Edward Thompson

Vice President for Advancement, Molloy College

Paul Tonna

Excutive Director for The Energeia Partnership

Paul Tonna serves as Molloy College's Executive Director for The Energeia Partnership, a leadership academy dedicated to identifying and addressing the serious, complex and multi-dimensional issues challenging the Long Island region.

Mr. Tonna served from 1994 to 2005 as a Suffolk County Legislator and for three years, 2000, 2001, and 2002, his fellow legislators chose him to lead the Suffolk County Legislature as its Presiding Officer. During Legislator Tonna's 12 years of elected office, he had been a strong advocate for the poor, homeless and marginalized on Long Island, affordable housing, labor organizations and the environment. He sponsored, co-sponsored, and passed numerous laws and/or initiatives including: ground breaking non-smoking legislation; innovative programs focused on eliminating child poverty and homelessness; legislation designed to elevate the standard of living for all Suffolk County residents and innovative Greenways Funds to protect open space, farmlands and parklands.

Paul Tonna is a strong advocate of immigrants working and living on Long Island. The 2003 award-winning film documentary Farmingville chronicled some of those efforts. He has appeared on numerous radio and TV shows including: Lou Dobbs, CNN; The Oxygen Network; LI Telecare; The Rosie O'Donnell Show; News 12 Long Island; NBC News 4 and PBS WLIW 21. 

Mr. Tonna is an Adjunct Professor in Theology & Religious Studies at St. John's University. He serves as Vice-Chairman of The Long Island Regional Planning Board; Trustee of the Long Island State Parks & Recreation Commission and Public Trustee of the Stationary Engineer's Industry Stabilization Fund. Mr. Tonna is a board member of: LI Medical Center Foundation, Advanced Energy Research & Technology Center, The Long Island Index and Erase Racism's College of Advisors. Mr. Tonna serves as a founding director of Empire National Bank and a Commissioner of the South Huntington Water District. 

Paul Tonna has received many awards and honors including: Molloy College's Caritas Medal; St. John's University St. Vincent De Paul Medal; Suffolk County Human Rights Commission Legislator of the Year; National Association of Social Workers Public Citizen of the Year; Habitat for Humanity Man of the Year; The Nature Conservancy's Conservation Award Recipient; Networking Magazine's David Award and Long Island Business News 50 Around 50 Award.

Mr. Tonna earned an undergraduate degree in philosophy from New York University, a Masters of Arts degree in theology from Immaculate Conception Seminary and conducted doctoral studies in systematic theology at Fordham University. Paul Tonna resides in Huntington, New York with his wife Carol and his children: Peter, Paul, John, Grace, Mary, Carolann, Joseph and Lucy.

 

Nancy Engelhardt
Director of The Energeia Partnership

Nancy Engelhardt was an integral part of the team that founded and launched The Energeia Partnership, the Academy for Regional Stewardship at Molloy College in 2006. Energeia brings together proven and ethical leaders across Long Island to provide them with the information, support and the network necessary to help create change. Nancy designed and  implements the pedagogy, content and core curriculum for 12 – 15 dynamic workshops every year including: Energy, Land Use, Education, Institutional Racism, Criminal Justice, Health Care, Poverty, Transportation, Media and more. Nancy is the “master facilitator” and continually creates opportunities and parallel programs that teach groups how to work together more efficiently and effectively.

There are currently over 250 graduates and board members of the Energeia Partnership who represent government, business, not for profit organizations and whom sit on over 200 boards and commissions across the region. Our goal, Nancy states, is to be a catalyst for transformation and create a network of practitioners or change agents for the collaborative problem-solving necessary to meet the challenges we face.  The Energeia Partnership has embraced the challenge of one of her all time heroes, the late John W. Gardner “no more regionalism for its own sake.  We now need pragmatic regionalism with a purpose.” 

Nancy’s diverse and entrepreneurial background combined with her commitment to social justice, has prepared her to lead this successful program on Long Island.  In addition to her leadership role with the Energeia Partnership, Nancy served as President of Splashes of Hope and Executive Director of Leadership Huntington. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Pal-O-Mine Equestrian, is a founding board member and Chair of the 13th chapter of the National Social Enterprise Alliance on Long Island and a member of the Education Committee for the Long Island Arts Alliance. After 25 years in Huntington, Nancy now lives in the Town of Babylon and was recently appointed to the IDA board.

Recent Recognitions include 2009 Long Island Business News “50 People Around 50” Making a Difference in the Region, 2010 “Distinguished Citizen Award” Leadership Huntington’s 15th Year Celebration, 2011 “Woman of the Year” by the National Association of Professional Women. In 2012 she appeared on the cover of The Corridor, Long Island’s Journal for Strategic Alliances, was honored by Long Island Business News as one of the 50 Most Influential Women on Long Island and was one of 50 people selected for the 2012 POWER LIST published by Long Island Press.

Personally, Nancy makes time for art and music, hiking, traveling and nurturing relationships, especially with the wonderful women in her life. She is proud of hiking Half Dome at Yosemite, painting landscapes in Tuscany, recording a Christmas CD with a Contemporary Choir. Last but never least, Nancy is devoted to her family who blesses her life with unconditional love and support and is the proud mom of two young adults, Jarrett and Brittany Pagano.