President, Brandie Laughner
Brandie Laughner is a 2022 graduate of PennState’s Master of Professional Studies (M.P.S.) program in Human Resources and Employment Relations (HRER) where she concentrated on Employment and Labor Law, and Ethics & Organizational Leadership. She also possesses two Bachelor of Science degrees from PennState—one in Labor and Employment Relations, the other in Psychology.
Her prior professional experience includes sales, administrative, photography, and an HR generalist equivalent role in a hybrid photography studio/sales Management position that ignited her passion for employment law. Her most recent work has been focused on the provision of HR consultation services that began following an action research Capstone project for a 3PL and expedite logistics organization.
As a founding member of V LERA since its inception in 2018, she has served on the Board in various roles over the years, beginning as Secretary in 2018, then serving as the Vice President from early 2021 before her recent election as President in early 2023.
Vice President, Kimberly Eyssen
Kimberly Eyssen is currently a Payroll/HR Specialist at the Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene (RFMH), based in Albany, NY. Kimberly has over 6 years of experience in the human resources field in a diverse range of sectors including retail, public university systems, and non-profit organizations. Before her work as a Payroll/HR Specialist with RFMH, Kimberly worked as an HR Associate/Analyst with the State University of New York System Administration Office, and a Team Member Services Admin at Whole Foods Market.
Kimberly’s professional experience includes payroll/benefits administration, HR compliance, training and development, and recruitment. Kimberly holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the State University of New York at Albany and is currently a graduate student at Penn State World Campus working toward her Master of Professional Studies in Human Resources and Employment Relations and a graduate certificate in Organization Development Essentials.
Treasurer, Antone Aboud
Antone Aboud, Ph.D. is a Professor of Practice at the School of Labor and Employment Relations at Penn State. He is also the Online Program Team Leader. In that capacity, he is not only involved in the daily management of the online programs but also actively involved in course creation and revision processes as well as the School’s Outreach Program.
Antone’s graduate degree is in Collective Bargaining, Labor Law and Labor History from the ILR School at Cornell. Originally he worked full-time in SUNY’s Office of Faculty and Staff Relations, became a faculty member at SUNY (Utica/Rome and Potsdam) and then at St. Francis College. In those capacities, he taught Labor Relations, HR Management, Labor Law, Management Theory and Organizational Behavior. He also served as a labor arbitrator for several years, and as a chief labor negotiator for both unions and employers.
In the mid-1980’s he created his own consulting firm, focusing primarily on management and supervisory training, risk management and workplace investigations. He worked in that capacity until 2013. He has authored training programs that have been taught in more than 40 states as well as the District of Columbia. Most recently he has concentrated substantial effort in helping clients to identify critical changes in organizational culture that will allow quality management initiatives to flourish.
Secretary, Valerie Braman
(Photo and Bio coming soon!)