Bronx Children’s Museum Welcomes Five New Members to Board of Directors

The new board appointees bring a wealth of creativity and experience to the Museum.

John Abrons was an investment advisor at Oppenheimer & Co. for 27 years and Executive Director for over 15 years. He has been a volunteer tutor in the Marlene Meyerson Jewish Community Center's Gift of Math program on the Upper West Side since 2016. Mr. Abrons has served as a board member of the Louis and Anne Abrons Foundation for 27 years and at the 149 Fifth Avenue Corporation for two years. He was also the President of the Madison 53rd Street Corporation for a year and a half. Mr. Abrons, a graduate of Connecticut College, has a strong interest in health and natural methods of healing. He lives with his wife in Manhattan, has three sons and has been following Bronx Children’s Museum’s progress over the years through his father Richard Abrons’ committed involvement with the Museum.

Nick Crowell is a litigation partner in the New York office of Sidley Austin LLP, and has been with the firm since 2002. He concentrates on complex securities and commercial litigation matters. He has represented many of the nation’s preeminent financial institutions, insurance companies and investment advisers in federal and state courts, before regulatory bodies and in arbitrations, in matters encompassing securities and commodities trading, derivative products, insurance and reinsurance disputes, distressed assets, real estate, yield burning, accounting fraud and antitrust violations. Mr. Crowell has been recommended by The Legal 500 in the area of Financial Services: Litigation. He received his BS from the University of Arizona and graduated with honors from The George Washington University Law School. Mr. Crowell currently resides in Fair Haven, New Jersey with his wife and three children.

Antonnique Day is Senior Vice President, People and Capability Business Partner for Finance and Law, Franchise and Integrity at Mastercard based in Purchase, New York. She is a member of the senior leadership teams for these 3 functional areas and provides her professional expertise to support the business priorities and talent strategies. Ms. Day joined Mastercard in 2008 and has held multiple HR leadership positions globally of increasing responsibility across the organization. Prior to joining Mastercard, Ms. Day developed her HR expertise in the banking and health care technology sectors at CitiMortgage (division of Citigroup) and Computerized Medical Systems. She holds a master’s degree in Human Resources Management from Webster University, St. Louis, Missouri, and a Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration from Jackson State University. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated and Alumni Fellow of St. Louis Business Diversity Initiative. Ms. Day lives in Greenwich, CT with her husband and 2 daughters. She is passionate about making positive impacts in her community through volunteerism and mentoring young professionals.

Jillian Faulls has been in real estate for over 10 years, working in the Bronx for many of those years. She was also a resident for five years, strengthening her bond to the borough. She has been affiliated with New York City's top brokerage firms, holding leadership roles from Project Manager, Sales Director and Leasing Director to Associate Broker for over 35 new development projects. Ms. Faulls received her BA at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and also took Continuing Education coursework in Marketing and Interior Design at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business and the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) respectively, broadening her creative and aesthetic vision. Ms. Faulls is an avid yogi, a clutter-free advocate and an alternative health warrior. She is committed to strengthening and unifying the community and has an infectious passion for the Bronx and for its children.

Jerome LaMaar is Bronx-born and raised. He has been defying expectations in fashion, art and culture for 20 years. He has dressed A-listers, created “South Bronx Luxe,” collaborated with major companies, designed Beyonce’s Ivy Park x Adidas line and was featured as a key designer in Beyonce’s Black is King film. Mr. LaMaar is a polymath with experience as a Creative Director, Designer, Stylist and Futurist. His career began in 2001, at the age of 15, when he worked for Baby Phat by Kimora Lee Simmons as a high school intern and later as the Junior Creative Director/Brand Coordinator. In 2008, he became a trend forecaster traveling the globe to contribute to, and guide, some of the world’s leading brands such as Adidas, L’Oreal, Uniqlo, Calvin Klein and Mattel, lending his perspective on art, culture, concepts and colors to push new ideas in technology and style. He created his own brand called 5:31 Jérôme in 2013. Two years later Mr. LaMaar opened his luxury pop-up boutique in the South Bronx called 9J, which shifted the image of the Bronx by showcasing art, music, design and new thought, landing him on the cover of the New York Times Styles section. He recently created a state-of-the-art, hands-free interactive exhibit for Bronx Children’s Museum called Bronxtopia. Mr. LaMaar is also the youngest Trustee to join the board of The Bronx Museum of the Arts.

The appointments increase the size of the Board to 27 directors. The new board members will see the Museum through to the opening of its doors and beyond.