Christine Rutigliano

Christine C. Rutigliano built her career from the inside out — spending nearly 15 years in the New York State Legislature before crossing into two of Albany's other seats of power: the Comptroller's office and, since 2007, Robinson+Cole, where she now serves as President of the firm's Roffe Group. As one peer nominator put it, "Christine has made a lasting and meaningful impact on government, public policy, advocacy, and public service throughout New York State" over a career spanning more than three decades. That path, threading through the legislative, fiscal, and executive branches alike, gives her a comprehensive view of how New York government actually operates that few in her field can claim.

Her Capitol years read like a tour of state budget-making. In the State Senate, Rutigliano served the Democratic Conference as Finance Secretary, having previously served as Budget Director, supervising the entire committee staff's day-to-day operations and long-term goals while managing the expenditure and revenue components of the state budget for the conference — work her nominator credits with shaping public policy and fiscal decision-making while mentoring numerous emerging public policy professionals who have gone on to successful careers of their own. She spent the preceding decade in the Assembly, including three years as a budget analyst for the Ways and Means Committee, after beginning her public service career in Assembly Communications and Information Services. She later broadened that foundation as Deputy Comptroller in the New York Office of the State Comptroller, giving her, as her nominator put it, "a unique and comprehensive understanding of both the legislative and executive branches of government."

That same commitment now carries into the community and the classroom. Rutigliano currently serves as Vice Chair of the Donate Life New York State Board and previously served as President of the Empire Justice Board, and she teaches New York State Public Policy as an adjunct professor at the State University of New York at Albany, through the Center for Women in Government & Civil Society at the Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy. She holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science and Economics from SUNY Oneonta, including studies at the London School of Economics, and a master's degree in Public Policy, summa cum laude, from Marist College, where she was named Outstanding Scholar in her program.