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Our Team

Zehra Abid-Wood, President

Zehra Abid-Wood joined Lasell Village in Spring 2023. She brings with her more than two decades of leadership experience, most recently as senior vice president of strategy and transformation at AlerisLife (formerly Five Star Senior Living). Previously, she was director of project and portfolio management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In prior roles, she was responsible for a staff of more than 150 employees, and oversaw several capital development projects, in addition to holding multiple interim C-suite leadership roles during pivotal transition periods. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Williams College and spent a year studying abroad at Oxford University.

“I am committed to helping reshape the future of aging in place and the continued pursuit of lifelong learning. Lasell Village and Lasell University have such a special relationship that offers countless opportunities for continued growth, partnership, and transformational initiatives in education across the lifespan.”

John Dixon, PhD, Dean of Education

John optimizes Lasell Village’s relationship with Lasell University to ensure courses offered at the Village are intriguing, challenging and interesting. John appreciates that education is at the heart of Lasell Village. He obtained a BS in ceramic and materials engineering and a BA in history from Clemson University, and holds a PhD in American civilization from Harvard University. John brings a range of educational experience as a teaching fellow, an educational website designer and an academic director.

Cheryl Sacks, Director of Marketing and Sales
Cheryl brings years of experience in management to Lasell Village. She started her career in the travel industry in marketing and sales, worked many years in women’s health, became a management consultant, and has now come full circle back to marketing and sales in her hometown of Newton. She graduated from Union College with a bachelor’s degree in sociology.
Pamela DelliCarpini, Director of Human Resources

Pamela joined the Village in 2016 with over 20 years of Human Resources experience. She began her career in management at Dun & Bradstreet and later became the VP of Operations for the Credit Network. Pamela has delivered on all aspects of Human Resources from talent acquisition and benefits administration, to performance management and development.

She enjoys the positive impact she brings to the Village by partnering with the management team to create a culture of caring at Lasell.

 

Alessandro Vianello, Chief Financial Officer

Alessandro Vianello brings Fortune 10 and government experience as well as an international background and a small cap investing perspective to Lasell Village.

Alessandro earned his M.S. in Finance  with Distinction from the McCallum Graduate School of Business at Bentley University and an undergraduate degree in Economics and Business from Ca’ Foscari University in Venice, Italy.

A native of Venice, Alessandro is married with two children and resides in Brookline, MA.  He enjoys cooking and has an extensive knowledge of Italian wines. Alessandro is a founding member of Italian Professionals in Boston (PIB) which has grown to over 1,400 members. You can also find him on the soccer field, coaching Brookline Youth Soccer.

 

Ben Bailey, Assistant Vice President of Facilities and Capital Management

Ben brings over 25 years of experience in facility management at senior living communities.  His responsibilities range from overseeing daily building upkeep to managing all capital projects and renovations.  Ben and his team keep our community safe, secure, up to date and comfortable for all our residents and staff.   Ben’s hand is in all we do at Lasell Village, from keeping our hallways appropriately lit, to managing major construction projects and even installing solar panels to keep Lasell Village’s commitment to conserving energy.  Ben is a graduate of UMass Boston with a bachelor’s degree in History.

Jessica Horsman, BSRN, Director of Health and Wellness

Jessica brings many years of healthcare management to Lasell Village. Prior to her role as Director of Health and Wellness at Lasell Village, Jessica served as the Director of Public Health for both the Town of Seekonk and the City of Attleboro and led the Covid response for those municipalities along with managing the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Covid Vaccination Sites.

Jessica has based her career on bringing innovation and empathy to healthcare.  As the Director of Health & Wellness, she is responsible for the operation of our Wellness Center, which serves the community seven days a week for both day-to-day needs and emergency situations, along with oversight of our supported living center,  Lasell Studios.

Jessica earned her undergraduate degree from Bryant University concentrating in Finance and Legal and later became a Registered Nurse. She is currently completing her MBA in Innovative Health Leadership at Bryant University.  She is a native of Fall River and resides there with her husband and two sons.  Jessica and her husband enjoy DIY home improvement projects on their historic home and supporting the local arts and business.

Aaron St. Laurent, Lasell House Administrator

Aaron joined Lasell Village in December 2021. He brings over 17 years of experience in the long-term care industry and began his career in skilled nursing facilities as a certified nursing assistant. Aaron held many roles before he ultimately became a licensed nursing home administrator in 2019 .

Aaron and his team are focused on providing exceptional clinical and customer care experience to all they serve. He holds a BS in Biology from the University of Massachusetts.

Armando Lopez, Executive Chef

Armando manages the culinary team that is responsible for all the dining venues at Lasell Village. He has been at Lasell since the opening in 2000, starting as the Sous Chef, and becoming the Executive Chef in 2003. He brings a background of fine dining and hospitality. He was trained using scratch- cooking techniques, and is certified in Food and Nutrition Management from the University National of Mexico City. Armando creates assorted delicious menus, appealing to a variety of needs and palates. Lasell Village is known for its excellent food.


 

Board of Trustees 

Jeffrey Simon, Chair

Senior Principal, Stantec (retired)

Christine Doyle, Vice Chair

Interim CFO of the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth

Susan Hass, Clerk

Professor, Simmons College School of Business (retired)

Jeffrey Augustine

Principal, Augustine Financial Solutions, LLC

Deborah Daccord

Attorney, Co-Chair Health Care Transactions Group, Mintz Levin

Julia Gallagher, M.D.

Massachusetts General Hospital,
Division of Palliative Care

Nkem Okeke, M.D.

CEO and President, Medicalincs, LLC

Laurie Samuels Pascal

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Caroline Schastny

Lasell Village Resident Trustee

Kathy Swartz

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (retired)

Judith Tsipis

Lasell Village Resident Trustee


 

Ex Officio Members

Eric Turner

President, Lasell University

Zehra Abid-Wood

President Lasell Village, Vice President Lasell University

Gerry DeRoche

Chair, Lasell University Board of Trustees

Andrew Maylor, Assistant Treasurer

Vice President of Finance & Operations and CFO, Lasell University

Wilma Rosenberg

Chair, Lasell Village Resident Advisory Council

Joann Montepare

Director, Rose Mary B. Fuss Center for Research on Aging and Intergenerational Studies, Lasell University

Margery Silver, Trustee Emerita

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