SUII Fellows

Elizabeth “Betsy” Parmley, P.E., is the Director of the I-81 Viaduct Project, the largest infrastructure project in New York State Department of Transportation’s history. She began her career with NYSDOT in 2005 as a Junior Engineer and worked her way up to lead NYSDOT’s Central New York Traffic Safety & Mobility Group, before officially joining the I-81 Viaduct Project team as a Project Manager in 2021. Two years later Betsy is now leading the $2.25 billion project.

Gary LaBarbera has served since 2009 as president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York, an organization comprising local affiliates of 15 national and international unions representing 100,000 working men and women in New York City. In 2021, Mr.  LaBarbera was elected President of the New York State Building and Construction Trades Council, which is comprised of 15 local building trades councils, 12 district councils and state associations, and 135 local unions and represents 200,000 tradespeople across the entire state. In addition to his work with the public sector, Mr. LaBarbera has helped bring approximately $200 billion of private work under project labor agreements in New York City, creating tens of thousands of union construction jobs in the process.

Matthew J. Driscoll served as the Executive Director of the NYS Thruway Authority from 2018 through 2022 overseeing one of the longest toll systems in the United States, spanning 570 miles across New York State. From 2015 to 2018, Mr. Driscoll served as Commissioner of the New York State Department of Transportation, leading a department of 8,300 employees with an annual capital program of $3.7 billion. From 2010 to 2015, Mr. Driscoll served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC), which provides low-cost financing to local governments for wastewater and drinking water infrastructure. From 2001 through 2009, Mr. Driscoll served as the 52nd Mayor of the City of Syracuse.

Chris Beck the Senior Vice President of Turner New York’s Business Unit, where he provides leadership for all Turner staff and projects throughout the Northeast Region. Chris Beck is responsible for executive oversight of preconstruction and construction management services for Turner’s New York Region. Chris has held a variety of roles during his career. He was Business Manager for Turner’s Somerset, New Jersey office before subsequently launching the Turner Houston office’s Interiors & Special Projects Division. He next held the role of Vice President and General Manager of Turner’s national risk management team and was responsible for both contractual and insurance risk analyses within the company’s entire portfolio.
In 2012, Chris became Vice President and General Manager of the Philadelphia office; in 2016, he was promoted to Senior Vice President and assumed overall responsibility for Turner’s Pennsylvania-New Jersey offices. In 2019, Chris also assumed leadership of the Mid-Atlantic Region. He currently serves on several boards, including the oldest builder’s guild in the nation, the Carpenters Company of the City and County, the Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)’s New York Chapter, New York Building Congress, and Contractors’ Association of Greater New York, Inc. (CAGNY).”