Community Services Board Overview

Each county in New York State is required under NYS Mental Hygiene Law to have a Community Services Board. In Monroe County, the Community Services Board (CSB) acts in an advisory capacity to the Director of Mental Health. The CSB provides advice for the Monroe County Office of Mental Health about:

• Needs of persons with mental disabilities
• System-wide priorities
• Development of local services programs
• Establishment of long-range goals
• Development of intermediate range plans and forecasts.

The CSB is comprised of fifteen (15) persons from the community that have demonstrated an interest in the field of services for persons with mental disabilities. The CSB has three standing subcommittees:

• Alcoholism and Substance Use Subcommittee
• Mental Health Subcommittee
• Developmental Disabilities Subcommittee

These subcommittees are comprised of CSB members and other interested persons from the community. The subcommittees represent the community's interests in each area and serve to assist the Board with their advisory responsibility.

The Community Services Board meets monthly on the second Tuesday of the month from 3:30 until 5:00 p.m. at the Monroe County Office of Mental Health. Board meetings are open to the public. It is recommended that persons interested in attending any meeting should call the Office of Mental Health at 585 753-6047 the day of the meeting to confirm the meeting is being held as scheduled.

2024 CSB Meeting Dates:

• January 9, 2024
• February 13, 2024
• March 12, 2024
• April 9, 2024
• May 14, 2024
• June 11, 2024
• July 9, 2024
• August 13, 2024
• September 10, 2024
• October 8, 2024
• November 12, 2024
• December 10, 2024

Current Board Members

• Jennifer Carlson (Chair)
• TBD (Vice Chair) 
• Craig Johnson (Chair-Alcohol and Substance Use Subcommittee)
• TBD (Chair-Children and Youth Subcommittee)
• Amy Peters (Chair-Developmental/Intellectual Disabilities Subcommittee)
• Elezabi Sahar, M.D. (Chair-Mental Health Subcommittee)
• Marlene Bessette
• Cameron Farash
• Moses Robinson
• Adelaida Samuels
• Patrick Seche
• Deborah Turner
• Valerie Way
• Marielena Velez de Brown, MD (Acting Commissioner Monroe County Dept. of Public Health)
  • Representative TBD
• Thalia Wright, Ex-Officio (Commissioner, Monore County Dept. of Human Services)
  • Representative TBD

Monroe County Office of Mental Health Staff

• April Aycock, Ed.D, LMHC, Master-CASAC  (Director)
• Gretta Schaefer (Associate Director, Operations and Planning)
• Jessica Watington (Chief, Child Priority Services) (Staff Liaison, C&Y Subcommittee)
• Elizabeth Kingsley-Curran (Chief, Planning)
• Cheri Reed-Watt (Chief, Adult Priority Services (Staff Liaison, MH & IDD Subcommittees)
• Sheri Watkins (Chief, Finance)
• Christina Laman (Chief, Information Management and Analytics)
• Kris Garcia (Mental Hygiene Program Analyst) (Staff Liaison, IDD Subcommittee)
• Debra Cassidy (Administrative Assistant)

Interested In Being On the Board or a Subcommittee?

Send an email outlining your area of interest along with a resume to:
[email protected]
Please use the subject line: CSB Interest