DRINY
Founders and Directors
We have a dedicated team of experienced professionals. We utilize our unique skills and passion to achieve proactive solutions, collectively.
Meet some of our incredible leaders below.
Joshua E. Bienstock
Founder and Director
Joshua obtained a BA in Accounting from Queens College and a JD from Hofstra Law School, graduating with honors in Labor Law. He received a LLM in Labor Law from New York University Law School.
Today Joshua is a principal in the Law Offices of Joshua E. Bienstock, PLLC, a labor and employment law firm. He is also a court appointed mediator resolving disputes between attorneys and their clients, and as a panel mediator for the American Arbitration Association resolving disputes between victims of Storm Sandy and their insurance companies. He is the founder and Director of Resolve It, Inc., a human resources and labor education center and Dispute Resolution Institute of New York a dispute resolution think tank. He has taught for more than two decades at various educational institutions including Cornell University, the City University of New York ("CUNY"), New York Institute of Technology (“NYIT”), the Labor-Management Center and Dowling College both on the undergraduate and graduate levels. Subjects taught include alternative dispute resolution, negotiation, mediation, arbitration, labor and employment law, business law and human resource practices/procedures. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Queens Chamber of Commerce.
He has been a guest lecturer at Cornell University and CUNY addressing visiting foreign academics and professionals from China and Vietnam on issues such as dispute resolution and negotiation. He also presents workshops to various management and labor groups including at NYIT on dispute resolution to the business community, and, at the Long Island Federation of Labor for the labor community. In the not for profit world he also conducts programs in dispute resolution at FEGS.
He has established scholarships for students who demonstrate academic excellence but are financially in need.
Stacey Baez, SHRM-CP
Director
Stacey Baez received her BA in Human Resources & Labor Relations from SUNY Old Westbury and her Masters Degree in Human Resource & Labor Relations from NYIT. During the course of her studies she focused on alternative dispute resolution, and served as an intern with NYSUT and Resolve It, Inc., She currently is an adjunct professor for New York Institute of Technology, School of Management, Center for Human Resources undergraduate program, and Stonybrook University, School for Professional Development, Human Resources and Labor Relations graduate program. She serves on the board and is membership chair of the LI Labor and Employment Relations Association. As a Director with DRINY, she writes and presents educational programs on a variety of workplace and personal growth topics and issues, to multiple businesses and educational institutions, including the Department of Labor, Town of Hempstead, LI AFL-CIO, and the Long Island Library Resource Council.
Vincent L. Petraro
Director
Vincent received his JD law degree from St. John's University School of Law School in 1980. He earned a BA in Government and Politics from St. John's University in 1977. Vincent's law practice involves Labor and Employment, Zoning and Land Use as well Government Relations; He lectures on issues at seminars for employers in Queens and Long Island and before labor groups including the Long Island Federation of Labor. Vincent has served as a guest lecturer at Cornell and CUNY for visiting academics on topics related to negotiation and conflict resolution, and, has also served as a guest lecturer for students at Cornell, NYIT and CUNY in negotiation, mediation, arbitration, dispute resolution and business law.
Vincent plays a lead role with the Community Mayors, Inc. an all-volunteer 501-C-3 organization that has been providing recreational therapy for children with special needs from the New York metro area for more than fifty years. He is a member of its Board of Directors, Community Mayor of Midtown Manhattan and its Deputy Chief Mayor. He also serves on the Queens Chamber of Commerce Executive Board, its Board of Directors and serves as Chair of its Legislative Committee. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Queens Chamber of Commerce Foundation.