Ms. Holland earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas and her law degree from Albany Law School of Union University. Ms. Holland was appointed to the Board in October 2005.
W. Joseph Stearns
Mr. Stearns had a 30-year career with Dow Chemical in marketing, sales management, as District Sales Manager, General Sales Manager, Zone Vice President, and finally as Corporate Chlorine Issue Manager.
At present he is consulting for Chlorine Chemistry Council International Affairs, including representing industry in multiple UNEP treaty negotiations.
His board experience over the years has been with the Sam Houston Council of Boy Scouts of America, the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association, Executive Committee & Treasurer, the Eagle Valley Humane Society, Treasurer of the Homeowners Association, President. He received his BS in Chemistry, Wichita State University in 1967, and his MS in Chemistry, Wichita State University in 1968, and an MBA from University of Houston in 1973. Mr. Stearns was appointed to the Board in 2003.