Senator Toby Ann Stavisky
Toby Ann Stavisky, the first woman from Queens County elected to the State Senate and the first woman to Chair the Senate Committee on Higher Education, is a native New Yorker who was born and raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. She attended New York City public schools before graduating from Bronx High School of Science, and Syracuse University, which she attended on an academic scholarship. The Senator completed graduate school at Hunter and Queens Colleges.
After working in the actuarial department of a major insurance company, Mrs. Stavisky taught Social Studies in the New York City high schools. She served as district manager in Northeast Queens for the Census, where she directed more than 1,000 field and office staff and was cited by the Commerce Department for her outstanding work. In the community, Senator Stavisky has been involved in a wide array of activities on such issues as better schools, improved programs for older adults, social justice and opportunities for New Americans. Senator Stavisky was a founder of the North Flushing Senior Center and served on its Board of Directors. She served as a trustee of the Whitestone Hebrew Centre where she and her husband were honored as the "Couple of the Year."
Senator Stavisky has been honored by the Association for Neurologically Impaired Brain Injured Children and has also been recognized by Hadassah, CUNY, the New York Community College Association of Presidents, the Taiwanese Association of America, the Korean American Association of Flushing, the Flushing Chamber of Commerce and Business Association as well as the 112th Precinct Community Council. She was honored as a "Worthy Woman of Forest Hills" and was the recipient of the Claire Shulman Award from the "Top 10 Women in Business." For her “dedicated service to seniors across Queens,” Senator Stavisky was presented the Rose Kryzak Legislative Award from the Queens Interagency Council on the Aging. She has also received the New York Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (NYAHSA) Partners in Quality Award for her commitment to advancing quality services for older adults. The Samuel Field Y's CAP Connects Autism Support Program honored Sen. Stavisky for her dedication to the community. The New York Humane Society named Sen. Stavisky the Humane Legislator of the Year for her support of animal-friendly legislation. The Forest Hills Volunteer Ambulance Corps honored Sen. Stavisky's outstanding support of the organization as did the Samuel Field Y in “recognition of her leadership, commitment and service to the community.” The New York Branch of the NAACP honored her contributions toward furthering freedom and human dignity. The Senator is proud to have been an honoree at the 2012 Flushing Chinese Business Association dinner. Senator Stavisky serves as a State Director for Women in Government, a national, non-profit, bipartisan organization for female state legislators.
From 2003 to 2008, Senator Stavisky served as Assistant Minority Whip and Ranking Minority Member of the Committee on Higher Education. In 2009-10 she was Chairwoman of the Committee on Higher Education. Currently she holds a leadership position in the Senate as Vice Chairwoman of the Minority Conference and Ranking Minority Member on the Senate's Committee on Higher Education.
The former Toby Ann Goldhaar was married to Dr. Leonard Price Stavisky, a university professor, who served in the New York State Assembly and New York State Senate until his death in June of 1999. She resides in Whitestone and has one son, Evan, who is married to Kristen Zebrowski.
Senator Toby Ann Stavisky was elected to the Senate on November 2, 1999, with more than 92% of the vote and has subsequently been re-elected seven times. In 2010 she was reelected to office with 87 percent of the vote.
Standing Committee Assignments 2012: Higher Education (Ranking Minority Member), Aging, Education, Finance, Insurance, Judiciary, and Transportation. She also serves on the Senate Subcommittee on Libraries.
