About Brian
Guardian of the People
Chittenden District 15 · Burlington, Vermont
The struggle is the soil from which hope grows.
I was born and raised in northeastern New Jersey. Most of my family immigrated to the United States from Sicily around the turn of the 20th century. I grew up in a home with a large extended family that was multi-generational and multi-cultural, in which my grandparents spoke Sicilian, yet I was raised to be an American. I grew up in a community that was extremely diverse, surrounded and influenced by cultures from all over the planet.
I experienced firsthand the struggle of being in a working class family, living between the extreme poverty and excessive wealth that exists in greater New York City. I learned early in my life about the reality of inequality, and have always had a commitment to challenging the oppression and violence that has impacted me and others from similar and different backgrounds.
Timeline
A life of service.
Volunteered at Passaic General Hospital in New Jersey (until 1994)
Graduated Dartmouth College, Bachelor's in Music
Moved to Burlington and served as AmeriCorps member at Spectrum Youth & Family Services
Co-Chair of Pride Vermont during the push for marriage equality (until 2003)
Earned Master's Degree in Social Work from University of Vermont
Co-founded ISGOOD (Isham Street Gardening and Other Optimistic Doings)
Founded private clinical social work practice
Elected Burlington School Commissioner (served 2014–2017)
First elected to Vermont House of Representatives
Served on Vermont Artificial Intelligence Task Force
Transatlantic Fellow in Artificial Intelligence Policy with the Congressional European Parliamentary Initiative (CEPI)
Joined Board of Directors of Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO)
Appointed to Vermont Land Access and Opportunity Board
Opioid Policy Fellow with the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)
Running for re-election as State Representative for House District Chittenden 15
Education & Career
Education & Social Work
I worked very hard throughout school, and despite being from one of the poorest high schools in Bergen County, I was able to attend Dartmouth College due to their commitment to need-blind admissions and their generous financial aid. I graduated from Dartmouth in 1998 as a Senior Fellow, with a Bachelor's Degree in Music.
I moved to Burlington, Vermont, to be an AmeriCorps member at Spectrum Youth and Family Services. While at Spectrum, I fell in love with the profession of Social Work. I eventually attended the University of Vermont where I received a Master's Degree in Social Work in 2005.
Since graduate school, I have worked as a substitute crisis clinician for First Call at HowardCenter, a family support worker and social services supervisor for Transitional Services for Youth and Families, and after earning my social work license, I started my own private practice in clinical social work in 2010. I engage in psychotherapy with a diverse range of clients, mostly age 5–18, and their families.
Public Service
School Commissioner & Community Organizer
My social work experience was vital to my role as School Commissioner from 2014–2017. The schools are as influential on our children as our homes. I understand child development and how the physical and social environment affects the growth of humans. As a State Representative, I continue to be committed to seeing the school system evolve in ways that further the health and wellness of all of our children.
I want all students to have more opportunities for success, and to be able to overcome their challenges to achieve their goals and dreams, just like I did. I want them to have a fighting chance in a world where the odds have been stacked against them.
Community Organizing
ISGOOD: Transforming Isham Street
In addition to my social work with individuals and families, I have been involved in an important community-organizing effort for the past 19 years. I am the co-founder of a neighborhood group called ISGOOD (Isham Street Gardening and Other Optimistic Doings). The purpose of ISGOOD is to change the social environment of my street through collaborative reclamation of the physical environment.
Isham Street is one of the most neglected streets in our city, populated mostly by college students who have historically been disconnected from the impact of their actions and not invested in their neighborhood. By building community with the long-term residents of the street, I have worked to slowly change the culture of the block through gardening. We have created small community gardens in the greenbelts and on private land.
We have developed partnerships with UVM Office of Student and Community Relations, other neighborhood groups, and Burlington Health and Rehab. We have been awarded grants from the AARP and CEDO. Together we continue the transformation of one of Burlington's dirtiest and noisiest streets into an urban oasis of permaculture and social harmony — where people care for each other and their surroundings.
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