Michael Betteken (he/him)

I am excited to be a part of this CNG board and serve as the historian. At Cornell, I am the Senior Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) administrator within the Office of Research Integrity and Assurance (ORIA) part of the Research Division. Before coming to Cornell, I worked to support a new chapter of PFLAG in North Carolina to support the parents of the local LGBTQ+ youth and to create a safe space for this group. I am very passionate about LGBTQ+ representation in all professionals and am looking forward to supporting LGBTQ+ staff here at Cornell. In my free time you can find me creating artisan soap and taking care of my cats and dog.

Sue Brightly (she/her)

Hi there! I’m currently serving as one of our board co-chairs. I work in HR Communications, and have been at Cornell for over seven years. I'm also an artist on the Ithaca Art Trail! I’m grateful for the opportunity to help make Cornell a more welcoming workplace and to support our LGBTQ+ community. I'm especially interested in advocating for LGBTQ+ families. Feel free to reach out with questions, suggestions, or just to say hi:  skk72@cornell.edu

Crissi Dalfonzo (she/her)

Hey y’all! I currently serve as one of the co-chairs of the CNG board. I’ve been at Cornell for three and a half years, working in the LGBT Resource Center the whole time. I’m passionate about social justice education, Inclusive language, and creating community. One of my top priorities on the board is creating opportunities for LGBTQ+ staff and faculty to connect with one another and form community. Outside of work, I’m a dog mom, lover of all things sparkle and rainbow unicorn, and a lifelong knitter of over 20 years. Feel free to contact me at cd589@cornell.edu with questions or ideas!

Foula Dimopoulos (ze/hir/hirs/hirself | he/him/his/his self)

(Bio & photo coming)

Zoe Roberts (she/her)

I’ve been a part of Cornell’s LGBTQ+ community since 2016 – first as an undergrad student with Haven (the student LGBTQ+ org), and now as an employee serving as a board member-at-large for our Colleague Network Group! I graduated with a B.A. in Information Science in 2020, and joined eCornell’s Product Team as an Associate Product Manager in March 2021. I enjoy living in Ithaca with my partner and cat, though I do miss the mountains in my home state Colorado. I love all things creative!

I look forward to creating opportunities for folks to connect with one another and build community! As a younger and newer employee, I also hope to welcome and be a resource for others in a similar place. My inbox is always open: Zer3@cornell.edu

Peter Vaillancourt (he/him)

Hello everyone, I am very excited to be joining the board of the LGBTQ+ Colleague Network Group (CNG) serving as a member-at-large!  I am a Computational Scientist in the Center for Advanced Computing (CAC) which is part of the Research Division at Cornell.

Some of my work includes projects related to the intersection of advanced computing and social change as well as Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives within academia, the technology industry, and the High-Performance Computing (HPC) community specifically.  I have a passion for creating safe, welcoming, and inclusive spaces where everyone can be their full selves, and thus thrive together to solve the urgent problems our world is facing.  I especially see the need for current Cornell staff and faculty to have these spaces so that we have a framework with which to welcome diverse students and younger generations into the higher education space.  I am glad to be a part of maintaining that space here through our CNG, and welcome all people with LGBTQIA+ identities to participate.

I also take graduate classes at Cornell in applied mathematics part-time, and read math books for fun.  Outside of work and academics, I love spending time with my wife/life partner and our pets, playing the drums, and I’m just getting back into cycling, running, and rock climbing after my third knee surgery.  If you are curious to know more about the CAC or my research, you can learn more here.  Please feel free to email me if you would like to connect or are curious to know more.