An Important Message About BCW Leadership

I am sharing some exciting and significant leadership transition news with you today. John Ravitz, the organization’s distinguished Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, will retire effective December 31, 2026, after fifteen years of dedicated service to the Westchester business community. Noam Bramson, the former Mayor of New Rochelle, has been named Executive Vice President, Government Affairs and Economic Development, and will assume the role beginning July 1, 2026.

We will all miss John deeply. He has been a role model not only for our organization but for business associations throughout the state and beyond, setting the gold standard for how to represent members effectively at every level of government. He has developed countless initiatives that have defined the BCW and made us what we are today. He will be greatly missed. At the same time, we could not be more enthusiastic about welcoming Noam Bramson to our team. His experience as mayor of one of Westchester County’s most dynamic cities, and his first-hand role in overseeing its extraordinary economic transformation, makes him an outstanding choice to fill John’s very big shoes. We are so proud and pleased to have him join us.

Honoring John Ravitz

Fifteen years ago, I asked John to take our advocacy program and make it his own—to raise its visibility and grow it in scope. He did that, and so much more. Under his leadership, the BCW has become the eyes and ears of our members at every level of government, and a model for business advocacy organizations across New York State and the nation.

Among the landmark initiatives John created and championed:

• The LEAP Program
• The Coalition for Smart Development
• The Coalition for Westchester County Airport
• The Clean Energy Action Coalition

John has been a role model—not just for our organization, but for business advocacy organizations throughout the state and beyond. He will be deeply and genuinely missed.

Welcoming Noam Bramson

At the same time, I could not be more enthusiastic about the chapter ahead. Noam Bramson brings to the BCW a remarkable depth of government experience, nonprofit leadership, and a firsthand record of economic transformation.

As Mayor of New Rochelle for nearly two decades, Noam spearheaded a nationally recognized public-private revitalization framework on track to produce more than 10,000 housing units, guided the city through the first COVID outbreak in the eastern United States, and secured both the New York State Downtown Revitalization Initiative and Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge. Most recently, he served as Executive Director of Sustainable Westchester—working closely, in fact, with our own Clean Energy Action Coalition.

A Harvard-educated lifelong New Rochelle resident, Noam brings strategic vision, deep community roots, and an exceptional ability to bridge business, government, and civic life. He is an outstanding choice to build on John’s legacy and take the BCW to new heights.

Both John and Noam will serve together during a transition period from July 1 through December 31, 2026, ensuring continuity across all of our programs and member services.

Please join me in thanking John Ravitz for his fifteen years of unparalleled dedication—and in warmly welcoming Noam Bramson to the BCW family. We are so fortunate to have both of them.

With gratitude and excitement,

Dr. Marsha Gordon

President & CEO

The Business Council of Westchester